Category Archives: South West

This was my third ‘park’ in as many days but the three were all very different and I ended my weekend with the quickest – but perhaps most energetic – of the visits. Sadly, the glory days of Prior Park … Continue reading →

For some reason, Newark Park had never been on my radar as an important visit and often got pushed aside in my planning in favour of more high-profile properties. In fact, even for this long weekend, I had scheduled Dyrham … Continue reading →

This may have been my first visit on Friday the Thirteenth, so there was always the possibility of a run of bad luck. When there were no guidebooks available at visitor reception, I feared the run was starting, but the … Continue reading →

There is something very sad about Kingston Lacy as many of its most striking features were designed by a visionary man who succeeded in turning his dreams into reality but did not get to fully appreciate the results. As ever … Continue reading →

My over-riding thought after a day on Brownsea Island is that I could happily live there… although perhaps I would have to ban the other tourists and close down the scout camp, both intrusions of the ‘real world’. Without them, … Continue reading →

Tyntesfield was built on bird poo. Well, not literally, that would just be weird. What I should have said is that it was built on the proceeds of the guano trade, with the Gibbs family having made a fortune from … Continue reading →

Getting from Surrey to North Somerset when the M4 is closed at Newbury is pretty challenging but I made it eventually, after taking a magical mystery tour of Wiltshire. I am staying near Bristol for a couple of nights to … Continue reading →

I will start this entry with a little bit of housekeeping as I have just discovered that Dunster Castle and Watermill are now combined as one property in the handbook. I realised that I had them down as two separate … Continue reading →

Arlington Court has a lot to offer the visitor. We discovered this when we found ourselves running out of time before closing and our visit turned into an episode of Benny Hill, with me dashing frantically around and the other … Continue reading →

I’m back! Or at least I hope I am… none of us can be truly confident with this virus still lurking. For now though, I am hoping that I can resume my travels and start ticking off the last 96 … Continue reading →