TYNTESFIELD and its wooded, 1,700 acre estate, once stretched all the way down to Portbury and along the Failand ridge to Belmont Hill. The mansion, plus this beautiful stretch of North Somerset countryside, had belonged to Richard Gibbs, Lord Wraxall, who died a bachelor in 2001.
His younger brother, Sir Eustace, a retired diplomat who lives elsewhere in the country, now holds the title.
Ten years ago, in June 2002, after a fundraising campaign to prevent it being sold off privately, the house, magnificent chapel and part of the estate, including the gardens, were acquired by the National Trust.
In just three months a public appeal raised an amazing �8.2 million, with a further �17.4 million coming from the National Heritage Memorial Fund.
It was enough to secure the Gothic Revival property for the nation, with the National Lottery earmarking a further �25 million for major conservation works.
The National Trust has worked hard, but carefully, on the restoration, checking and researching everything as they have progressed, one by one, through the mansion's many rooms.
The underlying idea, they say, is to present it to the visitor as the family home it once was.
The house has been completely refurbished, rewired (it had early electricity) and given a new roof – a massive undertaking in its own right.
Another major project, and something which is taking many years, is the cataloguing of the many thousands of personal items left behind by the Gibbs family.
Work has been progressing steadily on the restoration of both the formal and walled gardens, with work on the beautiful Orangery being far advanced, but still ongoing.
"This is our new Pavilion cafe and toilets, next to the Orangery and what was once the old grass tennis courts," explains visitor services manager Jon Ducker, as we sat down for a chat and a welcome cup of tea on a hot day last week.
"When the Orangery is completed next year (and yes, the Trust will be growing oranges in it) we hope to be able to open up the building for weddings.
"In the last 18 months or so, the old cowsheds on the estate have been also been converted into a very successful restaurant/cafe and shop," he adds.
"We find that people are now coming back for return visits just to have a drink or meal in the restaurant, which you can use without having to pay for entry to the house or gardens."
In August, Jon informs me, Tyntesfield will be receiving its one millionth visitor, with 220,000 people visiting last year alone.
Everyone, it now seems, wants to pay a visit to this wonderfully restored Gothic Revival mansion.
Walking up to the house from the arboretum, past the old tennis courts and dried up boating lake, I wondered why some old trees had been taken out recently.
"Paul Evans, our head gardener, is currently putting together a landscape management plan for the estate and is looking at opening up some views and replanting," says Jon.
"But, obviously, its a very long- term thing – perhaps even the rockery in the Rose Garden might be completed one day.
"This is very much a year of change for Tyntesfield – we are trying out new things, such as a recent 10K run, which was very successful, and encouraging new attractions, such as this weekend's display of old military vehicles.
"We have also introduced a food and craft market on the first Sunday of each month and 'Feel Good' Fridays with cookery demonstrations and the like. The bookshop and plant sales continue to be successful, too, but there is still a lot to do – even after ten years, work is still ongoing.
"It would be great, for instance, if the Trust could re-open the old forge here as a working unit.
"The estate sawmill, for instance, is now an educational centre for school parties but also acts as a staff meeting place. It's multi-functional, really.
"There's also a fairly new group called TYNTE – youngsters who organise interpretive events, such as music and art activities, throughout the year.
"We hope that, in years to come, they will help look after the house and estate."
Like most National Trust properties, Tyntesfield relies heavily on its volunteers, the numbers of which have mushroomed over the past decade.
Mary Talbot, who has been here from the very start, and who knew the late Lord Wraxall, Richard Gibbs, paid tribute to the invaluable work that the volunteers do.
And with 800 in all, doing all manner of things in the house and on the estate, everything from guiding to gardening, that's an awful lot of man hours.
"We started with about six, I think, in 2002," says Mary, who is passionate about local history.
"The decision to open the house as soon as it was purchased, although something of a nightmare for the volunteers, was a very good one," she adds. "And having the roof open to visitors while it was being repaired (they could climb the scaffolding) was, although controversial, another good idea.
"In fact, it was the best decision the Trust ever made – the public were absolutely fascinated by the work we were doing."
But what does she think about the use of new technology, such as audio guides, which have not been introduced at Tyntesfield?
"Well, I lot of people like to hear a guide and be able to ask questions," she says.
"We were the first National Trust property to have interpreters, and you get a lot of feedback from visitors.
"But I'm not against it – really, it's a question of getting the balance right."
An ecologically aware National Trust has installed two bio-mass boilers, fed by wood chips, which now provide all the heating that is needed both for the house and the visitor centre.
The whole estate, home to deer and bats, as well as a host of other wildlife, has been ecologically surveyed and many well cared for old trees on the estate obviously pre-date the current Victorian mansion.
Visitors to the old stables, some of which have been turned into privately rented accommodation, can view the bats' activities via a camera link.
And with so much on offer educationally, school parties are also keen to pay a visit.
"After ten years, the pace of change has obviously slowed down," says Jon.
"But there is still a lot to do and funds to be raised, both for new projects and for upkeep.
"Tyntesfield still has a long way to go."
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