Fyne Court

Tags

Andrew Crosse, Fyne Court, Magnum, Meadow brown, National Trust, Social distancing

Having finished my lunch on the stile at Hawkridge Reservoir, I made my way south for some ten minutes to a National Trust property in Somerset that I had not previously visited, Fyne Court. I was planning just to explore the grounds of the 65-acre estate, as I knew that the house had long ago – 1894 in fact – burned down. For generations, the property had belonged to the Crosse family, including one Andrew Crosse, who had been one of the key people to experiment with electricity early in the 19th century. The property was left to the National Trust in 1967.

Once away from the remaining outbuildings, I chose the longest – 40-minutes – of the three short waymarked walks. Pond-dipping was available on one of the other two,

as was what I imagined had been the old kitchen garden.

Two-metre social distancing indicators!

I seem several times recently to have been inside a wood looking out on a field.

Meadow brown

I always like a nice valley.

I was given permission to to take the photo of these two, and to include it in a blog post, even when I said the caption was likely to be ‘Big kids enjoying a tree’.

It was for me to enjoy the next tree, just 50 metres on. The heavens opened when I was between the two, with more of the 3% chance of rain which had been forecast for the day.

I stayed perfectly dry and used the wait to study details.

The rain did not last long,

and when I emerged I found I was not far from my starting point, the outbuildings.

Having looked at the panels, of which this is one, about previous occupants of the property,

I improvised a face mask from an old shirt I had in my backpack (just in case I was cold – quite the opposite!) and went into the tea-room, which had just reopened that afternoon it seemed, and treated myself to a Magnum.

I didn’t fancy sitting around to eat it, but took it back to my car. Just as well – the heavens opened again just as I got there!

I was pleased to find that no roadworks held me up on my way home.

Court House NGS

Tags

Court House East Quantoxhead, East Quantoxhead, Meadow brown, National Gardens Scheme, Steep Holm, Wales, Weston-super-Mare, Wimbledon

As I mentioned two posts ago, the gardens of Court House, East Quantoxhead were to be open on 19th July. Typically I had forgotten this, but when I was looking on the National Gardens Scheme website for somewhere to visit on that (Sun)day, up it popped. And it was a Sun-ny day, unlike for my NGS visit on the previous day.

As I arrived at the car park, seeing the number of people milling around there I was a little concerned as to whether people would be respecting social distancing, but I soon realised that we were all arriving promptly at the same time for our 3 pm slot. In the grounds people were well dispersed, and, with one exception about which I’ll say no more except that it involved someone coughing, I was not concerned about my safety. We were all very aware and stood aside very appropriately. (I find that need to be so conscious, when mingling with others, permanently stressful, as I’m sure others do.)

This map was posted at several spots around the grounds.

Basically I went in an anticlockwise direction, with a diversion into the ‘wild’ garden.

As I went over into the wild garden, (no pictures), I found myself crossing a path that Zoe, Bruce and I had taken on our walk three weeks previously. (How time is doing odd things in these odd times – I was convinced, until I looked it up, that it had been only two.)

I had taken this from a different angle

Back in the main grounds, I took many pictures of the attractive pond, its beauty lying in its surrounding planting, rather than its green surface.

And then, to my surprise and delight, I found myself higher than I had imagined, with a view of the sea ahead,

and to my right a sight of that vast field which three weeks previously had been shimmering blue with flax flowers. This photo shows only half of it. We had walked along the path at its right-hand edge.

Immediately over the fence, a Meadow Brown (female)

Steep Holm off Weston-super-Mare on the horizon, centre, and Wales, further away left

Arriving at Court House itself. It seemed smaller than it had appeared from the coastline

The terrace

Had I continued west, I could have gone for a walk in ‘The Allers’, a woodland garden. Another time perhaps. Instead I turned back to skirt round the other side of the house and the village church, arriving in the ‘Church Walk Borders’.

There I concentrated on taking smaller scale photos.

I love the juxtaposition of green and mauve/purple, as does nature. And it makes me think of Wimbledon. Sadly so this year.

Unprepossessing, but absolutely humming with bees.

This completely walled area was called the ‘Secret Garden’. It felt very intimate.

By contrast, the kitchen garden was vast.

Looking back into the kitchen garden

The stable yard, and, presumably, coach house

And it was not long before I was back at the village pond, which we had viewed from the other side three weeks previously. Still no visible ducks.