It never fails to surprise me what wonders lie off a well-beaten track. Take the A342 from Pewsey to Devizes, for example, a road I’ve driven countless times. Turning off down a lane, signposted to a dead-end village, and Otto and I discovered endless countryside delights with an undulating amble through the Stert Valley and around the edge of Potterne Wood. Far-reaching views of one of Wiltshire’s many White Horses melted into the dappled shade of woodland, while the bounding activity of a drove of hares was calmed with the gentle trickling of a tiny stream. I recommend parking in the middle of the village before joining the marked footpath so you can admire some of the delightful thatched cottages that get to enjoy these surroundings every day. If they don’t give you house envy, I’m not sure what will.