A stroll through the Arlington Court Estate in the neighbouring County of Devonshire.

One from the archives!  Back in November 2011 my wife and I enjoyed an autumn stay in a National Trust holiday cottage at Loxhore in North Devonshire, a village on the edge of the Trust’s Arlington Court Estate.  The cottage, named Mortuary Cottage, is tucked away in a wooded valley through which ran the River Yeo.  The back door of the cottage was only a few yards from the riverbank. 

The cottage was given its rather sombre name due to it being designated the village mortuary in the Second World War.  Apparently every village had to have a building for use as a mortuary in case it was bombed by the Luftwaffe, but why the Germans would want to bomb an isolated village in North Devonshire is unfathomable. 

Mortuary Cottage at Loxhore in November 2011.  Cott Bridge over the River Yeo is behind the trees on the right of the picture.

 

Almost every day during our stay I went for a walk into the Arlington Court Estate. The house and estate belonged to the Chichester family for eleven generations.  I followed the footpaths along the slopes of the valley and down to the River Yeo and then on to where I eventually came upon the lake where the river is dammed.  The footpath continued across the dam and up through the wooded hillside to Arlington Court. 

Footpaths in Webber's Wood on the Arlington Court Estate.  Autumn 2011.

Autumn colours in Webber's Wood on the Arlington Court Estate in North Devonshire. November 2011.

I never went into the house - with boots muddied from the walk I doubt if I would have been welcome - nor the National Carriage Museum which is housed in the stable block.

The house dates from 1822 in its current form, but viewed from the outside it did not strike me as being one of the more attractive buildings in the Trust’s care.  However, the estate’s walks are difficult to better.

The Lake and its piers.

To quote from the National Trust information board:

“Sir John Chichester formed the lake in1850 by damming the River Yeo. 

Having built the lake, Sir John decided to impress his guests by building a long approach drive to his house which would be carried over the lake by a suspension bridge.  He died in 1851 before the project was complete.  The piers remain.”

The Lake and its piers on The National Trust's Arlington Court Estate in North Devonshire photographed in November 2011.

Herne Hill in South Somerset on a foggy autumn morning.

There was thick fog in my part of South Somerset this morning.  At around 11am the fog was lifting under a clear blue sky, and Herne Hill began to appear out of the murk.

Herne Hill in South Somerset appears out of the murk on a foggy autumn morning.

An autumn stroll around the gardens and orchards of Barrington Court, near Ilminster, in South Somerset.

A couple of days after the Autumnal Equinox, with the weather calm and warm, my wife and I visited the National Trust’s Barrington Court in South Somerset.  We have explored the Elizabethan mansion before so we decided to make the most of the sunshine and stroll around the grounds. 

Heading for the gate to the Rose and Iris Garden we passed the Herbaceous Border which was alive with bees busily working away, especially on the Michaelmas daisies.  It was quite a contrast to our own garden; we now see only an occasional bee whereas just a month ago our lavenders were bustling with them.

Bees among the Michaelmas daisies in the Herbaceous Border at Barrington Court in South Somerset.

In the Lily Garden I spent some time taking photos of Strode House and the pond.  Built of red brick in 1674 for William Strode II, Strode House was originally a massive stable block for 12 horses and 2 coaches.  It was converted into a home for the family of Colonel Arthur Lyle, a director of the famous Tate & Lyle sugar refining company, who took a 99 year lease on Barrington Court in 1920.  The Lily Garden was designed by Gertrude Jekyll and the architect J. E. Forbes, a friend of Colonel Lyle.

Strode House at Barrington Court in South Somerset.

The pond in the Lily Garden at Barrington Court.

Moving on across the South Lawn we noticed a huge lime tree standing by the entrance to the East Orchard was graced with an abundance of mistletoe.  Inside the East Orchard we sat in the shade for a while watching the acrobatic capers of a couple of squirrels, and then walked on through the arches in the neatly trimmed beech hedges either side of the Lime Walk. 

Mistletoe in a lime tree at Barrington Court.

We turned back toward the Elizabethan mansion house and arrived at the north front, the main entrance, of Barrington Court.  Taking the path around the east wing back to the south lawn I noticed the churchlike diagonal buttresses on the corners of the house – a pleasing feature.

After a couple of hours in South Somerset’s fresh autumn air it was time to head back to the car; while doing so my wife noticed some cyclamen growing in the shade beneath three oak trees.  Needless to say, we took photos.

