With our picnic packed and the weather forecast promising a warm sunny day, we travelled to Mount Stewart in County Down, on the Ards Penninsula. It’s a place we love, and we will no doubt return again, and again!
Part of the reason to visit these gardens was to once again be surrounded by trees, something I have missed very much since the Coronavirus circulated the Earth. I feel that I am incomplete if I can’t have trees and their company in my life. So today I’m posting about a walk around a garden full of trees.
Here is the website: https://www.nationaltrust.org.uk/mount-stewart
After our visit we travelled a few minutes along the road to a small car park where there were some picnic benches and that’s where we remained until it was time to drive home.
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A Different View 
I am so glad you got such wonderful weather! What a lovely day connecting with the trees and familiar places. The garden reminds me of an enchanted garden. Thank you for sharing your blessed day with us. ππ
Thank you, Morag, we have enjoyed many visits to these gardens and still get a buzz, even though it’s an hour and a half drive away! Thank you for visiting my blog and for your lovely comments ππ
Now I must get on with some crochet work π€£ Yes, I’ve got the wool and the needle, and this weekend another journey begins! πΆββοΈ
Oooh hooray ππ I must get back to mine as well ππ
I wish you luck π€ππΉ
The Mount Stewart website is so inspiring!
Dear Ashley, thank you so much for such wonderful pictures it made my hospital day much better.
Joanna
Dear Joanna, I do hope your stay in hospital will soon be over and you can return to your beautiful garden with all the wonderful scents, especially from your roses. Here are some hearts to wish you better ππππππ§‘
What a wonderful area! I’m so glad that you have this beautiful wooded lake and garden area close enough to visit. Thank you for sharing!
Thanks, Katelon, it’s about an hour and a half in the car but well worth it. Thank you π
Mt. Stewart looks like a great place to spend a beautiful summer day! The lake area looks gorgeous. The jungle looks like a bamboo garden, which I’d love to see. I agree with your need for trees in your life. I couldn’t live without trees! Thanks for sharing these photos with us, Ash-tree-sama! Loved it!
Hi Ed, we’ve missed our days out so thoroughly enjoyed this one! Hopefully, we are all in a better place now that there are many more people being vaccinated. Check Flickr later in the weekend as I will put up more photos there. Have a grea\t weekend π
Sounds like a great outing. Super photos; what a wonderfully diverse garden and landscape. First photo looks like a tropical island beach area (I would think) and great contrasts, lovely green trees and lawns, and a dramatic beach. Superb.
Thank you, Marina, it’s lovely to hear from you! The location of the gardens is known for having its own micro-climate. The tide in Strangford Lough was out and we were able to do a bit of beachcombing. We’re hoping we can get out a bit more now that restrictions are easing. I hope it’s the same for you and you are keeping well and safe. ππ₯π
Such a delightful stroll. Thanks for taking us along. ππ
And thank you for accompanying me!πππ
What a beautiful place, Ashley! Thanks for sharing beautiful picsπ
Hi KK! I’m glad you enjoyed them. Thank you for visiting my blog π
It looks like a beautiful place Ashley, it’s refreshing to be surrounded by so many trees and then the sea to finish things off!
Dear Andrea, thank you for visiting my blog and your comments. This house and garden have been a favourite of ours for so many years and if the National Trust had only this location on their books, I’d still join up just to visit here. Of course, it is a good drive from home so I imagine that adds to the idea of a proper day out. Enjoy what’s left of the weekend ππ
I now see you have been able to see trees and the coast, that’s wonderful ! Thank you very much for sharing your outing with us ! There is a kind of peace only trees can elicit, and I can feel it looking at your beautiful pictures.
Your kind comments are very much appreciated, thank you, Frog! Trees and the coast, what more could I ask for πππ
What lovely gardens Ashley. And lots and lots of trees!
Thank you, Clive! It is a really lovely location, with Strangford Lough to the west and the Irish Sea in the east. The penninsula is a great place with its own micro-climate! We love the area! Thanks for visiting my blog.
Itβs always lovely to hear about different places especially when they are as lovely as this. Thanks for sharing.
