Day 7 Wrest Park, Bedfordshire

 A visit to Wrest Park in Bedfordshire

Barb loves a stately home and garden .... so of course we signed up for an anual membership to English Heritage. You only have to visit three places to make it economically worthwhile .... and Barb can do that in three days. She's unstoppable!

Trying to find a place nearish that Susan and the dog could also visit, Wrest Park met the criteria. It's a 45 minute drive from Susan's place through beautiful farming countryside and passing through a couple of quaint villages into the neighbouring county. We reached Wrest Park at midday and enjoyed a lunch break in the garden before we started the tour.

John and Susan having lunch
(That's John pushing the cake away. Honest!)

There's a lovely children's playground right beside the eating area. Dogs on leads welcome too.

There were espaliered stone fruit trees running the whole length of the walled garden

There is actually no desigated tour here. You're free to wander the gardens at leisure and signage along the way tells you about the various follies and the orangery as well as being able to access some rooms in the lower rooms of the great house (the De Grey family still live in the upper floors).

John and Susan in the French Parterre garden

The great house

Susan and Barb rest on a seat in front of the great house. It's a long walk.

John wrangling the dog

We headed over to the Orangerie, one of the many garden buildings in these extensive gardens. Of course Capability Brown had a hand in the layout of the formal garden, as he did in so many of these 1800s stately homes. Busy man!

Susan and Bella

Yep, that's the Orangery...bigger than most people's houses

Complete with miniature orange trees inside

The Orangery outside

Time for another rest break in front of the Easter egg egg & spoon race set up for the kids

It's too far to walk down to the next garden building, so we send John

Just another wee out-building

At the end of this serene lake is another garden folly

Beautiful folly

It's a long sculpture trail back to the great house

And a fountain or two

That's how long a walk it is .... you can barely see the lake and folly in the distance

John and Susan take a breather outside the main entrance

Imagine swanning down this staircase to the ball

A gallery of family portraits

The library .... all the furniture was sold
off by a previous owner in debt

Barb on the terrace overlooking the Italianate gardens

The trees are starting to leaf up ... a late spring on its way!