A sunny afternoon (especially after a wet night and morning) is too good to waste at this time of year! We’ll have a walk around Attingham Park – the footpaths shouldn’t be too bad there, and the longest route is a reasonable leg-stretch. We can say hello to the crocodile* in the far pool (he wasn’t there! Where’s he gone? Warmer climes perhaps)…
*see “Snowdropping” Feb 2015
That’s how its owners, the National Trust, describe Calke Abbey. Here, they talk of preservation not restoration – to provide a reminder of the state many such houses were in, at the end of their existence, with their last residents living in just a tiny proportion of the house. Preservation of the last lived-in parts of Calke means displaying the amazing collection of stuffed birds and other creatures; the disused parts are shown complete with their stored clutter.
There’s far too much here to take in on a single visit – we were beginning to suffer from overload when we left the walled gardens and headed for home. We’ll have to come again.
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