Archie was with us and as the weather was fine we decided to go somewhere for a walk. We don't know Nottingham at all but I remember visiting some friends of the family when I was in my teens and we had a trip to Wollaton Hall. It's not far from the university so we made the decision to head there. Unfortunately, I'd forgotten to take my camera with me so the photos included in this post were taken on Mick's phone.
Wollaton Hall is an Elizabethan country house of the 1580s which stands in Wollaton Park.
We couldn't go in the hall itself as we had Archie with us, but since it opened to the public in 1926, it has been home to the city's natural history museum.
There are a couple of suggested walking routes through the park but we just sort of ambled around taking in the changing season. The trees were stunning, all different colours, though they're now dropping their leaves and they're littering the ground.
Archie had great fun running through them.
There are formal gardens in the park, and The Camellia House, the oldest cast iron glasshouse in Europe. Wollaton's Botanic Garden, which has been developed and cared for by volunteers from the Nottingham branch of the Hardy Plant Society, is also here but we didn't visit any of these. I'm sure we'll take a trip here again on one of our visits to see Eleanor so we'll explore further then.
About 80 Red deer and 120 Fallow deer roam freely in Wollaton Park. We approached with care but they don't seem timid at all. Archie was nonplussed and just wanted to get back to the leaves.
Wollaton Hall is a lovely place for a walk but it was rather chilly so we didn't stay too long. Afterwards, we took Eleanor shopping, her cupboards are well stocked again.
All too soon it was time to leave, but when we got home we found that our door key had been left in Eleanor's room and we couldn't get in the house. We had to take a trip to York so that we could borrow Daniel's key. Oh well, at least I got to see both my children on the same day, something that doesn't happen very often these days.
Getting up close to the deer is a real treat isn't it? Between Christmas and the New Year there is the opportunity to go and see red deer being fed at Wentworth Hall Gardens which we have done a couple of times. The last time it was snowing when we got some lovely photos of the red deer herd in the snow.
ReplyDeleteI couldn't believe how tame the deer were, they were just wandering around the park and you could stand right next to them, they weren't even bothered by Archie. Wollaton Hall is a lovely place for a day out.
DeleteOh that sounds like an enjoyable day out Jo. Fancy Archie not being phased by the deer. They are so big in comparison to him. It must have been lovely for you to catch up with Eleanor and it sounds as if she is really settling in which must be most reassuring. Now it's usually the offspring who forget the essentials like keys - not the other way round :)
ReplyDeleteWe had a really lovely day out. Not only was Archie not phased by the deer but the deer weren't phased by him either. Eleanor's settled really well, she's loving everything about uni, which I'm so pleased about, it puts my mind at rest. I'd have had something to say had it been Daniel or Eleanor who had forgotten their keys, ooops.
DeleteWhat a lovely place - I'm sure you are looking forward to going back and doing some further exploring. My daughter would have been over the moon to see those deer! And your key incident is the perfect example of turning a negative into a positive.
ReplyDeleteWe'll definitely go back to Wollaton Hall, there seems to be so much to explore, I'm sure it will be fabulous in summer. We couldn't believe it when we saw the deer just wandering round amongst the visitors. I'm so pleased that Daniel hadn't moved down south yet, we'd have had to go all the way back to Nottingham to get our own keys if he had.
DeleteWhat a lovely day and lovely visit. Gorgeous! Thank you for sharing.
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I'm looking forward to taking another trip now, there's lots more to see yet.
DeleteLooks like an interesting place, Jo. What a relief that Daniel was in - and had a spare key! Yikes!
ReplyDeleteWe really enjoyed our visit to Wollaton Hall, it's somewhere we'll definitely visit again. It was a relief that Daniel was in, York isn't half as far as Nottingham.
DeleteSounds like a lovely day out, it must have been nice catching up with Eleanor, i'm glad she is enjoying uni life and her course.
ReplyDeleteArriving home without your door key sounds like something i would do, when we first moved in this house i was forever locking myself out. Good job you were able to get over to your son's and use his.
x
It was such a lovely day and we did enjoy seeing Eleanor and hearing all her news. I'm glad Daniel had a key we could use to get in to the house otherwise it would have been a trip back to Nottingham.
