Gardens at Lyme

Despite frequently driving past on our way to and from Manchester, we've only once stopped long enough to explore the hall and gardens at Lyme. That was a dampish February day, and we spent most of our time inside the building. I've wanted for a while to go back and explore the garden, and last week I eventually got there.

First stop was the cafe for sausage rolls and cake (orange and poppy seed), then, because the drive is rather steep and a little far for my 'in recovery' ankles, we caught the shuttle bus up to the hall entrance.

The way to the garden leads through the cloistered inner courtyard, but this time we decided to skip the house tour, and head straight outside.

The garden isn't absolutely flat (something I've become concerned about after my falling over accident) but the small flights of steps were manageable with care. I decided to not go down into the Italian garden though as the path to it is sloped (actually trickier with sprained ankles than steps), so just admired it from above.

From here a path leads round the far side of the lake. We didn't spot Mr Darcy swimming but to be fair it was rather cold (6 degrees!), understandably as Lyme is the second highest garden looked after by the National Trust. The walk does afford lovely views back to the hall though, with snowdrops, daffodils, and crocus starting to appear alongside the path.

A variety of paths lead onwards and upwards towards the 'top lawn', where the herbaceous borders and rose garden are waiting for warmer months. Again I found myself thinking 'I must come back at a warmer time of year'.

The last stop on our tour was the orangery - it was certainly several degrees warmer inside and a good place to take a few minutes and rest my ankles.

This is one aspect of our visit that we certainly timed right - on the wall beyond the fountain is a wonderful ceiling-height camellia, and, at this time of year, it's absolutely covered in flowers. 

The garden and house aren't all there is to explore at Lyme - a huge deer park surrounds them, and now offers walks of a variety of lengths - but they have to wait for another day.