National Trust Winter Gardens and Walks

Walks And Walking - National Trust Winter Walks

You can't quite beat the icy cold air from an embracing Winter walk. I always think you should do every walk at least four times so that you get to see the surroundings, countryside, forest or landscape in all its year round beauty. The snow adds that extra bit of excitement to any walking route whether it be a woodland walk in Epping Forest, a waterfall country walk in Wales or a long trek across Bodmin Moor in Cornwall.

The Forest Way is a favourite walk of mine that leads from Epping Forest all the way up to Hatfield Forest. Hatfield Forest is a rare surviving example of a medieval royal hunting forest and is now owned by the National Trust. The National Trust have a huge list of nationwide Winter gardens that make great locations for a good Winter walk where you can blow away the cobwebs and enjoy a refreshing walk in a frosty garden.

Winter Walks - Walks And Walking

The National Trust's Top Ten Winter Gardens

The Stourhead Estate in Wiltshire is set around a huge lake with plenty to see and do including classicial and gothic buildings, woodlands, a mystical grotto and a unique circular temple dedicated to Apollo

Dinefwr Park and Castle is located in Carmarthenshire and dates back to the 18th-century with five walks across the estate with the rare and historic White Park cattle grazing in the medieval parklands.

Anglesey Abbey, Garden and Lode Mill is situated in Cambridgeshire and offers an atmospheric Emperor's Walk and over 150 species of plant in its Winter Garden.

Clumber Park in Nottinghamshire offers over 3,000 acres of green space and makes a great day out for long distance walkers with the longest lime tree avenue in Europe.

Dunham Massey is located in Cheshire and is the largest Winter Garden in the UK with over 700 different species of plant and over 1,600 different types of shrub.

Fountains Abbey and Studley Royal Water Garden is situated in Yorkshire and is a World Heritage Site that offers extensive ruins of the Cistercian abbey, elegant temples, neo-classical statues, canals and moon shaped ponds of the Royal Water Garden.

Killerton in Devon offers far reaching views of Dartmoor and Haldon Hill as well as an Ice House and the Bear's Hut summerhouse

Mottisfont is situated in Hampshire and is a newly created Winter Garden inspired by the River Test with over 5,000 new plants and species of shrub.

Rowallane Garden in County Down offers an enchanting garden, walled garden, Pleasure Grounds and a very enjoyable walk around the famous Rock Garden Wood.

Stowe Landscape Garden is situated in Buckinghamshire offering wide open spaces, wooded valleys, and ornamental lakes, spectacular views, hidden corners and over 40 temples and monuments.

For more details of The National Trust's Top Ten Winter Gardens click here.

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Fwd: Epping Forest Walks

Epping Forest Walks

There is a magnificent world on the borders of North London Town which has been allowing Londoners and visitors to the area an opportunity to escape into the wilderness for hundreds and thousands of years. This amazing tranquil and idyllic land which is protected by Parliament itself and the City of London is no other than the great Epping Forest.

Epping Forest is a sprawl of 6500 acres which stretches over the borders of Essex and London from the North to the East and encompasses fields for cattle grazing which in rotation allows the public access to perfectly naturally maintained fields all year round.

Other amenities range from playing areas, paths for walking, guided walks and cycle rides, leisure activities from camping to yachting on the lakes and heritage events and theatre performances in the fresh open air of Epping Forest.

The cattle grazing are usually the outstanding and bulky English Longhorn with their inwardly curved horns, such a more beautiful brown and white cow did you ever wish to meet while walking in the wilderness of London's suburbs. This bred of cow, rare until the mid 1980s, the latest grazing project right at the heart of Epping Forest will aid in the survival of the great English longhorn breed.

With animal welfare, wildlife management, forestry management and natural grazing projects at its heart, Epping Forest continues to offer the young and the old an opportunity to glimpse wilderness on their doorstep whilst offering a range of outdoor activities and even a few that are usually found inside.

The parks and open spaces that make up the 6,5000 acres of Epping Forest and its wide and all inclusive land is open to cyclists, horse riding and hikers of all ages and what better way than to engage one of many Epping Forest walks and cycle routes.

With over 650 species of plants, over 80 lakes and ponds the many animals and wildlife that live within Epping Forest leave much for you to unearth and discover both physically and visually when on the paths and tracks and partaking in the great Epping Forest walks on offer.

The UK's green and pleasant land is not to be sniffed at or taken for granted, to ensure Londoners and visitors to London and the suburbs get to visit such great and wonderous places such as Epping Forest then the areas need to used in every day society. Or land usage gets bought and used by other interested parties like builders and planners, Epping Forest walks are open to every one and all year round with carefully plotted routes and paths which take you past interesting and colourful flora and fauna.

There are many ways you can partake in Epping Forest Walks, aside from the guided tours and venturing out into the plains, woods and navigating your own way around Epping Forest, There are organised Epping Forest Health Walks on Tuesdays and Thursdays with a Centenary walk in mid September.

It's only walking in Epping Forest that is catered for, but cycling too. You can hire Mountain Bikes for specific trails within Epping Forest and utilise the many tracks and guided tours on offer. Epping Forest walks and trails are in leaflet form or by guided tour but feel free to ramble and take in the sights and sounds of the local wildlife on the doorstep of London Town its very self.

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David Knockton

m: +44 (0) 7912 664473 

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