If you ever find yourself visiting The Berkshires of Western Massachusetts there is a place like no other that you must see – Ashintully Garden.
A magical garden filled with mystery and beauty like you’ve never seen before. A perfectly orchestrated masterpiece that’s one of a kind and would leave you speechless. The energy, the amount of thought put in this piece of art, the meticulousness of every tiny detail both in the house and on the grounds would take your breath away and fill you with wonder.
Ashintully Farm took John McLennan (a contemporary composer) 30 years of completing his vision for a place that awes!
You can actually feel the sound of his music expressed through the way the garden flows. Through the flowing water and wooden bridges, to the sculptures and pond, the roaring stream, the rising flanking meadows and stone stairs everything moves in perfect harmony.
Everything is meticulously and beautifully created with serenity and stillness in mind. Every vase, every stone, every sculpture and rock seem to fall in the right place and in the fall if you sit for a moment and watch the leaves fall down from the undressing trees you’ll notice that even they find their specific spot on the moist ground working to create the perfect pattern of colorful carpet beaming in orange, yellow and red in preparation to embrace and warm it during the cold winter months ahead.
You can wander the garden all day. There is a strong feeling of peace and tranquility you would find yourself experiencing while doing so. Inhale deep the fresh air. Exhale all your worries away.
Walk the foot paths or the bridges, sit on the comfortable garden benches with a book or just gaze at the pond and wait for deer to come near by for a drink of water or take a look inside the house where you can see where John McLennan found his inspiration. It would not be hard to picture him sitting by the window sketching deep in thoughts, randomly brought back to reality by a singing bird or playful sequels chasing on the trees outside the window.
Comfortable sitting, velvet couches, draped curtains and his work spread around the house make you feel as if he is still there just out for a walk in the woods and the massive wooden doors will briskly open now and he would stand right there in the shadow of them with the sketch book in one hand and few logs in the other. I imagine him slowly making his way pass the doors, gently placing his book on the desk and tossing the logs in the fire still deep in thoughts. Contemplating, planning, deliberating on how to create his showpiece.
And if you felt inspired and wanted to see more of where he might’ve wondered while outside the house take a stroll to the ruins of a Georgian-style Ashintully Mansion that stands guard above the gardens.
A short less than a mile walk above the beautiful gardens following the old gravel carriage road leads to the once called Marble Manor.
The legend says that in 1903, Robb and Grace de Peyster Tytus discovered the Tyringham Valley on their honeymoon. Soon after purchasing the 1,000 acres that they named Ashintully (Gaelic meaning “on the brow of the hill”), they built a Georgian-style mansion on the hill that consisted of 35 rooms, 10 bathrooms and 15 fireplaces.
You can see the remining four Doric columns still sticking high from the ground from far far away. And from distance you would think they look like Marble pillars which is the result of the fine white sand brought in straight from the Island of Nantucket and mixed with stucco which gives them that appearance.
Marble was used in abundance inside this prominent Mansion – the terraces, the windows, the fireplaces were all made of it and while wondering around what’s left of this once prominent structure you will still be able to see some of it peaking through the shrubs.
Please be careful and do not take unnecessary risk while exploring the ruins. Stick to the marked paths and do no disturb what’s left of the structure. The ground is unstable at places and inquires might occur if one is not careful. In summer months do watch for slithery friends and let them be. They like the sunny warm stones and this is their home. Please keep pets on a leash and wear proper shoes. Watch out for poison ivy and take any trash back with you.
In 1952 the Ashintully Manor burned down after being inhabited by two generations of the Tytus-McLennan family, but its Doric columns remain as testament to a bygone era. The story goes that the house along with 600 acres of woodland from the surrounding towns of Tyringham, Otis, East Otis and Monterey were consumed by a fire that started as result of strong winds that blew ashes from a fire that Mr. McLennan was burning in his garden.
The present-day ruins command a striking view of distant Berkshire Hills. One can close their eyes and easily picture themselves sitting on the balcony overlooking the picturesque vistas while enjoying a hot cup of tea or a glass of good wine before heading inside and warming their hands by the booming fire in one of the many marble fireplaces that heated the house.
Ashintully Gardens and the grounds are especially beautiful in the fall and so very mysterious in the early morning mist lifting slowly off the ground. Sunset here are especially enchanting in the winter months. We have not been but I can only imagine how absolutely gorgeous the gardens would look after a snowfall. A perfect winter fairytale scene.
If you are planning a visit the gardens are located in the town of Tyringham, MA and are open daily from 10am to 5pm from April-November. Ruins are open from April-November, sunrise to sunset. There is no charge for visiting the site.
Ashintully Gardens are so astonishing that they earned the Hunnewell Medal from the Massachusetts Horticultural Society and ones visited this magical place you would see why.
If you are in the area and looking for more things to do check out our other posts on beautiful places to visit, hikes and activities. We have a list of all of them for you HERE.