Chelmsford & District National Trust Supporter Group

Report by Keith Otter

Sadly, this was the last day of our Group holiday. Our coach left Liverpool and took us to Dunham Massey. It was a glorious day and, having spent much of the week going round buildings, Pat and I decided to concentrate on the grounds.

These are well worth visiting and are home to some 150 fallow deer. A large wooded area is designated as a deer sanctuary, which the public are not allowed to enter. Because of the deer dogs must be kept on leads, except in the North Park next to the car park.

We walked past the house and the mill and along the path shown on the estate map as Farm Walk. Visitors have to stick to the path where it goes through the deer sanctuary. A couple of male deer with magnificent antlers ambled across the path as we approached. They didn’t seem nervous of humans. Getting so near allowed us to see just how delicate the animals’ structure is. I expect they put on weight and muscle in the rutting season.

We ventured the entire length of of the Farm Walk, which is not very far, until we reached the estate boundary, which is skirted by another path. We walked a short way along this to what is described as the Main Drive. It certainly leads straight towards the house but isn’t that impressive. The accompanying photograph depicts one of the two statues of heraldic lions near the house.

The rest of the time we spent in the formal gardens. These are in themselves quite large. The volunteer at the gate told us we couldn’t get lost as all the paths led back there. We didn’t get lost but I still don’t quite believe her.

We walked across a bridge to a large open lawn, where we rested for a while before ambling back over the bridge and through a wooded area. Then it was time to go back to the coach for the remainder of the journey home to Chelmsford.