Autumn Walk

The National Trust is a huge British charity concerned with the preservation of the landscape, both natural and man made. They own a lot of our coast, many woods, whole mountains and thousands of miles of footpaths but when most people think of the Trust, they think of stately homes.

Anglesey Abbey, near Cambridge, is a magnificent house, still occupied but open to the public. But most people don't go there to see the house at all; the gardens are the big attraction. There are several gardens to explore as well as some lovely parkland with a good collection of trees which is best seen in autumn. There's a working water-mill too.

The gardens are mostly formal, populated by statues and visited by enthusiasts. Anglesey has the national collection of snowdrop varieties and puts on a great show of Dahlias. If you are over 50, this may "float your boat" but if you are under 15, it probably won't.

A few years ago the gardeners planted a winter garden which has become quite popular with families, but kids still tend to go through it at a running pace.  The parkland is more fun as you can run free, fall down hills, hide in ditches and roll in the leaves.

We hadn't visited for a while, but last week-end we returned with our son Dan, and what a transformation! The place was full of families with young children having an absolute blast. The visitor centre had been given a make-over and the car-parks had been enlarged to cope with this new influx of visitors. But what was the big attraction for so many children?

You have to be careful in managing a stately home and gardens to keep it "stately". People don't want to pay good money just to visit a park, because we are used to getting that for free. The National Trust has performed a minor miracle, keeping the house as it was, with great gardens and parks as the older members would like it, but in the furthest corner of the estate they have been beavering away on a nature-exploration area for children. Recently a big tree house has been added as well as a bird hide, giant bird's nest, hanging xylophones, maizes and den building areas. There's plenty to keep your tinies busy for hours and they get to walk a couple of miles in the process.

As always, the Trust shop really caters for the older customer, but the cafe seems to have plenty for the young'uns to eat and drink.

If you like this kind of place, then Chatsworth House in Derbyshire and Bewilderwood Norfolk are even better, but, if you live near Cambridge, Anglesey Abbey is just great.