Bored with the Beach?
Then try something different
I’ve enjoyed a fabulous day at Lanhydrock, a National Trust destination that I think offers the whole family a wonderful day out.
I last visited about 10 years ago with my family, and today’s visit did not disappoint.
Where to start? We ventured into the famous Victorian kitchens at the rear of the house. What an eye opener with a series of dedicated rooms for the preparation of meals for the household from a bygone era.
In fact it’s not ONE kitchen but several. All dedicated to specific culinary tasks. For example, there are special kitchens for the preparation of meat, puddings, pastry, bread, a creamery and an enormous roasting spit!
To my mind, many of the features like the warming cupboards, ovens layouts, and utility and preparation formats are what we think of today in a typical country kitchen. The flag stoned floors, the tiling, bespoke carpentry, and the beautiful copper utensils and fittings are all bang on trend!
There was a horrific chimney fire back in 1881 and this prompted the complete rebuild of these ‘state of the art’ kitchens.
I did find it odd that there is no kitchen garden to visit. I did ask a member of staff why and it was explained to me that the original walled kitchen garden is today being used to nurture plants for the gardens only.
A self-guided tour of the House is a must. No musty dour rooms to endure here. The highlights are the elegant dining room, bedrooms, boudoir and the long gallery with its star attraction of a ceiling. Well worth it. I promise.
I don’t normally bother with gift shops BUT on this occasional couldn’t resist the temptation. Oodles of gift inspiration for house and home, and yep, I did treat myself. I bought some exquisite William Morris glass coasters to match my curtains at home.
The Gardens and Grounds
The parterre gardens are impressive, although I have seen better examples at other historic properties. Currently, it’s planted up simply with dahlias; although I suspect that the gardeners change the planting choice each season.
The gardens to the rear offered up amazing views across the moors, and I enjoyed the enormous array of hydrangeas and, I can imagine that May/June would offer up some stunning walks because of all the rhododendrons up there. Plus, there’s acres of parkland to explore and various walks, and you can hire bikes and pedal your way round too. I also noted lots of wheelchair access which is brilliant.
For me, the best formal gardens are at the side of the house (located to the right – looking at the house). Wow Wow and Wow. This garden is a feast for the senses. There was a guide to all the different flower beds but frankly, I was content walking about oohing and ahhing! Oh, and taking lots of pictures of flowers that I MUST have in my garden …
Because of all that excitement (and exercise), naturally I had to sit awhile in the courtyard with a slab of Victoria sponge and a tray of tea. Very nice, and friendly service in the café too. PS: toilets plentiful.
The children will absolutely love the adventure playground!!
This huge adventure playground is ideally located at the entrance to the whole estate near to the car parks. Because you don’t even have to visit the house and gardens, you can park (free for National Trust Members) and the kids will be entertained for hours here.
I’ve never seen such an extensive and free adventure park so well laid out. The children there were loving it. There’s a café with seating outside and lots of loos. Alternatively, as I saw, families had packed a picnic and set up on the grounds near-by. Brilliant! I really wanted to climb on some of the frames and try out the balancing bars …
In short, if you’re bored of the beach and fancy a change of scene why not head out to Bodmin and seize the day doing something different with the family. Dogs are allowed in the grounds too!
Lanhydrock National Trust is just 40 minutes from Trenannick Farm Cottages. Check out the website for opening times and entry fees at https://www.nationaltrust.org.uk/visit/cornwall/lanhydrock
