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Queen Mary 2 Guests from Canada stay at Orchard Barn for 10 Days
Filed Under (Accommodation, Canadian guests, Cream teas, Dartmoor Activity holiday, Dartmoor B&B in Devon, Dartmoor Devon holiday, Gardens, National Trust Gardens and Properties) by Ian Corner on 31-07-2008
David and Susan Katzman from Canada round off their cruise at Orchard Barn for 10 days
Celebrating their 25th Wedding Anniversary in style David and Susan took a once in a lifetime transatlantic cruise on The Queen Mary 2 from Canada to Southampton, hired a car and via Stonehenge as an en route detour of interest trundled down to the West Country to stay at Orchard Barn for 10 days. They’d selected their venue from the Internet some months before and were not disappointed by the warm welcome that greeted them on arrival………..a Cream Tea of course followed by the bar opening at 6pm as usual. They felt at home at once.
Actually they felt more than at home because since then it hasn’t stopped raining ………..(typical English uncertain weather in July…!!) which is exactly what would be happening now in their homeland on the Canadian Prairies.
Anyway………..they loved Stonehenge and Cotehele so much that they joined the National Trust and today have set off for Castle Drogo, Killerton and Knightshayes Court…………wow, such stamina………..but then again David’s a School Principal (headmaster to you and I) and Susan also a teacher’s a Head of Department and they certainly know how to plan an action packed tourist schedule.
I took them to The Teign House Inn to watch the Tag Rugby last night, and over a pint of Jail Ale 4.5 and one of Pete the Publican’s famous tented burgers I explained the rules………….even though Heidi the ref seemed to be making half of them up as he went along I noted!! As usual Trucker was adrift and didn’t make it despite being invited to join us!!
Thus far their greatest concern has been driving not only on the other side of the road but finding less than inches to spare in places on both sides……….simultaneously………access to Cotehele was memorable I understand!!
The front garden was a concrete farmyard designed for farm tractors and machinery to turn round and cattle to pass en route too and from the milking parlour – this area is now laid to fine lawn with a beautiful stone boundary wall, granite trough in one corner and feature mushroom in another leading up to a cobble edged stone flagged patio in front of the house and then a large cobbled drive way for parking 2 cars immediately outside the front door.
There is a smaller rear garden with a part-forsythia hedge bordering the Mill Leet which runs along the rear boundary of the property and in the old days served as the water race to power the Old Mill next door – this garden is now laid to lawn and has various shrubs and climbing roses designed to produce flowers and cuttings for the house year round. Bird feeders (often frequented by the many squirrels) abound and 2 bee hive looking kitchen compost boxes nestle between one bird table and the arum lily tub adjoining the Cider Barn
There are many other pieces of hidden garden and granite features dotted around the property – some have been purchased from local farm auctions and transported and positioned throughout in order to return ancient soul to the gardens and add a further sense of age and history to the place.