Haigh Woodland Park

Haigh Woodland Park, better known to most Wiganers as Haigh Hall, has long been a popular choice for a woodland walk, some fresh air, and its children play area. In recent years it has undergone a serious makeover, with a new look playground, and the addition of a high ropes course, adventure golf course, and foot golf course. Additionally, the courtyard which previously featured a cafe serving greasy chips, has now attracted several independent retailers, an excellent addition.

The play area has now reopened, with maximum capacity, and a play park marshall monitoring numbers. We'd already warned F that we would not be going on the play area on our visit; play areas just seem to be impossible places to social distance, never mind all the touchable surfaces. As we walked past, it was already at capacity, and the queue was extremely long. But in general, the investment in a new play area has certainly resulted in it becoming very popular, justifiably.

We've done the adventure golf previously, and I was impressed with how they'd tried to give it a vague Wigan theme. We are yet to try the foot golf, as F currently lacks the strength to have a proper go. In this new world we're navigating, pre-booking is now required for both. The high ropes course, whilst I'm sure appealing to some, doesn't look a patch on Go Ape (though is much cheaper), and is currently closed.

One longstanding and understandably popular attraction in Haigh Hall is the miniature railways, which are run by volunteers and travel along a lovely woodland route. They are usually only open weekends and school holidays, but that can vary. There is also a crazy golf course which is run by the Friends of Haigh. Both were closed during our Sunday visit today.

The Kitchen Courtyard, aside from containing the toilets, now houses several independent food and drink establishments. We got delicious takeaway sandwiches from All You Knead, and ice cream from Holdens. There is also a chocolate shop, a bar/brewery, a flower shop, and a couple of cafes.

Upstairs in the courtyard, there is a pottery painting gallery. We picked up several pieces, along with some paint and a brush, to takeaway today, and the owners were delightful. Plus they were an absolute bargain and will keep F entertained when the weather turns. As we spent over £10, we also got free car parking which was a nice bonus.

All in all, for a family day out, or even just a few hours of fresh air, Haigh Woodland Park is definitely still a strong choice.

http://www.haighwoodlandpark.co.uk/

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Witley Court and Gardens

Whilst deciding what days out to book for our Kidderminster holiday, I'd mostly concentrated on finding a National Trust property, as we are already members there, but for some reason none particularly struck a chord with me. Just on a whim, I looked at English Heritage, and liked the look of Witley Court. There aren't many English Heritage properties too close to our house, but with Tesco vouchers we were able to get the English Heritage membership for free, so I booked Witley Court.

As opposed to the half hour time slots for National Trust, English Heritage has hourly slots. This did mean there was a bit of a queue to get in when we arrived as it seemed a lot of people had arrived right at the beginning of the slot. We sat in the car and ate our picnic (because F is always ready for a car picnic and it saves us carrying so much food with us), and by the time we had finished, it was the middle of the slot and the queue had gone.

One thing we hadn't done since receiving our membership through the post was put the car sticker in the car. The car park at Witley Court is only free for members displaying a car sticker (£3 a day for non members) but after speaking to a staff member she told us not to worry.

Rather than ticking our names off on a list as at National Trust properties, Witley Court had us scan the QR code on our tickets. A member of staff manning the scanner told us that the toilets were one family group at a time, and we were to lock the main door behind ourselves, which seemed a sensible idea. She also gave us details of the tea rooms and fountain timings.

We picked up a summer quest booklet for F, but she lost interest reasonably quickly as most of it was a bit beyond her.

We followed the one way system through the woodland up to the house and garden. F was very pleased with the grassy areas she could run free on, and the ruin was very impressive. We were fortunate to catch the end of the fountain display which we all enjoyed.

After we'd had a good wander round, we walked down to the tea room, which I think was actually run by Witley Church. It was a lovely big garden, with plenty of spread out tables, which were all being cleaned regularly. The order point was outside, with the food then brought to your table. A good selection of sandwiches and cakes were on offer, and there were toilets available. The scones were lovely but could have done with some proper clotted cream.

The grounds were so spacious that it didn't feel crowded at all, and lots of families had taken picnics to eat in the gardens. I quite liked the approach to the toilets as it meant we definitely didn't cross paths with anyone on the way in/out, and seeing the tables being cleaned at the tea rooms was very reassuring.

https://www.english-heritage.org.uk/visit/places/witley-court-and-gardens/




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Quarry Bank

Having visited Dunham Massey and Speke Hall already, Quarry Bank was the remaining National Trust property within easy reach of home, so once it reopened, we decided to pay it a visit.

