Blaise Castle Estate

On this page:

Introduction
History
Special designations/awards
Caves
Dairy garden
Folly castle
Giant's footprints
Lily pond
Horse riding
Orienteering
Walking
Wildlife and conservation
Disabled access information

Introduction

Blaise Castle Estate, Kings Weston Road, Lawrence Weston, Bristol BS10 7QS

Blaise Castle Estate is a magnificent 650 acre Grade II* registered parkland and with over 5,000 years of history, one of Bristol’s gems. With a deep wooded limestone gorge, dramatic scenery, and ancient monuments steeped in folklore, this estate is one of the most magical and romantic landscapes in the West Country. With plenty to do for children as well as adults, it is easily possible to spend a whole day enjoying its varied features and many facilities.

Visitor facilities and information

Amphitheatre hosts (availble for public performances)
Café
Estate ranger service on site most days
Free car park (150 vehicle capacity)
Large children's play area with dedicated zones for younger and older children
Benches and picnic areas
Public toilets including baby changing
Sport pitches (there are two cricket pitches and a large expanse of grassed space for informal play and sport)
View point

Visitor guides

Download: Blaise Castle House Museum leaflet (pdf, 1.2 MB)
Download: Blaise Estate castle walk leaflet (pdf, 1.2 MB)
Download: Blaise Estate gorge walk leaflet (pdf, 1.2 MB)
Download: Blaise Estate Kings Weston Down walk leaflet (pdf, 1.2 MB)
Download: Blaise Estate Rhododendron walk leaflet (pdf, 1.0 MB)
Download: Blaise Estate The Royalls and St Mary's Church walk leaflet (pdf, 1.1 MB)
Download: Blaise Castle Estate orienteering map (pdf, 1.7 MB)

Admission

Admission is free, except when specified advertised events are taking place.

Access

Blaise Castle Estate is approximately five miles from Bristol city centre. The main entrance is via the car park off Kings Weston Road, with a small car park off The Dingle. There are numerous pedestrian access points.
A permissive cycle route runs through from Coombe Dingle to Henbury Road.

Opening hours

7.30am daily throughout the year.

Parking and travel

Two car parks are available: Main one is located off Kings Weston Road (BS10 7QS) and the smaller one is off The Dingle (BS9 2PA).
Car park closing times vary with the season:
- November, December, and January: 5.15pm
- February: 6.15pm
- March and October: 7.15pm
- April and September: 8.15pm
- May, June, July and August: 9.15pm
To help plan your journey to Blaise Castle Estate visit the travel information web page.

Download: Map of Blaise Castle Estate (pdf, 0.9 MB)

What’s on

Please keep checking the regularly updated Blaise Castle Estate event listing to find out what's on.

See parks and open spaces events if you are an event organiser interested in promoting an event on Blaise Castle Estate.

Visitor attractions

Blaise Castle House Musuem
Blaise Hamlet (National Trust property)
Caves
Dairy Garden - restricted access
Folly Castle - restricted access
Giant's Footprints
Lily Pond

Weddings, conferences and function rooms

Blaise Castle House Museum is licenced to hold civil marriage ceremonies

Estate activities

Cricket
Horse riding
Orienteering
Walking

Estate management

Blaise Castle Estate has its own management plan covering the period up to 2013. A management plan is a working document that tells us where we are now, where we want to get to, how will we get there, and how we will know when we have arrived.

Places nearby

History

Download: Histoy of Blaise Castle estate (pdf, 11 KB)
Download: Heritage Lottery Fund developments (pdf, 30 KB)

Special designations/awards

Green Flag Award winning site (2008, 2009 and 2010)
Scheduled ancient monument - Blaise Castle, Iron Age hillfort, Roman and medieval remains, and post-medieval garden
Site of Nature Conservation Interest - a designation used in many parts of the United Kingdom to protect areas of importance for wildlife at a county scale.
Site of Special Scientific Interest - a conservation designation denoting a protected area in the United Kingdom.

Parts of the estate are also on the Inventory of Ancient Woodland and the Invertebrate Site Register.

Caves

Butcher's cave

One of the estate's man made caves, given it's name because of the red tinge to the stones inside, resembling hanging joints of meat.

Robber's cave

Constructed with large rustic local limestone blocks over shallow excavated hole to serve as a feature for carriage drive to the castle.

Dairy garden

The space occupied today by the Dairy Garden and performance area was previously the site of the old manor house.

John Scandrett Harford commissioned the architect William Paty to design a new house and on its completion in 1798 the old manor was demolished.

