Coleton Fishacre..... — Steve Chivers Photography

Regular followers of this Blog will know that since arriving back in good old Blighty, Mrs. C and I immediately joined the National Trust and have set about visiting the various National Trust Properties in the vicinity.

Now when aunty Sarah mentioned that we should all have a day out at a beautiful country home, in the midst if a tropical garden, situated by the sea and only an hours drive from Plymouth, I was to say the least intrigued. So we dialed Coleton Fishacre in to the sat-nav, fired up the Polo and headed up the A38.

For those of you who have never visited a National Trust property, its generally manned by super friendly and helpful staff, everything is super organized and you are to able to simply enjoy the property and its surroundings.

We always aim to arrive early in order to beat the crowds and, over a steaming coffee, allow ample time for Mrs. C and Aunty Sarah to plan our route-march, (sorry I mean leisurely sojourn), around the house and its gardens.

As you step out of the cafe and walk around the corner, you get your first glimpse of the house itself.

Coleton Fishacre - Rural Devon at its finest

Okay, time for the potted history bit. The location of the property was decided upon when Rupert and Lady Dorothy D’Oyly Carte where sailing off the Devon coast and spotted a valley leading down to the sea close to Pudcombe Cove. The rest as they say is history. Designed by architect Oswald Milne the property is blessed with fantastic sea views and beautiful light and just blends in to the surrounding countryside. The house was completed in 1926 and became the summer retreat for the D’Oyly Cartes.

The family lived in the property until 1949 when it was sold to Rowland Smith. He and his wife Freda maintained the house and gardens until his death in 1979 and the property passed over to the National Trust in 1982.

Mrs. C had already consulted her Met Office weather app and suggested we do the gardens and picnic first and then finish with a tour of the house; just in case the weather turned for the worse (much is weather dependent in the South west of England).

As we walked down through the gardens towards the sea we began to understand why they describe this as a tropical garden. I do not pretend to be a master of black and white plant photography so I didn’t try. However, I have enclosed a few images of things that caught my photographer’s eye.

Uncle Chunkle is getting all arty again….

Then all of a sudden we emerged at the top of Puddlecombe Cove. As we took a breath the peace was shattered by what sounded like a gun shot and then the crashing of leaves and wood as a huge branch of a tree literally fell off. Phew, that really was a close one!

The team at the viewpoint at Puddlecombe Cove

The view really did take my breath away and for once I put down my camera and took a moment to reflect and savour the view. At which point, Mrs. C grabbed the Fuji (yes a change for this visit as I was using the Fuji Xpro2 with the XF 55-200mm lens) and she captured an image of me “taking a moment”.

As you can see I was sporting my Raiders of the Lost Ark look…

Many other people were also enjoying this wonderful location which gave me an opportunity to indulge myself and capture a few different images which I believe reflect the vibe of the day.

Well, all this relaxing was starting to make me hungry and so we found a bench opposite to a wild meadow and munched through a rather superior picnic if I say so myself. Also the wild meadow proved to be an excellent opportunity to capture some more images.

Uncle Chunkle is getting all arty again at 200mm….

Suitably refreshed it was time to head back to the house itself and have a good look inside.

Now Coleton Fishacre differs from the normal stately home. It has a certain understated elegance whilst reflecting the fact that, until not that long ago, it really was someone’s home.

As I wondered around the house I tried to record images which I felt reflected how the family actually lived. Of course, your mileage may vary but as I often say, its not what we see but how we see it.

Standard issue for the period - Bag, gloves and cigarette holder

Everything you need to know about roses - No google in those days!

Very poignant - Michael d’Oyly Carte who died aged 21

As usual we end with Mrs. C and Aunty Sarah on “The Bench of Contemplation”

Well there you have it, my brief insight in to the wonderful world which is Coleton Fishacre. I wholeheartedly recommend you visit this wonderful property. When you do, bring a stout pair of walking shoes, a good picnic and of course your camera. I look forward to seeing it through your lens.

Warmest regards from Plymouth.