Tickets are released every Friday for the following week, for half hour arrival time slots. I've seen quite a few people saying they've struggled to get a slot, but thankfully I haven't had that problem.

We knew the mill would be closed but were happy to walk around the gardens. F also has a 'Visitor Passport', (you pay for stickers of various National Trust places and then when visiting a new property, the shop staff will stamp and date it for you), which we forgot to take when we visited a few years ago. So we were hoping to get that stamped, but unfortunately neither of the shops were open.

Arrival was smooth, as is usual for National Trust properties these days: we gave our name at the gate, it was checked on the list, and then we found somewhere to park. At the entrance we then showed our membership cards and were given details of what was open and where we could find everything. The car park and entrance had had a bit of a makeover since my last visit so it felt a bit disorienting at first.

We were faced with two paths initially, one to the gardens, one to the mill. We opted for the gardens first as the cafe there was open for takeaway and Daddy wanted a coffee.

At the entrance to the gardens our names were again checked against a list. The upper gardens featured a large grassy area suitable for picnics, a beautiful walled garden, toilets, the cafe and an abundance of colourful flowers. The upper gardens were generally free flow, with the exception of the in/out routes for the cafe, which offered sandwiches, cakes, and drinks, with a few tables outside. There was also a window selling Cheshire Farm Ice Cream.

To access the lower gardens, we had to follow a one way system down a very steep path, though not quite as steep as the path back up again. There were some very sharp drops and I was slightly surprised that there wasn't a fence alongside the whole path, so be sure to hold onto your little ones (and bigger ones if they're as clumsy as F). Once we got down to the bottom, there was another grassy area perfect for picnicking, and you could also see the river and the mill (though you can't access the mill from here).

After we'd finished exploring the gardens we took the path to the mill. Here there were toilets available, and the 'ice cream parlour' that was essentially takeaway ice cream with a couple of picnic benches outside. You could also see the water wheel from the outside, and access various walks around the estate, ranging from 20 minutes to 2.5 hours. Most of these are not suitable for pushchairs, and can get quite muddy so sensible footwear is advised.

Hand sanitiser was available in various locations and there were toilets in both the upper gardens and near the mill. I also saw the tables outside the cafe being cleaned regularly. It didn't feel overly busy and we had no trouble social distancing for the most part.

https://www.nationaltrust.org.uk/quarry-bank

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Anglesey Abbey Gardens

We knew that the house wasn't open during our visit, but the key attraction at this time of year is the snowdrops in the garden, rather than the house anyway. Grandma is keen on nature so she really wanted to go and see the snowdrops.

We started with some lunch in the cafe. A wide variety of hot food and an even wider variety of cakes. Plenty of seating, but it was very busy, and there was a constant stream of people looking for tables. Usually it didn't take more than a few minutes to find one, as most people were too keen to see the snowdrops whilst the weather was dry, to linger.

Pram issues meant that Baby was in the carrier, but it was quite cold, so we walked reasonably quickly. Despite the busy car park, the gardens didn't feel crowded at all.

The route around the gardens is a circular one, with very few places where you are required to choose a direction. The path in the first part of the route was lined with a variety of plants, including the famed snowdrops. Beautiful colours contrasted and caught Baby's eye as we walked along. Leafy green plants, expansive red twig like bushes, low lying purple plants. So many plants lining the route meant that I was able to help Baby touch some plants to feel the different textures.

We moved into an area with taller plants, including plenty of trees. Baby particularly liked some tall trees with silver bark, offset against a backdrop of green hedges and dark soil.

We then reached the mill. It was open, and selling flour, but it was very busy so we didn't go in. I get a bit antsy around crowds of people anyway, but with Baby strapped to my chest, the potential for people bumping into her was just too much for me to contemplate.

The next part of the walk took us along the river (beware those with more mobile children, there is no fence along here), until we reached the house, with the final part of the walk again taking us through more formal gardens, back to the shop, tearoom and toilets.

All in all, a lovely walk, that Baby very much enjoyed, as she was able to get up close to everything. She also loved the attention she received being in the carrier.


