With this time off work, Bob and I decided we wanted to take a trip to Winterthur. It's been 40 years since I've been there and he's never been. I was surprised to see it so very close to Longwood Gardens and easy to get from one to the other! Winterthur is just across the Delaware border, maybe 5 miles from Longwood. This time we went mainly for the garden. Our tickets are good for two days, so we'll be going there again for the house and museum.
The grounds are stunning! Even though they are in a warmer zone than us, and all the spring flowers were spent, the ground were shady and inviting and full of texture. There were some flowers, but most of the summer flowers haven't begun yet.
The meadow at Winterthur is large and lush with paths meandering through it.
It looks like a lonely gazebo standing in the middle of a grassy plain, but we were told that early spring that grassy plain is a field of blue crocus which were just recently finished with their spring bloom. A reason to go even earlier in the season. All the azalea, rhododendron and other spring flowers were done when we were there.
The house is incredible! Just the massive size of it needs to be seen to be appreciated. The conservatory here is small compared to Longwood Garden with it's massive conservatories, but it is sufficient. Henry DuPont designed and built the house around the lay of the land. It is 6 stories high, but 2 of the stories are underground. He built the house so as not to disturb the natural slope of the land. There is also a stream that he bridged the house over rather than try to change the flow of the water.
This is a two-tier Koi pond that is fed by a small run-off from the patios. The patios are quite high up the side of a bank which lends perfectly to the tiny run-off. The patios of the house are shady and inviting with Bristol tables and chairs overlooking the Koi pond and reflecting pool.
The reflecting pool is banked on each side by a pool house, one for the men and one for the women, which was the style of the day.
One of the pool houses.
I couldn't leave this post without a view of one of the areas of the museum. We didn't do much in the house this time but plan on going back since the tickets are good for another trip there. This time will be for the house and museum. It really does take more than one day just for the grounds, but I'm thinking it'll take just as long for the museum as well.