The Dairy building was designed by John Nash and constructed in 1804. Although it has a pretty cottage exterior and may have been the prototype for the cottages of Blaise Hamlet, it was essentially a working building.

The Dairy was set in a pretty garden garden of its own, containing flower beds, a water lily pond, a low rock garden, an urn on a pedestal and a Maidenhair tree.

The current contemporary design, while not an exact recreation, incorporates these features and contains many of the species that would have been planted in the original garden.

Folly castle

This Gothic fantasy sits on top of the steep Castle Hill and was built in 1766 to the designs of Robert Mylne. Although it is now reduced to an empty shell, the castle was originally built as a summer house. The suite of rooms included a kitchen and on the first floor a large drawing room furnished with oak panelled walls, stained glass windows and niches for suits of armour.

The Friends of Blaise organise opening events throughout the summer where you can visit the castle. Please contact the Friends group for further information.

Blaise Castle

The folly castle is opened by volunteers from Friends of Blaise on every third Sunday in the month, May to October, Bank Holidays from 2 - 4.30pm.

This unique and eccentric structure offers:

exhibits, including a display of old pictures of the castle and historical details
panoramic views of the area from the castle roof. This is the highest point in the local landscape with views extending to the Cotswold Hills, Wales and the suburbs of Bristol
opportunities to buy souvenir post cards and cut out models of the castle - all profits are reinvested in the estate

Giant's footprints

Here you can see a form of limestone erosion unusual for this part of Britain - a limestone pavement. They develop where the rock layers are more or less horizontal and contain vertical stress fractures called “joints”. These joints are lines of weaknesses where slightly acid rainwater can dissolve away the limestones which then widen into footprint-like pockets.

Local legend blames the footprint on a giant called Goram who stamped his feet into solid rock while in a tantrum.

Lily pond

Created by J. S. Harford Junior during the mid 19th century. Concrete lined, surrounded by exotic tree species such as Caucasian Wingnut and Wellingtonia.

Horse riding

A horse trail runs from Kingsweston Road car park to Kingsweston Down and back. This is two miles long, with opportunities to link to other bridleways beyond. For further information on riding in the estate. please ring 0117 353 2266 or email: brlsmh@bristol.gov.uk

Orienteering

What is orienteering?

Orienteering is a sport that challenges both the mind and the body. The aim is to navigate between control points marked by small red circles on a special, very large scale map, by planning the best route to complete the course in the quickest time. On the ground the control points are marked by a red and white kite shaped flag. Participants can walk, jog or run so age and ability do not matter.

Orienteering events take place anywhere from city streets, colleges or schools, parks, forests and remote hills and dales and is completely family friendly and participants can just turn up and enter without prebooking, competing as a group or as individuals.

It is one of the greatest sports for those who enjoy being outside and for those who want to improve their navigational skills and suits any youth group activity programme.

For clothing and equipment all that is needed is trainers or boots and comfortable outdoor clothes appropriate to the season. As orienteering takes place come rain or come shine, a change of shoes and clothes would be useful. A compass is only needed as experience is gained.

Permanent Orienteering Courses in Bristol's parks and green spaces

At Ashton Court and Blaise Castle Estates, concrete marker posts have been set up to create Permanent Orienteering Courses. You can buy a premarked orienteering map of this course from the Park Ranger`s office near the car park café at Blaise Castle Estate. There is further information on how to start your orienteering course with suggested courses of varying difficulty on the back of the maps.

Bristol Orienteering Klub (BOK)

Bristol Orienteering Klub (BOK) is one of the largest and most active clubs in the UK. The letter K is from the Swedish spelling. It was formed in 1972 and now has a membership approaching 450 with many local members. BOK actively supports Avon Schools Orienteers. Whilst many members compete to enjoy a relaxing but mentally stimulating time out in the fresh air, other more serious orienteers have been selected for orienteering World Championship and World Cup Series. Recently BOK has been awarded the title of ‘Club Mark’ by the British Orienteering Federation, in recognition of the club`s programme of development and child safety.

For more information

More details about the club and future events can be found on the BOK web site. All events have courses suitable for young and adult beginners.

Walking

Blaise is an excellent starting point for a long walk into the countryside or into the city. There are footpath links to Kingsweston Estate and beyond, the community Forest Path, and the Severn Way.

The estate has an extensive range of scenic pathways packed with great views and points of historical interest. You can see:

Lover's Leap (the dramatic precipice towering above the gorge)
the Giant’s Footprint
Goram’s Chair (the giant’s resting place - an immense limestone rock group)
the Robber's Cave
Earthworks (the Iron Age fort)
And the mysterious fairy tale cottage known as the Rustic Lodge (a beautifully crafted, unique little wooden house).

