Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
The commercial and administrative centre of north Devon, Barnstaple is also its transport
hub. The ripe-smelling farmland around it house attractions both stately and arty, and
places to eat and sleep that range from a Michelin-starred restaurant, to a campsite of Ro-
many caravans.
Sights
Broomhill Sculpture Gardens
( 01271-850262;
www.broomhillart.co.uk
; Muddiford Rd; adult/child £4.50/1.50; 11am-4pm; )
It's a
magical effect: 300 often quirky sculptures hidden away in a 10-acre wooded valley. Sliv-
ers of burnished steel, painted columns and a series of mystical figures pop out from be-
hind trees; sculptural silhouettes emerge from flood planes and 25 polished stone Zimbab-
wean Shona statues sit on a plateau. There's a fairy tale, often comic feel to much of it -
Greta Berlin's 23ft-tall, red-leather stiletto tends to raise a smile. Broomhill also has a
slow-food restaurant, and an art hotel. It's all 3 miles north of Barnstaple at Muddiford, on
the B3230.
GARDENS
Arlington Court
HISTORIC BUILDING
(NT; 01271-850296;
www.nationaltrust.org.uk
; Arlington; adult/child £9/4.50; 11am-5pm daily mid-Feb-Oct;
)
When you arrive at the door of this honey-grey Regency manor house you're invited
to ring the bell, so you can be welcomed as a guest. Arlington exudes charm, from the
model ships and shells collected by the owners, to the produce-packed walled kitchen
garden. Its stables house the
National Trust Carriage Collection
, and the burnished leather and
plush fabrics of its 40 vehicles summon up an era of stately transport, as do the daily har-
nessing demonstrations and trips in jangling, rattling carriages. Search out the tiny Pony
Phaeton, a four-wheeled carriage belonging to Queen Victoria. Her Majesty drove it her-
self, but a servant walked alongside, ever ready to apply the handbrake (think Billy Con-
nolly's Mr Brown to Judi Dench's Queen Victoria). Arlington Court is 8 miles north of
Barnstaple on the A39.
Sleeping
Vintage Vardos
CAMPSITE
£
