Lost Gardens of Heligan

The days are setting into a regular pattern. We would be up early and out on a walk along the coast allowing Doreen to get ready in her own time, then we'd all finish breakfast together before going out for the rest of the day.

Today's walk was along Perranporth Beach and back, a distance of almost 5 miles. Half of it into the wind and the return half with the wind behind. A lovely walk in the sunshine, almost deserted the further you got along the beach from the village except for a few dog walkers and joggers. The sand was a bit soft in places which made for some interesting walking.

The Lost Gardens of Heligan is another of the "must see" attractions in Cornwall. At their peak at the end of the 19th C, they were rediscovered in the 1990s and have been restored to their former glory over the past 20 years. Of particular interest to me were the walled gardens and greenhouses. My father worked all his life in a Victorian Walled Garden in Shropshire and going into gardens at Heligan was just like going into his gardens in Shropshire, right down to the look and smell of the greenhouses. A very special place.

Even here they are doing their bit to preserve and value the environment as shown by this super wild flower meadow and be cultivating traditional varieties of vegetables and seeds from the 19th C.