Last week I managed to tick off number 5 on my lists of my 12 Trusts of 2020 challenge. For those of you who don't know I set myself the challenge to visit 12 National Trust properties in 2020 and with everything that's happened this year, its proved more of a challenge than I anticipated! Regardless I'm 5 down and 7 left to visit this year which is great progress and another lovely way to spend a day.
For trust number 5 I headed to Anglesey Abbey. Located close to Cambridge, this National Trust has beautiful walks, gardens and even a working mill! (Note: the mill was not open on this occasion due to obvious reasons around Covid.)
There are lots of different elements to the grounds. From open spaced areas which are perfect for picnics to wooded areas, gardens and more which we stopped to look at and admire.
With lots of little twists and turns, there is a surprise around every corner. Beyond this statue was a lovely little seating area surrounded by lavender bushes which smelt incredibly and looked very peaceful to sit in. I didn't photograph it as there were people enjoying it at the time so you'll have to go enjoy it for yourselves!
Both mum and I marveled at this area as it felt like we could be in a jungle somewhere. The branches twisting and contorting on the wall looked quite amazing. With the wall ahead of us we knew there was a garden around the corner and we certainly weren't disappointed.
Around the bend was am amazing sea of Dahlias. I'd never come across these before and fell in love with them! The trust have cleverly planted different coloured types so one end of the garden were dark reds and purple types which then faded to pinks, oranges, yellows and whites. It really did look spectacular and has made me want to grow some myself for next year!
I'm definitely getting older as my love of plants is something I was never into in my 20s but I'm glad I can finally appreciate them at places like this.
After our wander round we settled down in one of the open spaces to enjoy a picnic. In such relaxing surroundings we ended up spending two hours just sat chatting and watching the world go by. There is plenty of space to social distance from other visitors so you can rest assure you'll have your own space to enjoy and admire the many beautiful views.
I mentioned at the beginning of this post there's a working mill. Unfortunately due to Covid it was closed but mum has visited previously and said that in normal circumstances you can go inside and see how it all works plus buy some of the flour! I hope that this is something that will reopen soon once the current climate has settled but what a brilliant feature in normal circumstances!
The final area to visit was the gift shop! It was inevitably that mum and I would have a peruse and we were both really impressed. There was a lovely selection of plants and garden things to choose from outside and inside donning our masks, we oohed and arred at the local gins, clothing, books and more. I ended up purchasing a lovely hat and a bookmark so watch out for that in a future post!
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