Of Bournemouth's celebrated Victorian pleasure gardens, the Upper Gardens sit furthest from the coast, and by some distance are the wildest stretch. While the Central and Lower Gardens near the seafront read as manicured town parks, the Upper Gardens turn into something closer to a woodland trail, tracking the Bourne stream up through Westbourne towards Coy Pond.
History
Leased initially to the Durrant family as a private garden from the 1860s, the site was notoriously boggy, closer to marsh than garden, and shingle and broken pottery from a nearby clay works had to be used for drainage before any real planting could start. Once the lease passed to Bournemouth Council, the Bournemouth Improvement Commissioners spent 1871 to 1889 converting the valley into a public pleasure ground, introducing the earliest of its exotic trees. The Upper Gardens, together with the Central and Lower Gardens, now carry Grade II Park and Garden registration as part of the broader scheme that architect Decimus Burton first advised on while Bournemouth was developing into a Victorian health resort.
What to see & do
Trees here are loosely arranged into European, Asian and North American groupings, rhododendrons, oaks and silver birches; Japanese acers, bamboo and Persian ironwoods; pines and a towering Giant Redwood reputed to be among the country's largest. Red ornamental bridges span the Bourne stream, and a Gothic-style, red-brick water tower built between 1883 and 1903, originally meant to pump water to a fountain via a waterwheel, still stands as a landmark, now serving roosting bats rather than any mechanical purpose. Further along, boardwalks carry the path over boggy ground to ornamental rockeries and on towards Coy Pond, where the gardens reach the Poole boundary.
Visiting
Entry to the Upper Gardens is free and open access, and they combine easily with a longer walk along the full gardens chain. Lower paths are paved and easy underfoot, but expect boggier, less formal terrain, boardwalks rather than tarmac, as you near the rockery and Coy Pond end, which can prove awkward for wheelchairs and pushchairs.
They join directly onto the Central Gardens, which lead down in turn to the Lower Gardens and the pier. For further green spaces and walking routes around the bay, see our guide to things to do in Bournemouth.
