While in Cornwall last week, we visited a place called The Lost Gardens of Heligan and we were all pleasantly surprised. We only went there because it was close to where we were staying (a place called Pentewan, near Mevagissy)) and supposedly one of the recommended local attractions. We now know that The Lost Gardens of Helligan can be the main reason people visit this part of Cornwall, and now we also know why.
It was a lovely day, last Tuesday, and the gardens were stunning. Especially the rainforest area of the gardens was gorgeous and a total surprise. We walked around for a couple of hours before having lunch (most of the produce they use coming right from their grounds) and still, we only saw about half of the property. The Lost Gardens of Heligan was wonderful.
This property with magnificent gardens has a long history going back to 1200, and the interesting thing is that the gardens were essentially forgotten between 1914 and 1990. The whole property itself was forgotten between 1974 and 1990. It was rediscovered, in ruins, in 1990 and restoration began in 1991 leading to winning BBC Countryfile Magazine’s “Best Heritage Site” award in 2014.
It was a lovely day in mid-April and The Lost Gardens of Heligan was looking beautiful. The whole place has a fundamentally “good” feeling to it. I’d love to go back there a little closer to summer and see what it’s like with almost everything in bloom.
This place is certainly on my list of favourite places to visit.
