I’m currently holed-up in blustery, windswept, beautiful Cornwall. It’s my first trip to this pretty coastal county; it’s been on my must-visit list practically forever so when I received a rather exciting email asking me if I’d like to ‘explore the gardens of Cornwall’ and I immediately sent back a big, fat “yes please”.

So early this morning I settled into one of First Great Western‘s (reclining leather, very comfortable) first class seats, from where the 4.5 hour journey to St Austell simply flew by. After a quick lunch at our hotel (more on that soon) we headed out to explore the Lost Gardens of Heligan.

One of England’s most popular botanical gardens, Heligan has amassed some interesting stories during it’s 400-year history, including near-destruction and a huge restoration project during the 90s. It poured with rain during our entire 2-hour trip but, far from ruining our experience, this meant we got to really soak up the peace and quiet these stunning natural surroundings offer as well as the chance to stop and appreciate the obvious care and attention that goes into maintaining the 300-acre site.

Besides wandering the Jungle, Northern Gardens, Melon Yard, and fruit and vegetable plots, we of course explored the gift shop and stocked-up on some traditional, Heligon-made, Cornish fare – in my case apple cider, organic fudge and a little present for the boyfriend. So far, I’m loving Cornwall.

More from Cornwall soon but in the meantime I’ll be posting photos on Instagram (username: becky__colley) and don’t forget to enter my camera giveaway if you haven’t already!