Cyclamen, caught in a sunbeam, beneath oak trees at Barrington Court in South Somerset.

Somerset landscapes and skyscapes on the day of the Autumnal Equinox.

After several days of very wet and windy weather the sky cleared on the afternoon of Sunday 23rd of September, the day of the Autumnal Equinox.  I decided to take advantage of the much better weather and have a wander with my camera for a couple of hours.  The landscapes and skyscapes below are the result.

The view to the west from Beacon Hill, Ilminster, South Somerset.

Agrarian landscape west of Seavington St. Mary in South Somerset.

Fields on the northern slopes of Pretwood Hill, near Ilminster in South Somerset.

The view toward Castle Neroche on the Blackdown Hills in Somerset, from the western slopes of Beacon Hill, Ilminster.

A stroll over Herne Hill on the southern fringe of Ilminster in South Somerset.

On the last Friday in October I decided to go for a stroll over wooded Herne Hill on the southern fringe of Ilminster in South Somerset.  It was a bright, sunny, warm day and it seemed ideal for taking a few pictures of the autumn colours.  The hill, 361ft high, is owned and maintained by Ilminster Town Council.

Leaving the car in the pay and display car park opposite Tesco in Shudrick Lane, I turned left towards Ditton Street and then up the steep Listers Hill to the edge of town.  At the end of the last row of Edwardian terraced houses I turned west along the lane and then crossed the playing field where I picked up the footpath signposted to Greenway and Donyatt. 

Taking the tree-lined lane which goes steadily uphill I  came to a bench where a gap in the trees allowed a fine view north to Ilminster and its Church of St. Mary, built of Ham stone in the latter half of the fifteenth century and known as The Minster, with Beacon Hill on the skyline.

Ilminster in South Somerset viewed from Herne Hill.

The path became steeper and stepper until I reached the trig point at the top of the hill where another handy bench allowed a rest before I took some photos of the view east along Shudrick Valley.  The views to the south were difficult to photograph because of the low autumn sun, but I could see the tower of St. Andrew’s Church at Dowlish Wake and the hamlets of Sea and Peasmarsh.

Looking east along Shudrick Valley from the trig point on Herne Hill.

Setting off across a crisp golden carpet of Beech and Oak leaves at the top of the hill I soon came upon an intriguing tree stump inlaid with two pence pieces.  Someone had gone to a great deal of trouble to create a fascinating pattern, but what it signified I do not know.

A tree stump decorated with two pence pieces on the summit of Herne Hill.

Autumn colours on Herne Hill near Ilminster in South Somerset.

Exiting the western side of the wood it was now straight downhill all the way to the old railway line at Donyatt Halt.  As I followed the hedgerow and track there were fine views of the village of Donyatt and its village church of St. Mary with the Blackdown Hills beyond. To the north-west the Quantock Hills were easily visible. 

The path to Donyatt from Herne Hill near Ilminster.  The Blackdown Hills are on the skyline.

At Donyatt Halt I rested awhile then took some photos of the substantial World War Two Taunton Stop-Line defences - that will be for a future blogpost – before walking along the cycle path, which follows the track bed of the old railway, back to Ilminster.

Autumn colours at Burrington Combe on the Mendip Hills in Somerset.

Autumn colours at Burrington Combe on the Mendip Hills in Somerset.

Autumn colours at Long Ponds near Ilminster in South Somerset.

Last month, as the trees began to change colour, I went for a stroll to Long Ponds which is a small lake beside the footpath between the villages of Whitelackington and Kingstone, near Ilminster, in South Somerset.  The lake is in a valley and surrounded by woodland so it makes a very picturesque scene when the sun is at the right angle to highlight the autumnal colours of the trees.

It is best to find somewhere to park in Ilminster and walk east out of the town beside the old London Road until you find the sign saying Whitelackington.  The footpath to Kingstone is through a gate on your right. 

Just inside the gate is a World War Two pill-box which was part of Ilminster's defences.  Ilminster was an anti-tank fortress on the Taunton Stop-Line and many of the town's defences can still be seen - by those who know where to look.

Walk down the track for about a quarter of a mile and you will come to Long Ponds.  Be aware of the signs saying "Strictly Private Fishing" and keep dogs on leads as there is a lot of wildlife around!

Long Ponds between the villages of Whitelackington and Kingstone, near Ilminster, in South Somerset.