Wildlife wonders at Leeds Castle COMPLETED 9/19 - Page 5 - PassPorter - A Community of Walt Disney World, Disneyland, Disney Cruise Line, and General Travel Forums
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There are other changes as well.
Why? Well, the world has changed. And change with it, we must. The lyrics to "We Go On" for IllumiNations say it best:
We go on to the joy and through the tears
We go on to discover new frontiers
Moving on with the current of the years.
We go on
Moving forward now as one
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Ever on with each rising sun.
To a new day, we go on.
It's time to move on and move forward.
PassPorter is a small business, and for many years it supported our family. But the world changed, print books took a backseat to the Internet, and for a long time now it has been unable to make ends meet. We've had to find new ways to support our family, which means new careers and less and less time available to devote to our first baby, PassPorter.
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So we are retiring this newsletter, as we simply cannot keep up with it. Many thanks to Mouse Fan Travel who supported it all these years, to All Ears and MousePlanet who helped us with news, to our many article contributors, and -- most importantly -- to Sara Varney who edited our newsletter so wonderfully for years and years.
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Tuesday 9 September – part seven: I hate to think what would happen if someone got in their way…
We made our way out of the garden, passing the aviary, which is sadly no more, having closed a few years ago. The member of staff we spoke to earlier at the entrance said there were a lot of people who miss it, and I’m one of those. I absolutely adored the toucan that was there, and loved seeing him. I understand why they made the decision to close it – sadly it was down to money – but it still makes me sad.
We walked along past the Great Water, and by now, the sun really was hot. Both Debbie and I commented that we should’ve worn crops, not jeans, as we were both sweltering. It’s amazing for us to be saying that, given that our summer was pretty appalling. By all accounts, there were a couple of hot weeks while we were away on the Med cruise and our road trip around Italy, but as I mentioned earlier, August really had been nothing to write home about, so this was a very pleasant surprise. Actually, in truth, it was a pleasant surprise to have the forecasters get it right for once!
As we made our way back, my wildlife spotter saw this guy!
On the way back, we took the lower route along the Great Water, which this time passes through Lady Baillie’s Garden.
As you can see from these photos, it’s got a decidedly tropical feel to it, which I find fascinating, as we’re not exactly a tropical country, as you probably know!
I spotted this guy out on the water – such a beautiful sight.
We headed back towards the Culpeper Garden.
Now in this next shot, the tree you see in front of the cottage appears to be a holly tree, complete with a trunk. Both Debbie and I were intrigued by this, as we’d only ever seen holly shrubs.
As we made our way back, we saw this procession, who were very determined…
We did wonder what would’ve happened if anyone had got in their way, but the irony was that when they reached this area, they just literally stopped – quite bizarre!
We stopped to get some more photos of the castle, because heck, you can never get too many photos of it – right?
And in case you’re wondering, that is a punt you can see in those shots, as that’s something else you can do here, for a small price – of course!
I snapped some more photos of the birds on the Great Water…
… and the castle entrance:
As we hadn’t managed to have a browse in the castle shop earlier, we headed that way, and thankfully, it was nice and quiet in there now. I found a fridge magnet and Debbie got something for Christmas for her dad related to family trees, as apparently he’s into that at the moment, so we both emerged happy.
As you can see, it really was a quiet day at the castle…
We started to make our way back towards the entrance:
As you can see, the punt was out again. In this shot, you get a better view of the work they’re still doing on the castle:
As you can see from these final few photos, it was still pretty quiet in the grounds of the castle as we made our way out:
We had a quick look around the shop at the entrance, although for the first time ever, I’d say the one by the castle had a better selection, as this one seemed to be packed with things for kids. There’s nothing wrong with that, as I’m sure it brings in a lot of money, but for Debbie and I, it meant there was nothing of interest for us. We made our way back to the car, and with that, another wonderful day out concluded for us.
