Holy Well with Mermaid

We pass the entrance to Fingask Castle several times each year, as it's off one of the minor roads we use on almost all our journeys to and from England (and beyond!), as we avoid Dundee by taking a backroad route over the Sidlaw Hills.

So when we discovered that the garden was open this afternoon under the Scotland's Gardens scheme we thought it would be worth making the approximately 200-mile round trip in order to see it.

We were not disappointed. The garden more than lives up to its entry on the Scotland's Gardens scheme Website : "The magical grounds of Fingask Castle are testament to both the present owner and his ancestors' eccentricity and architectural scavenging. Explore the grounds and discover statues, gargoyles, gravestones, bamboo forest, large collection of topiary and much, much more."

Here, for instance, we see (in the background) the historic Saint Peter's Well - "a watering hole for the pilgrims who docked at the Tay as they made their way to pay homage to the Queen who resided in Dunkeld"- whilst in the foreground, a saucy mermaid graces one of the portals of the 'Chinese Bridge'.