A host of golden daffodils ....

William Wordsworth famously wandered lonely as a cloud around these parts, and chanced upon some daffodils.... an event not forgotten by all manner of hotels and shops in the vicinity of the Lake District. At this time of year you just can't avoid it ....

... but we wanted to find another host of daffodils with a Wordsworth connection.

In 1847 Wordsworth's only surviving daughter died from tuberculosis at the age of 43. 

Her devastated father planted thousands of daffodils in her memory, in the field he owned 

in front of his home in Rydal.

Dora's Field is tucked away behind the church of St Mary.

Today the site is maintained by the National Trust, and is still filled with daffodils.

We first found Dora's Field one summer, and promised ourselves to return in daffodil time.

As we strolled along the little paths, the sun came out fleetingly, and, as if by magic, 

for a moment everything was bathed in a golden glow.

Stone paths meander up the hillside, to even more daffodils.

We think we were probably a week too early to see the flowers in all their glory. The recent cold snap has held them back, but there were lots of little clumps of yellow braving the elements.

As always, you're never too far from a sheep, watching warily, especially if you have a dog.

Dora was buried nearby, in Grasmere.

You can find the Wordsworth family graves in the grounds of St Oswald's church 

in the heart of the village.

And, yes, there are daffodils there too!