Mud, mud, glorious mud

Vine House, Henbury, north Bristol has just rejoined the NGS fold with an early year opening. A 1½ acre garden, originally planted in 1940's, lies behind a listed Georgian house. It contains mature trees, shrubs, herbaceous borders, rock stream and gunnera.

In spite of it being very early in the season there was still colour to be had in the garden

On the way out we noticed a public footpath running alongside the house and decided to explore. It took us along a squidgy trail through the extensive grounds of the Blaise Castle estate and along part of the river Hazel with its small water mill.

The Gothic sham castle, designed and built in 1766 by Robert Mylne for Thomas Farr, was used as a summer house for entertaining guests and viewing the passage of trade ships along the Bristol Channel and into the mouth of the river Avon. When fire destroyed the ornate internal wood panelling and floors in 1954, the building fell into disrepair. The Friends of Blaise were formed to raise public interest and funding, which led to the buildings structural restoration in 1982.

The grounds also contain Blaise Castle House, Built in 1795 for John Scandret Harford by William Paty, it’s a solid, simple design placed on a rise so as to appear bigger. It currently houses a museum showing how people lived through time - what they wore, the toys they played with and how they managed their household chores.















The estate is criss-crossed by a number of (currently muddy) walks taking the rambler past incredible views and a collection of small caves.





Ending this blog with thanks to the lovely dog walker for the insite and directions that led us to this lovely spot. We will return in the late spring to walk the Rhododendron walk that, currently, is too muddy for even us mudlarks.