Cothele

We wanted an short walk in the morning so drove to Cothele and parked by the quay.  We knew the Hall was not open to see the Christmas garland till 11pm so went for a walk in the woods.  We started off going to the Mill then turned back and up the hill.  We thought this led to the House but we saw a path signposted to the Weir so followed that.  We had not been this way before and the weir was very pretty.

We returned to the car and then walked through the woods to the House and went to view the garland. It was brighter this year with lots of gold flowers.

Daffodils in Salcombe

We parked the car above North Sands and started our day drinking coffee on the benches watching people surfing.   We then walked into Salcombe town centre.  Because the trees were not yet in leaf  there was a clear view down to the river and the fort on the edge of the water.

Further along the road we saw that Woodcot House had an open garden.  I had long wanted to see this garden so was delighted to see we were in Salcombe on the right day this year.  There were banks of daffodils in the gardens and these looked particularly good with the backdrop of the estuary.

After walking around Salcombe we returned to our car.  Initially we had planned to walk from there to Overbecks, but by this time we did not fancy the climb up and down to South Sands and then up to Overbecks.  We knew the car park at Overbecks is small and there were a lot of visitors in Salcombe so we anticipated there would not be space to park there.  Instead we drove to East Soar NT car park and walked to Overbecks from there.  The NT guide book told us this was a mile walk.  When we got out of the car the sign said it was 2 km.  We started walking down the road to East Soar farm  and when we reached the gate which we had to go through to walk across the field the sign post said it was 1.5 miles!  It was a flat good path and the fields were not even too muddy.  As we started to walk down to Overbecks there was views to the estuary towards Salcombe.

When we arrived at the admission gate of Overbecks we mentioned that we had walked from the East Soar car park and so received tokens worth £1 each off whatever we bought in the cafe.

The garden was somewhat disappointing.  Overbecks is obviously not a spring garden.  There were a few daffodils but nothing spectacular.  Woodcot House garden we visited in Salcombe had a much better display of daffodils.  There was one magnolia tree that would have looked lovely but the recent cold weather had killed the flowers.  The best part of the gardens were the views.

Daffodils at Cothele

Having just been to see the daffodils at Saltram we thought we would compare their display with the daffs at Cothele.  Being in the Tamar Valley Cothele is renowned for its daffodils and last weekend was their daffodil weekend so we anticipated a good display.  As we drove down the narrow lanes to Cothele we knew that there will be daffodils in the hedges, but this time it was a much more spectacular display than we had seen before.  .

When we arrived at the  reception desk we were told the daffodils were about a week behind schedule because of the cold weather.  As we walked around the gardens we saw many in flower but more still to come. I would have thought they were more than a week late in flowering.  There were lots of different types of daffodils but they were scattered around the gardens and so did not make the spectacular impact that the daffs at Saltram had done.

Since we had last visited Cothele they had installed some sculptures, but we did not think they added anything to the beauty of the place.

There was a tent in front the garden with daffodils from other Cornwall growers which showed the vast variety of this flower.  A very knowledgeable NT worker was manning this stand and she told us that there were 150 varieties at Cothele, flowering between October and May.

After looking around the gardens we decided to walk in the estate.  I asked at the reception if there were any wild daffodils growing in the surrounding woodland and was told there were some in the Danescombe Valley.  So we purchased a booklet detailing short walks around the estate and chose to do Walk 4, a 2 mile walk in the Danescombe Valley.  This was a good path, with only short muddy patches, which was surprising as we have had so much rain lately.  We had walked from Cothele to and from Calstock in the past but never up the path away from Calstock.  It was a pleasant walk along the river and interesting to see industrial remains.  Unfortunately my camera battery was running out so I could not take many photos but did snap one of the occassional daffodils we saw in the woodland.

There was quite a steep climb up from the valley floor up to Cothele, but the views from the top of the valley were lovely.  No doubt they were more far reaching this time of the year because the trees were not in leaf.  There looked like there were lots of bluebell plants in the woods, so I should imagine it will be a pretty walk when they are out.

Buckland Abbey and Lopwell

It was a dull day with heavy showers forecast, so we did not want to go far so we chose to go to Buckland Abbey, which is just outside of Plymouth in the Tamar Valley and on the edge of Dartmoor.

