Caerhays Castle Gardens

Saturday was a bright sunny day so we decided to visit Caerhays Castle.  These gardens are renown for their magnolias, camelias and rhododendrons and we had wanted to visit them for a couple of years when we heard how magnificent they were.

The car park for the Castle was by the beach and we enjoyed sitting on the beach eating our pasty lunch.  Although it was only April and the weather had not been good so far this year there were still children playing in the sea.

As we walked up the drive to the castle we could see the colour of the rhododendrons in the background.

As we walked around the grounds time and time again we saw the most beautiful trees and bushes, with masses of primroses.  There were lots of camelias, many different types of magnolias. Some rhodendrons and azelias were out, although there were a lot more to come.  I saw my first bluebells here as well.

Walking around the gardens involved lots of walking up hills.  However the views from the top were worth the effort.

Mount Edgecumbe in Spring

It was a grey day, but promising sunshine later so we thought we would go and see the spring flowers in  Mount Edgecumbe.  From the ferry we walked along the South West Coast Path and when we reached the small beach we could see daffodils in the distance on the banks at the side of the path.

We continued walking until the steps and then followed the path back to the Mount Edgecumbe House.  Along this path there were rhododendrums and lots of camelias.

As we followed the road back down to the ferry the sun came out and we were able to see the bank of daffodils at the bottom at their best.

As we looked back at Mount Edgcumbe we could see there was a large flowering tree in their garden, although we were too far away to identify it.

When we arrived back at the ferry (after just over an hour walking) there was a large naval ship coming into the dockyard and we were able to see it up close.

The afternoon was finished off by delicious scones from the bakery at the Royal William Yard.  To begin with I thought I was going to be disappointed as they did not have any scones for sale, but there were some left from yesterday and they gave these to us.  They were lovely, and did not taste stale at all.

Antony

Antony House does not open before Easter, so today was the first opportunity to see the gardens there.  There were lots of children enjoying the Easter egg hunt around the grounds so we went straight to the Woodland Gardens.  There were many camelias in flower bordering the paths.

There were occasional magnolias also in flower, their white blossom giving a contrast to the pinks and reds of the camelias.

The bluebells were just beginning to come out and at one point we could see a blue haze as there was a group of them.

There were primroses on either side of the paths and at times carpets of them.

As we walked back to Antony House we stopped to see the daffodils that were still out in the grounds.