Sika Deer
Our last animals for the day were the small heard of Sika Deer. To get to their large open area we had to pass by the otters who thought it was feeding time again!
Once inside the pen the deer in front of us.
This was the ‘old lady’ of the herd and knew she’d get special privileges as there were visitors in the pen.
The deer went back into the tall grass once the food was finished.
That was then the last of the workshop and we walked back to the visitors centre to pick up our bags. Once back at the cottages we said our goodbyes as the majority of the photographers left for home.
Dinner at the Village Inn
There were now only two of us left from the workshop at the cottages and I was given a lift to the Village Inn again. We were joined by Bob and the owners of the farm Linda and Keith.
Here’s the view across Ashworth’s village green from the Village Inn.
The Inn was not very busy and we enjoyed a convivial meal listening to farming and safari tales. I had another delicious local sirloin steak washed down by Timothy Taylor’s Landlord pale ale.
Monday 10th September 2018
This being my third night here at Frankaborough Cottages I slept through the cows coming in for milking despite having the skylight open. Here’s the view from my skylight window of the sunrise.
This is the sitting room/dining room/ kitchen of the Old Dairy Cottage.
Breakfast was a much smaller affair as now there was only a couple of us from the course and Bob came and joined us in the conservatory. My full English breakfast and fresh toast was again excellent. I paid Linda for my board and my lunches and went back to my cottage to pack the car. These are my last views of the farm and its surrounds.
My drive back to the A30 was almost as fraught as my drive to the cottages three days before. The Sat-Nav kept wanting me to go down ‘lanes’ that had signs marked not suitable for vehicles. After 30 minutes(!) I found myself on a lane just wide enough for the car running parallel to the A30. Once on the A30 I had a clear and easy run back home after passing the bottleneck around Bristol on the M4.
Frankaborough Farm Holiday Cottages on TripAdvisor
Great place to stay
[I was on a photo course being held nearby and the cottages were a recommended place to stay for the weekend course.
Arriving at the cottages I followed the signs to reception where I was warmly welcomed by Linda and I sat down for a cup of tea accompanied by a fabulous piece of cake. Not the usual welcome at hotels!
I was staying in the Old Dairy Cottage that had two bedrooms and a generously large sitting/dining room and kitchen. I was too busy to use the provided TV /DVD but I did use the kitchen for drinks. There was tea, coffee and milk provided. The cottage was equipped with free fast wi-fi .
Breakfast was in the farmhouse. I had my choice of cereals and fruit, fresh milk from the dairy, followed by a cooked breakfast accompanied by fresh toast and home made jam.
The cottage was next to the milking parlour so I was woken at around 5 am by the arrival of the cows but as the bed was so comfortable I didn’t loose much sleep.