Ashton Court Estate: 850 acres of woods, meadows, open grassland, deer parks and horse and bike riding trails not 2 miles from Bristol city centre. Just head west over the Suspension Bridge or walk up through Southville and past UWE Bower Ashton campus and you’ll be surrounded by a wide and seemingly infinite estate that has been keeping Bristolians sane for years. The estate is focused around Ashton Court Mansion, a super posh house that was taken over by Bristol Council in the 1950s and is now rented out for business conferences, parties and weddings, aside from just looking damn regal all year round.

Such a wide patch of greenery so close to the city is the perfect antidote to the dense, grey hysteria of urban living. Just being able to see Ashton Court from pretty much anywhere in town is enough to sooth your soul but it’s visiting (for free might I add) that really takes the biscuit. Whether you’re walking, cycling, driving or arriving via balloon, on entering the estate you are confronted with open countryside and suddenly remember the beauty of nature. Not convinced? Just spend an hour wandering its swirling pathways and taking in the rich views of Bristol – it’ll really take a weigh off your shoulders and you’ll kick yourself for not visiting more often. Thankfully then, with summer now wholly upon us, there are more and more reasons to visit Ashton Court, not least because the city’s very best summer events all take place right here.

Ashton Court’s headline summer crowd puller has to be the phenomenal International Balloon Fiesta. Held every August, it attracts crowds of around 150,000 a day; people clambering over each other to watch hundreds and hundreds of beautiful hot air balloons as they elegantly launch skywards - and don’t forget the obligatory Sunday afternoon Red Arrow display! Summer at Ashton Court also sees the International Kite Festival in September when the skies above the higher fields are transformed into a colourful kaleidoscope of shapes and designs.

In between these large events it’s still activities galore. Other highlights including Bristol Shakespeare Festival as they put on some of the Bard’s best works in the open air, and all manner of programmed group walks - be it for storytelling, deer feeding or wildlife watching. Also there are the events you can enjoy year round at Ashton Court but become much more appealing while the sun’s all fiery like the mountain bike trails, the orienteering course or the two pitch-and-putt golf courses.

If all this sounds a bit exhausting though, remember it doesn’t have to be all hustle and bustle over in Ashton Court. There are numerous woodlands and meadows you can experience in majestic silence and no matter when you go, you’ll always be able to find a quiet, shady spot under a tree to sprawl out on the grass, read your new book or catch forty winks.

So see you there! Whether you’re heading over the river to sunbathe, go deer spotting, have a BBQ, climb a tree, play Frisbee, enjoy an air show, launch a balloon, fly a kite, read a book, take an afternoon off, walk the dog or are just getting out of the city, make sure you spend a large portion of your summer afternoons here. You won’t regret it!

www.ashtoncourtestate.co.uk

Matthew Whittle www.matthewwhittleblog.blogspot.com
Photos by Ian Bradley www.ianbradleyphotography.com