Colby Woodland Garden

If yesterday's trip to Stackpole was a highpoint in the annals of the National Trust Scone Odyssey - my first post-lockdown scone, 199 days in the waiting - then today was...well, let's just say it wasn't a highpoint. Anything that involves sheeting rain, no scone, and an AA man fixing your hired Toyota Aygo in a car park is unlikely to be a highpoint of anything.

But! Our motto here in NT Sconeworld is NEVER MIND and, anyway, I didn't actually need to visit Colby Woodland Garden in Pembrokeshire at all - it was a bonus. The Bothy tearoom is tenanted and I took the decision ages ago that tenanted cafes would not be a mandatory part of this quest. But I was in the area and I'd heard great things about the place so I decided to drop in.

The first mistake I made was to save the scone until after my walk. I never, ever do this - it's Rule 1 in the Scone Blogger Handbook: Eat Scone As Soon As Possible. The second mistake I made - and this is the one that I believe angered the Scone Gods - was I bought a cup of tea and a piece of apple cake to sustain me. WHY? Why did I break with years of best practice? I don't even like apple cake.

It all went downhill from there. I trudged off into the torrential rain, noting the signs about keeping two metres apart. I needn't have worried; there was hardly anyone else there.

There were other signs advising that a one-way system was in place. This troubled me immediately. I had no idea how long the woodland walk was - what if it stretched for 20 miles and I was stuck on it for days with no way of legally turning back? It turned out I was right to be worried; I stuck to it so diligently that I soon found myself walking out of the estate altogether and down to the nearby seashore at Amroth. 

On the plus side, Amroth had a bus shelter,
which came in handy while I spoke to the AA

There had been no phone signal on the Colby estate and as I walked down into the village my phone suddenly burst into life with voicemails and texts. I sat in the bus shelter while I spoke to the car hire company - the light that kept flashing on was indeed potentially a problem so the AA were on their way. I beetled back to the car park and spent the next 20 minutes sorting out tyre pressure.

I could, and should, have gone back for my scone but I was soaking wet and extremely miserable. I'm not giving up though! I will claim my bonus Colby scone before the week is out!

Part Two...The Return to Colby Woodland Garden

True to my word, I made it back to Colby Woodland Garden on my final day in Pembrokeshire. The rain was (just about) holding off and I was 100% clear on what was needed: I went straight into the Bothy tearoom and ordered my scone.

Things didn't bode too well: a microwave was involved and when I tried to cut the scone it disintegrated into about 12 pieces. However, I have stopped worrying about microwaves ever since my niece asked for her scone to be heated up at Croft Castle. It must be very tiring working in a National Trust cafeteria.

But in fact the scone was delicious. Just the right amount of fruit, sweet and tasty, it was well worth the return trip.

Colby Woodland Garden: 4 out of 5

Scone: 4.5 out of 5 (a bit crumbly but very tasty)

Worthwhileness of the return trip: 5 out of 5

Other National Trust properties I have visited in Wales: Aberdulais Tinworks, Bodnant Garden, Chirk Castle, Dyffryn Gardens, Erddig, Penrhyn Castle, Plas Newydd, Plas yn Rhiw, Powis Castle, Stackpole, Tredegar House