Below are our favourite three walks from the doorstep at Hall Farm, ranging from 2.5km to 6km. Easy to moderate walking, simple to navigate and therefore family-friendly (and dog-friendly, though leads will be required through some livestock fields). All the walks involve climbing stiles or squeezing through gates but we can suggest more accessible alternatives that are buggy-friendly and wheelchair-friendly. There are lots of notable landmarks and points of interest along the way including Thor's Cave, Wetton Hill, Wetton Low, Manifold Valley, Manifold Trail, Wetton and Wetton Mill. Links to the routes can be found in this blog and our guests can borrow OS maps from us.

So this time last year we had just completed our first Christmas booking, were checking in our New Years guests and were looking forward to our first full year at Hall Farm, excited for the challenges that 2020 may bring. We set ourselves targets, personal ones, business targets, financial targets etc... and were excited about the year. Who could've predicted what lay ahead? Like everyone we have been hugely affected by coronavirus. Through it all we have tried to stay positive, tried not to worry about the lost bookings or the financial impact. We've used the vacant site to renovate our cottages and playbarn - more on that later - and enjoyed getting to know our beautiful local area better with our little girls and Twiggy the dog. As the rollercoaster year draws to a close we thought it fitting to bring together a little timeline of our activities, as follows: January and February I'd imagine you could call these normal months. January was quiet - though busier than forecast, and February got busier, with the half-term holidays blocked out with happy families. We had a check in pretty much everyday over the week which meant we couldn't enjoy much time together as a family which was challenging with L off school and ready to blow off steam. We made the decision that we would limit our check-in days over school holidays in future, to strike a happier work - family balance. Bookings were starting to pile in for March, April and May, surpassing our expectations and keeping us motivated on dark nights. Oh, and there was a strange virus that had been discovered on the other side of the world, nothing to worry about I'm sure...

Somehow we are now into our 8th week of lockdown, I think? Eight weeks of "homeschooling", eight weeks of working from home, eight weeks of exploring our local area and eight weeks without any guests. The bookings calendar for April and May was the busiest since our "launch", and the months were set to whizz by with us manically spinning all the plates for work and home; cleaning, washing and prepping for all our guests around Tom's teaching, childcare, school runs, book-keeping, marketing (the list goes on...) Unfortunately that hasn't been the case, but we continue to count our blessings and remain pragmatic about our situation. For a start, Emily has been able to experience the phenomenon known as "relaxing on the sofa" and, more significantly, we have been granted precious time to make some plans for the future, as follows: 1 - Our play barn is set to be completely refurbished. Our aim is to make it a warmer, cleaner and smarter space. Some structural work, updating electrics, fresh paint and upgrading a lot of the toys will hopefully bring the best out of this invaluable facility for poor weather and relaxing evenings. 2 - Hens - The exciting arrival of a flock of feathered friends. Once fencing is secured and the space cleared, a number of lovely ladies (a mix of ex-battery rescue birds and a few other breeds for interest) will be housed in a sheltered spot behind the play barn. Here they can scratch, dust bathe and peck their way around a large - and currently underutilised - area of coppice. To enable guests to make the most of their clucking good company, we will be providing pathways around their enclosure and a secluded natural seating area for kids or adults to escape and enjoy the amazing views down to Thor's cave. Guests will also benefit from the freshest and the free-est of free-range eggs in their welcome hampers. We are also sure that, as a poultry enthusiast since she could walk, our eldest daughter will be more than happy to give passionate demonstrations of the inner workings of the hen house! She's asked for a cockerel too, but I'm not sure guests will be too grateful for the 4am wake up calls; watch this space though as she can be very persuasive... 3 - Play area - As the henhouse will be taking over the barked outdoor play space, we will be building a new play area for with climbing frame for older kids or those missing the gym, stepping stones and an outdoor eating area in a different part of the guest gardens. 4 - Garden furniture - Some of our current plastic furniture didn't make it through the worst of the storms earlier this year (lesson learned as to just how much weighing down is required up here!). In their wake, we are going to add some reclaimed wooden furniture for Manifold and Thor's and couples seating area outside Dovedale. Perfect for watching the sun go down (or up if we lose the cockerel argument...) We will update you with our progress on our Instagram and Facebook pages so please keep an eye out and let us know your thoughts! Hopefully when this all goes away and we get back to our 'new' normal we'll have an even better Hall Farm to share with our guests. Until then we remain alert, but closed. Stay safe and stay home!

Hello! I thought it was time for a little update on how we've been occupying ourselves during lockdown. April was set to be a very busy month, with the cottages all but booked up. Unfortunately that wasn't to be, so turning negative to positive we've used the empty calendar to get to know the local area better, and make the most of the gained time with our two wonderful daughters. We've been (at times precariously!) balancing parenting with me (Tom) working remotely, and both of us carrying out maintenance and improvements to the cottages and site. The weather has been such a gift at this testing time, and we've certainly made the most of it, with as much time as possible spent mixing work with play outside. As yet, therefore, we haven't started on some of the jobs waiting inside the cottages, but there's still three more weeks for that it seems (and the rest?) .... In no particular order, our goings-on can be summarised as follows: 1 - We've walked, cycled - carried / pushed- and run. We are so incredibly fortunate to have been able to spend our daily exercise walking and running various scenic routes in the locality; helping us be a bit more recommendation ready for when guests return. We've also tried to do our bit in the local area by going on litter picks along the most commonly trodden pathways. L&J have really enjoyed it, so we are going to make it a weekly thing. See below some snaps from our recent walks.

This afternoon we were blessed with a glimpse of sunshine - having almost forgotten its existence after a month of very challenging weather. We've endured storms, blizzards, 60mph winds and very low temperatures - the upside this week being the breathtaking scenery, blanketed in snow. O ur guests (and our girls) have enjoyed making snowmen and sledging on the lawn, which has certainly sprinkled some magic on their holiday stays. We are certainly looking forward to shedding some layers and gaining some daylight hours as spring approaches. It will be nice to restore the balance between time consumed getting dressed to venture outside with the actual time spent out there! With the minutes no longer disappearing wriggling small fingers into gloves, pulling on boots and zipping up multiple coats, we will be allocating time to setting up a nice home in the coppice behind the playbarn for a flock of feathered friends. We also have plans to make some improvements to the play areas and summer dining spaces. Despite the weather doing its best to spoil play, we have received lots of great and heartwarming feedback from our guests; helping to make all the late nights and early mornings prepping for their arrival worthwhile. The words cosy, warm and comfortable (and "playbarn was a Godsend", or similar!) are cropping up frequently, reassuring us that Hall Farm is the year-round retreat we hoped it could be! The most rewarding experience this month has been securing bookings from our first repeat customers, not bad after only 6 months on the job. Friends and family have been very surprised with every "it's snowing again" message... so here's a few snaps as proof!

An update of improvements we have made to Thor's Cottage and Dovedale Cottage along with some gardening.

We've kick started 2020 with a few new toys and gadgets to benefit guests of all ages. We now have a Jumperoo in our baby and toddler section; perfect for containing bouncy little ones, and giving achy arms a little rest, the chance to have a game of pool or table tennis, or, if not partaking in dry January, to enjoy a well earned glass of wine! The play barn is now organised such that it is suitable for children of all ages, teenagers and adults alike, and we enjoy seeing our guests (and Libby and Jess) making the most of this great space. Guests have been commenting on just how valuable it is, particularly when the weather is poor or a young child is napping and elder sibling needs something to do!

Our first Christmas at Hall Farm.

Working towards our environmental awards.