There is nothing so quintessentially English as a Bluebell Wood so it was with great anticipation that I visited the Surrey Hills and Hatchlands Park to view their Bluebell Walk accompanied by The Hound.

A carpet of intense blue velvet met the eye, a blanket coverage of blues of every hue greeted us for this 20 minute stroll through Little Wix Woods.

For the rug rats among us in search of fairies, these could be seen, somehow caught unawares in the trees and bushes.  Who knew they bore a remarkable resemblance to Barbie dolls – but let’s keep that thought to ourselves.

With dog in tow on this occasion, it was an exploration of the grounds rather than the House which kept us amused for the Estate numbers some 400 acres of rolling parkland, partly designed by Humphry Repton – one of the largest country estates surrounding Greater London.

Next time I visit, I will definitely visit the formal gardens – we just caught a glimpse of them as we passed by – entry is forbidden to four legged friends.  The Hound gives this a four paw rating as he was desperate to enter the gardens!

The House seems intriguing too – a Georgian mansion built in the 1750’s with an interior by architect Robert Adam, the current tenant Alec Cobbe – has Europe’s largest collection of keyboard instruments including those associated with composers such as Bach, Chopin, Elgar and Bizet.  Making a note to return again soon ….

Hatchlands Park is managed by the National Trust – East Clandon, Guildford, Surrey, GU4 7RT.  Follow them on Twitter @HatchlandsNT and on Facebook/Hatchlands Park NT.  The National Trust is also on Twitter @NationalTrust and on Facebook/The National Trust as well as various other streams – Flickr, Pinterest, Instagram and YouTube.

It’s free to enter as a National Trust member.  For non-members, it’s GBP8.00 for the whole property (GBP4.00 for children) or GBP4.20 for the grounds only (GBP2.00 for children).

Contributor & photographer:  Sue Lowry

Follow A3Traveller on Twitter:  @A3Traveller and Sue Lowry on Google +, YouTube, Linkedin, Flickr and Pinterest.  I also operate another blog for my company, MagellanPR – http://www.magellanstraits.com.  They can be followed on Twitter:  @MagellanPR, on Google+, on YouTube, on Pinterest and on Facebook.