Looks a nice shadey place to enjoy. And grand to be so close to the coast. π
Thanks, Shazza, for visiting my blog. It makes for a lovely day out and after the last year of lockdowns, it was a joy to be outside. ππ
Maravilloso lugar para pasar un dΓa delicioso. Las fotografΓas son preciosas!!! Un abrazo grande.
Thank you, Barbara, it is certainly a place to spend all day exploring. Un abrazo grande ππββοΈ
Oh, what a beautiful place on earth! Thank you for taking us along, Ashley, it’s just gorgeous! And I completely echo your feelings regarding trees – I love them so much! And they give us so much we can be thankful for: shade in the summer, fruits, oxygen, wood if we need it, stabilizing river banks… the list is endless! My heart bleeds whenever I see a tree cut down.
Love your photos – the lake looks so peaceful, and the rose garden is so pretty with its stone pillars and surrounding wall. And the beach looks so empty! What a wonderful day you must have had! π β€
Hi Sarah, although it’s about an hour and a half’s drive away, no matter how many times we visit this location we always seem to have a special day. There is definitely something about the location that is magical and something to do with the trees. Thank you for your wonderful comments. Enjoy what’s left of the weekend. Today I’ve been green woodworking in a small private wood and tomorrow morning we’ll find a walk by some water! πππββοΈ
Woodworking and walks by the water sound wonderful! I’m currently looking into textile dyeing and printing. π
I love the images. I feel so similar about being out in trees and nature.
Many thanks, Gabriel for your lovely comment. I sometimes wish I could live in a wood, surrounded by trees! I’d hug them every dayπ Thank you for visiting my blog ππββοΈ
π Love that
Your picnic looks divine, I love nature, ocean, also your settings are so pristine. ππ₯°
Thank you for your lovely comments. It was certainly a memorable day and we are sure to return there πππ₯°
Indeed!! One can go over and over to such a place, everytime one can find a new thing to explore.
So much greenery! It looks like a wonderful place π
It is certainly very green but there are some beautiful reds and oranges later in the year. Thank you for visiting ππββοΈ
Sounds amazing! Thanks for the virtual tour π
Ashley, I really enjoyed reading your beautiful report and looking at the atmospheric photos. It’s nice that you had such pleasant summer weather! What a relaxing day that you could spend in beautiful surroundings. The garden looks like a quiet, green wonderland. Thanks a lot for this!
Ashley, I wish you all the best!
Rosie from Germany . ππ₯°
Thanks, Rosie for your lovely comments. We visit the location throughout the year so maybe I will do another post like this in another season. For now, enjoy today, the summer solstice. ππππββοΈ
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Beautiful! I was down the Ards Peninsula last week, it was almost tropical looking in the sun. Never been to MS, will have to change that.
Hi Martin, good to hear from you. I love the Ards Penninsula, they seem to have their own climate there especially around Mt.S with all those wonderful trees! πββοΈ
This is beautiful!
Thank you, Saania, it surely is a beautiful location, well worth visiting. ππββοΈ
Wonderful pictures
Thank youπββοΈ
Wow, I love the old rose garden. Too bad people abandoned it and go for somewhere else for another garden. The old garden look so elegant. I like the feeling of history there.
I believe that the owners (the charity The National Trust) are at the start of restoring the Rose Garden but of course, it will take time. Thank you for your comments ππββοΈ
Loved reading thiis thanks
Thank you! It is an exceptional place to visit! An historic house and gardens, great walks and some stunning trees!
So much green! So much life! And the grey rocky beach serves as such a counterpoint to the verdant vegetation. I have some Irish ancestry and I’d love to visit Ireland at some point. Thanks for sharing your world with us, Ashley. It’s gorgeous.
Ah Mike, if only the skies stayed as they are in my photos! For a few days now it’s been overcast with drizzly rain! Very dull, but of course, it’s not always like that. Thank goodness! Mount Stewart is located on the Ards Peninsula and is one of our favourite places to visit. We’re sure to return there soon. Thank you for visiting my blog πββοΈ