Look out also for the Rhododendron Walk, Stratford Mill and Kings Weston Down. But beware - many of these pathways have very challenging gradients.

Five new circular walks are on trial at the moment and can be requested from the estate office or download the walks below.

Circular walks

Castle walk

This walk takes around 40 minutes. It is 1¼ miles long and incorporates historical features and stunning views over the gorge. This walk uses mainly woodland trails with some steep inclines that can be muddy.
Download: Blaise Estate castle walk leaflet (pdf, 1.2 MB)

Gorge walk

This walk takes around 50 minutes. It is 1½ miles long and incorporates the gorge and up through the surrounding woodlands. This walk uses surfaced and woodland paths. Included steep inclines.
Download: Blaise Estate gorge walk leaflet (pdf, 1.2 MB)

Kings Weston Down walk

This walk takes around 35 minutes. It is 1½ miles long and goes through the woodland and up to the Iron Age hill fort. The walk follows defined woodland paths and grassland.
Download: Blaise Estate Kings Weston Down walk leaflet (pdf, 1.2 MB)

Rhododendron walk

This walk takes around one hour and 45 minutes. It is 3 miles long and incorporates many of the estates dramatic natural features and historical buildings. The walk uses both surfaced paths and woodland trails covering a mixture of terrains. Includes steep assents.
Download: Blaise Estate Rhododendron walk leaflet (pdf, 1.0 MB)

The Royalls and St Mary's Church walk

This walk takes around 50 minutes. It is 1¼ miles long and incorporates The Royalls and St Mary's Church Yard. This walk follows woodland trails, grass and surfaced paths. The main drive is suitable for buggies.
Download: Blaise Estate The Royalls and St Mary's Church walk leaflet (pdf, 1.1 MB)

Wildlife and conservation

The estate has several different woodlands to explore, some of which are ancient. It has a fantastic range of many other habitats too. Pools, streams, grasslands, woodlands and scrub; rock faces, overhangs, scree, caves, quarries and a varied geology - all combine to provide a rich diversity of wildlife and a rich experience for visitors.

Seasonal highlights

Spring

Early spring wakes the hibernating butterflies brimstone, small tortoiseshell, red admiral and peacock. May brings out orange-tips and large whites.
Enjoy a carpet of snowdrops in the woodlands and lesser periwinkle on Castle Hill.
Further colour is added in March by lesser celandine, scentless dog violet and wood anemone.
In early May, the woodland smells of garlic due to the starbursts of ramsons.

Summer

Look out for a flittering bats on warm summer evenings.
Insects are feeding on the nectar of the wild flowers.
Rhododendrons shows off their flowers.
Away from the showy rhododendrons, the pathways are brightened by yellow archangel and bugle, and later, by flaming beds of rose-bay willow herb.
Fortunate visitors may glimpse a slender twayblade orchid.
Watch out for dragonflies hovering over the pond.

Autumn

Late autumn sees the frantic search for winter fuel as birds pillage the fruits of holly, spindle and wayfaring trees.
Insects swarms melt away and decay dominates the woodland.
Fungi grow their fruiting bodies.
Dull black cramp balls, subtly-ringed ganoderma and orange witches' butter sprout from rotting branches.
Squirrels hide their winter food.

Winter

The ponds are icing over.
Watch out for roe deer who are now visible due to the light undergrowth.
Squirrels search for the food they were hiding in autumn.

Disabled access information

Blaise Castle House Museum

Due to the age and layout of the house, access is restricted, with no lift and a staircase to the first floor
Although there are some steps leading to the museum, a ramp can be provided on request from the museum staff
No wheelchair accessible toilet
Please contact 0117 903 9818 if you would like more information.

Café

Fully accessible with electrical entrance doors, however at peak times there could be some difficulties due to the high volumes of visitors (it's quite narrow inside)
Toilet facilities including disabled access nearby.

Car parking

Five disabled parking bays are located in the main car park (access via Henbury Road)
One disabled parking bay in the smaller car park (access via The Dingle).

Facilities

Disabled toilet and baby changing is located opposite the café, sometimes it is locked in order to ensure the correct use, a key can be obtained from the café.

General

The café and playground is accessible through tarmac and flat paths.

Please call 0117 353 2266 if you have any queries about accessing Blaise Castle Estate.

Contact us

Tel: 0117 353 2266
Email: blaise.estate@bristol.gov.uk