Friday 7 October 2011

Arlington Court and The Wilderness

Distance 3km; with Lynsey & Isabel

We had arranged to meet some friends in Bideford late this afternoon, so we decided to spend the day in North Devon and headed to the National Trust estate of Arlington Court. Due to traffic we didn't arrive until after midday so we immediately headed to the tea room for a spot of lunch.  Lynsey's knee was still bothering her so we opted for a relatively short stroll on good paths with Isabel in the pushchair. At around 1:30pm, we set off on the circular walk to the lake. After walking down the main drive we turned left and followed a vehicle track through the woods down to the Lake.

Here the signposted route back to the house was via "The Wilderness", which was somewhat intriguing. We crossed the river and headed slightly uphill on a muddy path through the open parkland.

Near the top of the hill, the path improved as we entered an area of woodland.  At the bottom of our hill to the right there were some interesting looking structures, which on closer inspection were some small huts and a dragon pizza oven, whatever one of them is!

Back on the path again there was a handy signpost that informed us that we were now in "The Wilderness".  But surely it can't really be wilderness if there's a signpost, a path and even a dragon pizza oven! 

Soon we were back in the immediate grounds of Arlington Court, with a good view across the small lake to the estate church.  We had a quick look round the gardens before heading back to the tea room at around 2:30pm to share a cream tea between the three of us.

No comments:

Post a Comment