Route: Scampston Hall and Walled Garden
Area: North Yorkshire
Date of walk: 13th July 2022
Walkers: Andrew and Gilly
Distance: 2.5 miles
Weather: Sunny and very warm
The Scampston estate was bought by the St Quintin family in the 17th century and has remained in the family ever since. Scampston Hall is open for guided tours on occasions during the summer months, but we were here today for a return visit to the gardens
The Hall is home to two wonderful and completely different gardens – the unique contemporary Walled Garden designed by Piet Oudolf, which opened in 2005, and The Park, designed by Lancelot ‘Capability’ Brown in 1782
We arrived just after opening time at 10am and decided to walk through the parkland first. On arrival visitors are given a garden guide which describes two trails, the Cascade Trail which is about 1 mile and the Aviaries Trail, which is longer. As we’d done last year, we opted for the latter, and followed the path into the stunning Capability Brown parkland, studded with magnificent old trees. The waymarked route took us across to the Cascade which divides the two lower lakes. There’s a heronry in the woodland on the far side of the lake, and we saw several of these huge birds flying overhead. The wildlife highlight of this area was the profusion of damselflies and dragonflies – there were thousands of them
We continued on our circuit, passing by some interesting features including the Old Ice House and the Old Horse Shelter. This brought us to the Palladian Bridge at the end of the three linked lakes in the park. The bridge was designed by Capability Brown and sits perfectly in the landscape, as I hope the photos will show
We then walked past the Hall and through the Parterre. Having completed the Aviaries Trail it was time to visit the Walled Garden. The garden guide suggests a route around the various ‘rooms’ within the garden but we were content to wander around. Many of the herbaceous plants were at their peak, and the borders and beds were superb. This concluded another wonderful visit to Scampston Hall
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We pass by Scampston Hall as we enter into the parkland
The parkland, designed by Capability Brown in 1771
One of the lower lakes in the parkland, home to a heronry
There were huge numbers of damselflies and dragonflies on and around the lake - this is a common darter dragonfly
Mating common blue damselfly
We pass by the Old Ice House, built in 1759 in order to store ice cut from the lake
After crossing the bridge over The Cascade, we continue along the lakeside
Looking back to The Cascade between the two lower lakes
The Palladian Bridge, which stands at the end of the three linked lakes in the park, and which was designed by Capability Brown
We cross over the Palladian Bridge and pass by the Pump House, built in 1778, which used to pump water from the lake into the Hall
View along the lake from the Palladian Bridge
We pass by the Hall again to enter into the Walled Garden
We enter into the Walled Garden, designed by Piet Oudolf in 1999
The Perennial Meadow, a magnet for butterflies and bees...
The Spring and Summer Box Borders
The old dipping pond in the centre of the Walled Garden....
The Cut Flower Garden...
The Vegetable Garden
Drifts of grass
The Silent Garden, with 24 round columns of yew
Scabious in the wildflower meadow surrounding The Mount
We exit the garden via The Mount, a grassy mound which provides a view of the overall garden design
