Driving through the fog was an experience in itself, We couldn't move we had that many items of clothing on / strapped inside our rucksacks. Jimmy was getting first rate education from myself and Appo about tent pegs, sheep and cattlegrids - All banter before we saw the mansion, From then on it was near enough silence.
After checking the place out outside we were stumped for a way inside, A further scout around proved to be one of the easiest entrances I have ever tried. After a quick scour of the building in amazement we set up the sleeping bags in a room left by the 'three bears' 3 beds, Wardrobe, Electricity ,Water and Curtains.
I woke at 9am to Jimmy shouting in my face that someone was downstairs, Appo was awake and laughing. We kept quiet and slept for a short time before packing and hiding the gear away and exploring the beautiful building. The main rooms were a brilliant size and the rooftop had a view way out to Rhyl and the wind farms out at sea...
History ;
The present château style house, the third on the site, was designed by W. E. Nesfield in the 1870s, and the adjoining Venetian Gardens were designed by his father, W. A. Nesfield. The adjoining Neo-palladian style stable block is attributed to William Burn, with construction completed in the 1850s
The house is set in walled gardens of around 18 acres (73,000 m2), which are themselves set in grounds of around 5,000 acres (20 km2), encompassing open fields, parkland and forests. Kinmel mansion, constructed in Wales in the 1870s is an excellent example of the myriad of new types of spaces that were arising during the Victorian era to fulfill increasingly specialized functions. For example, there was a room in the mansion that was only to be used for the ironing of newspapers, so that the ink would not come off on the reader's hands.
Ownership of the house has been dominated by the Hughes, Lewis and Fetherstonhaugh and Gill families. There are many heraldic shields displayed throughout the house which show evidence of the unions between these families. The property was last used as a private home in 1929, after which it was converted to a 'rheuma spa', a health centre for the treatment of people with rheumatism. The spa remained until the outbreak of World War II, when the hall was taken over as a hospital.
Since then it has been used as a conference centre, and an educational venue. The hall is now the property of Derbyshire Investments and currently under renovation.
We left after we heard a voice inside the building. Footsteps and deep Hello's were enough to get us to bail out. Respect to Appo & Jimmy, Gone...
After checking the place out outside we were stumped for a way inside, A further scout around proved to be one of the easiest entrances I have ever tried. After a quick scour of the building in amazement we set up the sleeping bags in a room left by the 'three bears' 3 beds, Wardrobe, Electricity ,Water and Curtains.
I woke at 9am to Jimmy shouting in my face that someone was downstairs, Appo was awake and laughing. We kept quiet and slept for a short time before packing and hiding the gear away and exploring the beautiful building. The main rooms were a brilliant size and the rooftop had a view way out to Rhyl and the wind farms out at sea...
History ;
The present château style house, the third on the site, was designed by W. E. Nesfield in the 1870s, and the adjoining Venetian Gardens were designed by his father, W. A. Nesfield. The adjoining Neo-palladian style stable block is attributed to William Burn, with construction completed in the 1850s
The house is set in walled gardens of around 18 acres (73,000 m2), which are themselves set in grounds of around 5,000 acres (20 km2), encompassing open fields, parkland and forests. Kinmel mansion, constructed in Wales in the 1870s is an excellent example of the myriad of new types of spaces that were arising during the Victorian era to fulfill increasingly specialized functions. For example, there was a room in the mansion that was only to be used for the ironing of newspapers, so that the ink would not come off on the reader's hands.
Ownership of the house has been dominated by the Hughes, Lewis and Fetherstonhaugh and Gill families. There are many heraldic shields displayed throughout the house which show evidence of the unions between these families. The property was last used as a private home in 1929, after which it was converted to a 'rheuma spa', a health centre for the treatment of people with rheumatism. The spa remained until the outbreak of World War II, when the hall was taken over as a hospital.
Since then it has been used as a conference centre, and an educational venue. The hall is now the property of Derbyshire Investments and currently under renovation.
We left after we heard a voice inside the building. Footsteps and deep Hello's were enough to get us to bail out. Respect to Appo & Jimmy, Gone...
