National Trust - Willington Dovecote and Stables — Attraction in England

Really? Were there also the Stables? Nonetheless, it was an impressive site, the biggest dovecote I'd ever seen. You'd be suitably impressed too!

Let me backtrack with a little bit of how I'd discovered this gem.

My car had needed an MOT in nearby Shefford, and so took the advantage of cycling the local area, a journey to discover the interesting things that don't normally pop up on any map.

Taking an unexplored route, I'd perchance the opportunity to visit Willington, to then join with a cycling route I knew well. As I drew closer, I'd saw a wonderful old church, then two separate buildings which were just as interesting and in the beautiful 'old style'.

The dovecote, built for giants, drew the most of my attention, I'd never seen anything quite like it. A tall, much more than normal, brick building with tiny hobbit-sized doors below. Were people that much smaller in the old days?

The roof was undescribably interesting, but in layman's terms, I'll say it's a split roof with slats in the middle for the pigeons to enter/exit from. I am sure someone can describe it better. To augment, there were even a few pigeons standing guard and cooing up above too.

Well maintained, and I'm sure, well managed, by the National Trust.

Well worth a visit. It boasts at least a couple 'not busy' car parks, with plenty of room to take advantage of, in a quiet non-fussy village.

Bring a bike and do what I did, explore the area, and cycle the Bedford to Sandy route. You might discover something...

This falls under a more quirky National Trust compared to a stately house or formal garden. We really loved it. There were guides when we went who were welcoming, knowledgeable and helpful. Great information boards and horseshoe collection in the stables. Great there were actual horses in the next field over. 🐎 Lots of parking. 🚘 Dovecote had great atmosphere. It's not open many times per year so check app before visiting. Would...

Strange and unusual building, need to visit on a day when open and you can find out about the buildings use and history. OK to add in when visiting the area seeing other things but not exciting enough to do as a single attraction unless the local car show or village fete is on. Consider combining with a visit to the Danish Camp that's very close where if you book you can take a ride down the...