Storm clouds gathering over the house at Leonardslee, with a bronze figure sculpture, Faith, on the lawn

A quiet pond fringed with bulrushes under a heavy grey sky

The place I had in mind for a mid-week adventure with Richard and Breezy turned out to not be open on a Wednesday - good job I double checked! So instead we headed off to Leonardslee Gardens. The morning had been rainy but by afternoon it was cloudy, warm but not so hot that Breezy would struggle. Richard had never been before which I hadn’t realised. We had a good explore. Breezy had a lot of good sniffs and seemed happy and not overheating. The gardens were pretty quiet. Apart from at the cafe, and along the main pathways by the water, we didn’t really see anybody else. This gave it a calm and peaceful feeling.

Pale, peeling bark on a eucalyptus tree at Leonardslee

We walked past a Eucalyptus tree and I was really taken with the bark rolling off like a silver birch. But bigger and with firmer rolls of bark. More cinnamon stick and less paper. I swear I caught a faint whiff of eucalyptus drifting down. But that could have been my brain playing tricks on me.

As with my only other daytime visit we enjoyed looking at the sculptures. Some huge, some more manageable (tho still too big for my small garden). The Anton Smit sculptures are eyecatching. There is Faith, pictured above next to the house.

Reflect: A group of bronze nude figures seen from behind, standing among ferns

Reflect is near the lake edge, with the group of ladies looking to me like they were sharing news.

Crouching Angel: A winged bronze figure bending over the pond in the sunshine

Crouching Angel is in the middle of the pond, she’s had greenery grow up around her since I last visited.

Oblivion of the Waves: A large sculpted metal head resting on a grassy hillside

Oblivion of the Waves has an amazing view, looking down towards the water.

A textured bronze and resin bowl sculpture framing a circle of sky

XL Abstract Form II is by Kara Sanches. I liked how the sky could be seen through the hole in the middle

A lovely way to spend an afternoon and exactly the kind of thing I had in mind for my sabbatical.