The Cotswolds in July 2018

The Cotswolds for the day

Breakfast in the Noel Arms Hotel was excellent. I had fruit followed by a Full English Breakfast with toast from a cut loaf. An excellent start to the day. We planned to set off early and visit the nearby Lavender Farm and then decide where to go next.

Cotswold Lavender

We arrived before the Cotswold Lavender Farm was open. So early in fact that we were the only car in the large car park.

Once through the entrance we walked around the fields of lavender.

The fields were very dry after the hot days with no rain. There were also areas with meadow flowers.

Our visit was towards the end of the season so the plants were not at their purple best. Here’s a closer look.

The fields were by then filling up with other visitors and we went back down the field, crossed the road and went into the shop and cafe to have a drink of tea.

Broadway Tower

Our next stop was to follow the signs to the Broadway Tower. This was a folly built on top of a hill with great views across the countryside and even right out to the River Severn. The tower has had lots of different uses in its history including its use in WW2 by the Royal Observer Corps and then in The Cold War a nuclear bunker control post was built nearby.

Parking was someway away from the tower and was by a building that served as shop and restaurant. parking wasn’t free and we had to guess how long we would be staying. In the car park I was parked close to this Dutch registered Austin Healey 3000.

This car park was quite full and we followed the line of other tourists up the hill past the building and this truck to the gate that lead to the tower.

The tower was approached along a path up a gentle slope.

The bunker was closed so we would have to make do with the tower. After we had paid our fee we climbed up the tower leaving the exploration of the exhibitions till we came back down. Once at the top we used the signs on each of the walls to try and see the sights across the countryside.

On our way down we spent quite a bit of time learning about the tower, the William Morris connection and about its restoration.

The tower by then was surrounded by other tourists posing for pictures.

On our way back I stopped to look at the thistles …

… and to try and see the deer sheltering from the sun.

Walk to the Broadway Tower on TripAdvisor

Amazing views and a great lunch
Very easy parking. It is quite a steep climb up spiral staircases but the views from the tower are amazing and well worth the effort.
There are displays in the rooms that you pass on your way up and down that are fascinating and give a sense of the history of the tower and its uses over the years.
The restaurant nearby was good value and we had lunch there before continuing on our exploration of the Cotswolds.

Lunch at Morris & Brown’s restaurant at Broadway Tower

Lunch for me was a pasty accompanied by (non-alcoholic) Ginger Beer.

As we left the Austin Healey had gone and in its place was this Triumph Stag.

Broadway Tower: Morris & Brown on TripAdvisor

Great value lunch
After walking to the Broadway Tower and taking in the views we had lunch at this friendly restaurant. Good value and excellent food

Snowshill Manor

At lunch we had consulted our maps and decided to visit the National Trust’s Snowshill Manor. On the way I stopped to take a picture of this Jaguar E-Type.

I am sure that we passed the Manor in the village but following the car park signs took us around behind the property to a large car park We had to park in the overflow car park which ran alongside the road almost right back to the village. We opted to walk from the entrance to the Manor. The walk was so long that a free shuttle was available. Our walk was peppered with quotes from the owner, Charles Wade.

The path crossed over dried up streams and was heavily wooded and then this was our first view of the Manor and the gardens around it.

This is the approach to the Manor.

Inside the Manor

Once inside we discovered that the Manor had been restored and had been filled with the owner’s collection of things. It was eclectic to say the least. Collections of police truncheons, cycles, musical instruments, samples of farm wagons and Chinese art for example filled roofs and the loft. It was frankly over powering. The owner and later in his life, his wife, lived in a bare cottage across from the Manor. His money came from inherited estates in the Caribbean.

I overheard one visitor comment to her husband that she would no longer accuse him of hoarding after see all the junk in the Manor.

Beneath the cottage was a small garden in which the owner had maintained a small model village, outbuildings with more ‘stuff’ and extensive flower beds.

This is not a National Trust property that I will be re-visiting anytime soon!

We headed back to Chipping Campden for a drink and to reflect on our day.