Key facts:

Month of visit:
February

Weather for visit:
Sunny but cold

Is it pushchair friendly?
Yes, the paths around the garden are wide, gravelled and although there were one or two puddles/muddy patches these were easily avoided, even after heavy rain.

How are the baby changing facilities?
There is one baby changing room in the visitor centre, which also had a toilet in it. It was clean, but when we used it, there was quite a long queue forming due to it being the only one there.

What about somewhere to feed?
No chair in the baby changing, but I fed in the cafe with no issues.

Is it worth a visit?
Baby loved the fresh air and the variety of colours in the garden, we'll definitely be going back.

Baby's highlight?
The red bushes and the little voles.

Anglesey Abbey, Gardens and Lode Mill

Quy Road,

Lode,

Cambridge,

Cambridgeshire,

CB25 9EJ

https://www.nationaltrust.org.uk/anglesey-abbey-gardens-and-lode-mill

Baby's First Day Out - Rufford Old Hall

As lifetime members, a National Trust property was always a likely candidate for Baby's first day out. We've been to Rufford Old Hall before, so taking Baby here for her first day out didn't feel as big a challenge as taking her somewhere we've never visited. We know the staff are friendly, there is plenty of car parking, and if things went pear shaped, we're only 20-30 minutes from home.

Grandma and Grandpa accompanied Mummy and Daddy for the first outing. Baby was only 20 days old. A last minute nappy change and subsequent feed (how do babies know when you're trying to leave the house?), meant that Grandma and Grandpa were already there, and halfway through a delicious scone, when we arrived. This had its advantages though, as Grandpa could cuddle Baby whilst Mummy and Daddy ate in peace.

After lunch, we made the most of the sunshine and walked through the woodland. There were various knitted animals located throughout the wood, and although they were clearly reaching the end of their placement, they still added lovely touches of colour. The walk started on a clearly marked path which would have been fine for a pushchair, but in the middle it became a bit of a muddy field, before concluding with a gravel path by the side of the canal.

The woodland was followed by a walk around the house. It's not the largest National Trust property by any stretch of the imagination, but for Baby's first day out it was just the right size, especially given my body was still recovering from a 50+ hour labour. The room staff were all welcoming (the primary question being 'pink hat, blue cardigan, is it a boy or a girl?'), and it wasn't too crowded, which eased my rather neurotic worries about people bumping into her.

The actual hall wasn't too warm, which isn't really surprising given its size and construction, but the remainder of the house was pleasant. There were a handful of rooms downstairs and the same upstairs. Several of the rooms are rather small and can feel a bit claustrophobic with more than two people in them, but this was never really a problem for us, and the other visitors (as you might expect for a National Trust property) were all very polite and waited patiently for their turn on the rare occasion there was a queue.

All in all, a gentle introduction to the world of days out for Baby (and her slightly neurotic Mummy).


Key facts:

Month of visit:
September

Weather for visit:
Hot and sunny.

Is it pushchair friendly?
Not really. We used a baby carrier, partly because we wanted to test it out and partly because we knew there was no lift to the upstairs, it being such an old building. There are several tight corners to negotiate as well as steps up and down into rooms. In Summer the woodlands would be accessible with a pushchair but I imagine in Winter (or just whenever it has rained recently) the mud would be too much. The gardens do have lovely wide pushchair friendly paths, which fare better in inclement weather, but can still turn a bit muddy with heavy use and rainfall. We did see another new mum using a sling, and at other National Trust properties they are available to loan for no charge, so I imagine they're also available here.

How are the baby changing facilities?
There are baby changing facilities alongside the toilets in the main yard. While we didn't actually use them, we did have a sneaky peek. They seemed clean, if a little cold. As they were located in the disabled toilet, there wasn't anywhere to sit and feed a baby, should you be so inclined.

What about somewhere to feed?
As the baby changing was located in the disabled toilet, there wasn't anywhere to sit and feed Baby. The tearoom is small but shouldn't pose any problems for feeding.

Is it worth a visit?
Yes, especially in dry weather, as the gardens are lovely and children can have fun building dens and roaming in the woodland. They may get a little bored in the house, but it's not very big and there is a trail they can follow.


Baby's highlight?
All the attention she received!


Rufford Old Hall
200 Liverpool Road,
Rufford,
near Ormskirk,
Lancashire,
L40 1SG


http://www.nationaltrust.org.uk/rufford-old-hall