The weather today was really warm and sunny with temperatures in the low 70s. The best thing today was enjoying another lovely day out with Debbie. The worst thing today was ironically how hot we got in the afternoon. Today we tried going through the new entrance area to the castle And the result was it’s a really nice addition. The most magical moment today was seeing the baby peacocks.
What a great day you had! I was thinking the same thing......the garden seems very tropical for a non-tropical location! Thanks so much for taking us along for the ride!
I was going to say the same thing - that last garden looked very tropical! Fantastic last photos of the castle. So glad you had such a beautiful day for this outing!
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I was going to say the same thing - that last garden looked very tropical! Fantastic last photos of the castle. So glad you had such a beautiful day for this outing!
Please keep your fingers crossed that we have just as good weather two weeks on Tuesday, as that's the day Debbie and I go to Paris for the day!
As I was looking through the photos of the garden, I kept thinking this looks like Florida, and I didn't know palm trees grew in England. Surprising, but very pretty! I recently discovered on a back road we take into town that one of the houses now has two King Palms. We're definitely not tropical here in Kentucky either. Leeds Castle is so beautiful from any angle. You all did have a gorgeous day for your explorations. for sharing a trip to Leeds again as these are always interesting.
PassPorter's Free-Book to Walt Disney World It’s hard to believe anything is free at Walt Disney World; but there are actually a number of things you can get or do for little to no cost. This e-book documents over 200 free or cheap tips to do before you go and after you arrive. You could save a considerable amount of money following these tips. Perhaps more importantly; you can discover overlooked attractions and little-known details most people whiz by on their way to spend money. Click here to see free sample pages from the e-book! Get this popular e-book free of extra charges when you join the PassPorter's Club for as little as $4.95. A club pass includes access to all our other e-books; e-worksheets; super-size photos; and more! This e-book is also available for separate purchase in the PassPorter Online Store for just $5.95.
What a great day you had and the castle and grounds are just so beautiful! Loved those photos of the butterflies. That's quite interesting that you can stay here in one of the cottages! I think Springtime would be best, when the flowers are in full bloom! That was some view you had for lunch and the scones looked quite good!
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Originally Posted by Cam22
As I was looking through the photos of the garden, I kept thinking this looks like Florida, and I didn't know palm trees grew in England. Surprising, but very pretty! I recently discovered on a back road we take into town that one of the houses now has two King Palms. We're definitely not tropical here in Kentucky either. Leeds Castle is so beautiful from any angle. You all did have a gorgeous day for your explorations. for sharing a trip to Leeds again as these are always interesting.
When I visited Ireland several years ago, there were Palm Trees there as well and mostly in the southern part of the isle in the Cork area. I found this odd too. I was told, it's because of the jet stream.
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Last edited by SuperDave; 09-20-2014 at 02:49 PM..
What a great day you had and the castle and grounds are just so beautiful! Loved those photos of the butterflies. That's quite interesting that you can stay here in one of the cottages! I think Springtime would be best, when the flowers are in full bloom! That was some view you had for lunch and the scones looked quite good!
Good point about when would be a good time to stay there.
Quote:
When I visited Ireland several years ago, there were Palm Trees there as well and mostly in the southern part of the isle in the Cork area. I found this odd too. I was told, it's because of the jet stream.
There's a place in Norway that's got a tropical island - I can't remember where it is now off the top of my head, but it's apparently down to that as well. And don't forget there were palm trees on the Isle of Man as well...
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Beautiful pictures of the garden.
PassPorter Guide Author
The member of staff we spoke to earlier at the entrance said there were a lot of people who miss it, and I’m one of those. I absolutely adored the toucan that was there, and loved seeing him. I understand why they made the decision to close it – sadly it was down to money – but it still makes me sad. 
in case you’re wondering, that is a punt you can see in those shots, as that’s something else you can do here, for a small price – of course! 
I was thinking the same thing......the garden seems very tropical for a non-tropical location! 
Thanks so much for taking us along for the ride! 
Waiting for our next adventure after enjoying our Alaska cruise. 
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