In 2004, we visited this garden on a sunny,
Sunday afternoon which turned out to be a bad decision on two
counts. First, Cañada Road where the gardens are located is basically closed
every Sunday so that bicycles can use it all afternoon.
Second, the gardens are closed on Sunday.
We
ended up going on a day when there was a jazz concert on the
grounds. One end of Cañada was open as far as the gardens. We
parked and noticed people dressed up and wearing name badges
emerging from the other cars. We walked up to the brick fence
and found an open gate.
As
we walked in, a nice lady walked up and said the gardens were
closed and that the volunteers were just arriving before the
crowd showed up later. Then she said, "I don't think anyone
would notice if you wandered around a little." So, we did. It
was actually a nice visit since we were the only ones in the
gardens.
BTW, they are beautiful, formal gardens and I suspect that the
mansion is worth a visit too. Just avoid Sundays (unless you
call ahead to see if they have changed their schedule.)
Our 2011 visit was in April
when the tulips and wisteria were at their peaks. Wow! The
garden impressed us even more this time around.