DeleteWoolaton Hall looks very impressive, I bet it's beautiful on a summers day.....leaving your key behind was obviously meant to be as you got to visit both your children.
ReplyDeleteI think it will be lovely in summer, we'll definitely visit again during the warmer months. It was lovely to see both Daniel and Eleanor, I miss them both.
DeleteIt really does sound like a great day out. Loved seeing the deer, what an amazing backdrop for photos of them. Bonus to see both children, despite the issue over the keys.
ReplyDeleteIt's a really lovely place and one we'll definitely visit again. I make the most of every visit I have with my children, especially now that we don't see them as often. It was nice to see them both on the same day albeit separately.
DeleteWhen I was a student at UoN I was in those days a serious distance runner and I ran in Wollaton Park virtually every day.
ReplyDeleteI'm sure it was lovely seeing it change through the seasons. A wonderful place to do your training.
DeleteAnother place to add to the must-visit list!
ReplyDeleteI get lots of inspiration for days out from blogs, my list is so long now that I doubt I'll get to see everything I want to.
DeleteHow lovely that you were able to visit and catch up properly with Eleanor, great news that she's enjoying her course so much xx
ReplyDeleteI wasn't sure we'd see her before she breaks up for Christmas so it was a bit of an unexpected trip which made it all the more special. She's loving university life.
DeleteThat sounds great with walks, gardens and house to view. On my list it goes & I don't even live in the UK. Great to see both the kids. Keep warm and take care.
ReplyDeleteI'm glad to see you're planning for another trip. We really enjoyed our day out and it's somewhere we'll visit again.
DeleteOh, this looks like a great place to visit :) I've got friends not so far away in Leicestershire, so I might have to suggest we visit next time I'm over that way.
ReplyDeleteLeicestershire isn't far away so it would be a good place to visit the next time you're at your friend's house. We really enjoyed it there.
DeleteThat looks a very nice place and lovely to see the Autumn colours too. You were close to that deer weren't you!
ReplyDelete... well although you forgot your key, it was good to be able to see both children the same day!
All the best Jan
I couldn't believe how tame the deer were, we were stood right next to it and it didn't move. I was pleased to get to see Daniel that day too, he's moving to Surrey tomorrow so he'll no longer be on the doorstep.
DeleteLooks like a great place to visit. It must be a relief to you to see your daughter well settled.
ReplyDeleteI'm really pleased that Eleanor's settled so well, she's in no hurry to come home so that tells me she's enjoying herself. Daniel moves to Surrey tomorrow so I'm hoping he settles just as well.
DeleteAn enjoyable post and lovely pictures. Good to see that Eleanor has happily settled into university life. I have this image of Archie disappearing in a pile of leaves then re-emerging with them flying everywhere. Thank goodness you were able to get a key from Daniel. Flighty xx
ReplyDeleteHa ha, you're not far wrong about Archie. We were really lucky that Daniel had a key, we'd have had to return to Nottingham otherwise.
DeleteWollaton Hall...wow. Thank you so much for sharing these pictures! We just don't have buildings like this anywhere in driving distance, so I love seeing them. So glad Eleanor is settling in!
ReplyDeleteWe have some wonderful places to visit over here, we really are spoilt for choice, and I doubt I'll ever see everything I want to. It's a weight off my mind that Eleanor's settled so well and that she's enjoying university life.
Deletenice outing.. enjoyed a lot..we went to UK back in July. We went to Bath, Bibury village, Salisbury, and London..
ReplyDeletePlease visit: http://from-a-girls-mind.blogspot.com
There's always something new to discover, Wollaton Hall will definitely be getting a second visit. I've never been to Bath, Bilbury Village or Salisbury and I've only been to London a handful of times.
DeleteOh no about the key, but great news that Eleanor has settled so well and that she is enjoying uni life. You picked a very pretty place to enjoy and autumnal walk. I think a bit of research into place to visit in Nottingham is needed for your future interesting days out.
ReplyDeleteLisa x
I'm really pleased that Eleanor's settled so well, she's loving everything about uni. I shall definitely be on the lookout for other nice places in Nottingham to visit for when we go to see Eleanor again.
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