Sunday 31 March 2013

Castles, Beaches, a Harbour and a Labyrinth.

Good Friday, a holiday, dry weather (it's so often raining here in the west we're very much enjoying this long period of dry weather even if it is still a little cold). We went for a day trip...


I can see the sea.

  This was taken shortly before N fell in!

 Snow covered Arran across the water.

A drew a sand dragon while hubby went back to the car to fetch a change of clothes for N. Where he fell was quite shallow so it was just a wet bottom and gloves to sort out.

 The bay.

Climbing higher and looking down at the sea through the dried weeds/wild flowers/grasses?

 I liked the contrast in surface textures and colours here.
 
 The little cottage on the way to the bay. It belonged to the gas manager of the estate, it's tiny.

A view from the cottage window.

Now we're moving up to the bigger house, a castle actually - we're at Culzean, a favourite place to visit (especially with a camera!).

Sun dial hat.

Looking back to the gate houses. 

 Decorative canon detail.
 
The canon, with robin!

Now inside the castle and a view of the famous oval staircase.

The servants' staircase.

I liked this painting. I like these style of dresses though I'm glad I don't have to wear one every day!

 The rules of the house.

A rubbishy kitchen view. I was just getting ready to take photos of all the gleaming pots and pans when I was politely informed that no photos were allowed. I'd not seen any notices to say so and I must confess to feeling I was being told off like a naughty schoolchild - I must remember that feeling for when I'm a teacher and have some sympathy for my pupils!

Phew, back outside. I always prefer being outside at these kind of places anyway. It was the first time we'd actually visited inside the castle as usually we run out of time as there's so much to do outside. Our NTS membership expires at the end of the month so we thought we'd make the most of it.

 The castle.
 
 Back down to another bay, this time the Ailsa Craig can be seen in the distance.

 Zooming in a little.

Daffodil, one of very few in flower, most of the buds are still tightly closed.

Curly branches across the path. 

 A view over the swan pond.
 
Ice creams at the swan pond. Very nice they were too, from Arran Dairies. I had chocolate, hubby had rum & raisin, A had mint choc chip and N had toffee. 

The ducks had some crumbs from the cones.

At this point it was getting late., While hubby looked after the children at the play park I walked briskly back to get the car.

I managed to get a quick walk through the walled gardens before the gates were closed. I always like to photograph this cottage when here.
 
 Window detail.

 Back in the castle grounds - a pheasant.
 
 The deer park.
 
Now back at the play park - barn owl detail. 

Orange tip butterfly detail.

 A last view at a cottage across the fields from the car park.

It's too nice a day to go home just yet though, and we're very near another favourite place to visit which also has a nice hotel for meals...

 ...so we head to Dunure.

A little fishing village.

The harbour.

 The beach, rocks on the right, castle ruins on the left.

 Sunbeams.

There is also a labyrinth here. I only found this out after we'd last visited when I was looking up some information about the castle. So today we searched it out.


 The castle ruins viewed from inside the labyrinth.

Labyrinth notes.
 
A closer castle view, it's possible to explore most of the ruins, some areas are closed off for safety but the rest is open and free to access.

The sun peeps over the horizon as we make our way to the hotel for tea. 

A last look.

'Twas a grand day out.

Enjoy your Easter weekend...

13 comments:

Anonymous said...

What a splendid post, except for the telling off! I don't think that photography is going too wear out those magnificent pots and pans, do you?

Happy Easter!

Mereknits said...

Oh my the photos in the post are just spectacular, the castles so glorious. My goodness so much beauty to see. Wishing you and your family a wonderful Easter.
Meredith

rockinloubylou said...

What a wonderful day you all had. So much fun and so many memories. As for the telling off, I sometimes think it is only people of our generation who are bothered by it.

Julie said...

Looks like a beautiful day out. We have been appreciating the dry too, and I guess we generally get more of it than you! The falling in is a very familiar scenario with us too but I'm not always so organised as to have spares. juliex

Ladybird Diaries said...

Fantastic photos as always. We love a visit to Culzean too...
M xxxx

MILLY said...

What a lovely family day out and of course beautiful photographs along the way. Glad you had icecreams too, it is not a trip without them, even if it is a chilly day.
Happy Easter wishes .

Grammy Braxton said...

Oh I really enjoyed your day out. Such lovely views and all the scenery. You live in a beautiful area.

Hugs,
Sharon

Neighborhood Watch said...

Once again, I loved stopping by to see your part of the world. Castles! I love them.
I love so many of your pictures--the canon detail, the stairwell, the children on the bench--all really wonderful. Thanks.

tove said...

Oh goodness, I absolutely love your part of the world! These pictures makes me want to go even more! I have the Orkneys, the Hebrides and the Arran isles high on my list, but these places look very tempting too! Dunure looks amazing, thanks for all the gorgeous pictures!

Claire said...

What a great outing Anne......think I would much prefer to live int he small cottage rather than the castle. Loved the list of house rules too.
Beautiful, silvery water pics and Dunure looks like a great little fishing village....

Claire :}

Louise said...

what a super day out, so much to see and do. I think I'd like to go there for a day or two!

Lyn said...

Oh I just love your posts, your photos are so beautiful. You certainly live in a gorgeous place, you are very lucky.
Xxx

Anonymous said...

Looks like a lovely place to visit, great pictures, love the ones of the Castle ruins and labyrinth.

LinkWithin

Related Posts with Thumbnails