My way to Fountains Abbey went through a little town Ripon, where you can find an old saxon crypt under the Ripon cathedral.
There are quite a lot of scary black magic stories connected to the cathedral, the cathedral personal would love to tell you all about it. You just have to understand English better than I did.
From Ripon goes a special bus to Fountains Abbey. I recommend to take the bus and not go by car, because with the bus ticket you get a 50% discount on admission.
Fountains Abbey was founded in 1132 and mostly made money with wool business. It was closed in 1539, when Henry VIII ordered Dissolution of Monasteries.
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| this is where the wool was stored |
Part of the estate is also an old water mill and a small museum telling the history of the monastery and about life of the monks.
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| Stairway to nowhere |
You can wander through the ruins and then continue to the garden, where you can find plenty of great picnic spots.
The garden was build in 18th century. You can also find classical statues, follies and garden buildings carefully positioned within the landscape to discover and enjoy.
Take at least two three hours to just see it all and walk through the garden. If you are in the area it is a must see. Also great for families with kids, as well as for solo travel or romantic trip with your love.
Have you been there? Did you enjoy?
