There’s nothing quite like visiting a garden during the summer and wandering among colourful blooms and lush greenery on a sunny day. A well-designed garden can capture your imagination and transport you to a different place.
Located in the Lake District near to Penrith is perhaps one of the UK’s more unusual gardens which offers a rather different experience. At Lowther Castle and Gardens, flowers and shrubs grow around the remains of the castle, in a scene which could be straight from a fairy-tale or the film Edward Scissorhands.
Walking around the 130-acre estate it may feel as if the castle and the gardens had always been that way, but they’ve only recently been restored following a turbulent history. The original gardens were first laid out in the 17th century, while the castle was commissioned by William, 1st Earl of Lonsdale in 1806.
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However, it was abandoned 130 years after it was built and in 1957 the castle’s roof was removed and it was stripped bare. In the 1950s the gardens were filled with commercial chicken sheds, a pig farm and a spruce plantation.
In the next 50 years the gardens were left to grow wild, until in 2008 when a restoration project was launched to restore the gardens to their former glory. Today the grounds include a Rose Garden, wild flower meadows and woodland areas.
Visitors can even see as far as the Lake District mountains from the Western terraces, which offer incredible views of the surrounding area. The grounds contain various cycle and walking routes too so you can take in the stunning scenery.
For children whose imagination is captured by the ruins they have their own castle to explore. Hidden in the woodlands is the lost castle, one of the largest adventure playgrounds in the country.
The design echoes that of Lowther Castle itself, and it was built from 18,000 metres of sustainable timber. It features ramps, steps, and a firepole as well as a maze of turrets, zip wires, walkways and slides.
There’s also a toddlers’ area, a sandpit and a rope mesh, as well as seating areas for those who are not participating. The lost castle is set high above the ground, so it feels part of the tree canopy.
Adult tickets cost £12, children aged three to 15 cost £9, while a family ticket for two adults and three children costs £38. Children under three go free. Dogs are allowed but need to be kept on a lead, and they are not permitted within the children’s play area. For more information click here.
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