Just as we arrived it started to rain, so we ran down to the reception ar a and were disappointed to see that the Abbey itself did not open until 11.30am.  We did not want to wander around the gardens in the rain if we could help it so we went into the shops in the courtyard.  As well as the National Trust shop there was a gallery with lots of lovely paintings  and embroidered pictures from Richard and Anne Woodgate. (www.annewoodgate.com  www.richardwoodgate.com.) There was also a second hand bookshop  and a garden room giving details of plants that could be seen in the garden.

By the time we had browsed through these rooms in the stables the rain had stopped so we were able to go into the gardens.  There was little to see in the Kitchen garden but the Cider House Garden and Wild Garden had plenty of daffodils and other spring flowers out.  

From the gardens we could see out over the fields where the sheep were grazing.  There were banks of daffodils flowering there.  It would have been good to walk around the estate to see what flowers we could see but the ground was too wet and the weather too threatening.

We often visit Buckland Abbey to walk through the woods but we have not been inside the Abbey for many years.  As we weren't able to go walking today we decided to spend the time exploring  inside.  Just inside the Abbey we watched a video that gave a brief history of the Abbey and told about the life of Sir Francis Drake.  We then walked around and were impressed with how well everything was laid out, with clear, brief explanations.  We could see that it would be a interesting place for children to visit.  The room guides were very friendly and knowledgeable.  We found the explanation about the ceiling in the dining room particularly interesting.

After some delicious soup in the restaurant we headed on to Lopwell Dam.  There were lots of wild daffodils in the hedges and in some of the fields which made it a pretty drive.  Once at Lopwell we could see that the water was coming fast over the weir.  It was a pity is was such a grey day or we could have crossed the river and walked in the nature reserve or towards Bere Alston.  Instead we sat in the restaurant and watched the river and the rain and hail!

Cothele Christmas Decorations

After many days of heavy rain and flooding we were pleased to see the sun and blue skies this morning, even though there was a cold wind.  As we anticipated that most paths would be muddy we chose to go to Cothele to see the famous Christmas garland.

Although we arrived at Cothele shortly after it had opened there were already a number of people admiring the garland when we entered the hall.  That, and the light streaming in the windows made taking photos difficult.

The garland looked very similar to the garland we saw 2 yeaers ago.  But in addition they had decorated the doors leading into the halls and shields on the walls.

After seeing the garland we went outside to walk around the gardens.  There were still some flowers out in the borders in the upper gardens although they were looking a bit miserable. As we walked down the valley
garden the stream was running fast.  Mahonia  gave bright splashes of colour.

 

Photos taken on 22.11.2010

Lanhydrock in late autumn

As we drove down to Lanhydrock the trees at the side of the road were very colourful.  But when we walked through the woods from Lanhydrock House to the River Fowey we realised that a lot of the leaves had fallen from the trees so the Autumn spectacular was past its best.  However there was still plenty of colour to see.

We walked along the river bank to Respryn Bridge and then up the Avenue back to Lanhydrock House.  There was not much colour in the gardens either, but it was still a pleasant stroll around it with the far reaching views.

Saltram in Autumn

It was a grey, cold day, so we decided to just have a short walk around Saltram Gardens.  The cyclamen were looking lovely at the side of the Lime Walk.  I am sure they have spread since last year.

Some of the trees were very colourful, brightening the dull day.

Lanhydrock

It was a lovely summer's day and as we thought it would be too hot to walk out in the open we decided to go to Lanhydrock, where there are lots of walks through the woods.

To begin with we walked around the gardens, which looked as lovely as usual.

We walked up to the Higher Gardens where there were lots of hydrengeas, some of them very dark blue, almost purple.

We then walked down through the woods to the River Fowey.  We walked along the river to Respryn Bridge and then headed back to Lanhydrock.  This time, instead of taking The Avenue, which is straight and rather boring, we turned right at the gatehouse and followed a path to the road.  After a short walk up the road we headed back into the wood and walked up until we were at the visitors reception.  This was a mlust more pleasant walk than up the Avenue.