The Old Quarry is only five miles away from Exmoor National Park. There’s so much to do within easy reach. Our latest trip took us to the historic Grade II* listed Landacre Bridge in the middle of Exmoor. It’s a stunning part of the world, where the gentle, medieval stone arches really grace the landscape.
Whilst many people might head to a crowded beach when the sun is out, Landacre Bridge provides the opportunity to paddle in relative tranquility. We arrived in time to see a troop of Exmoor ponies come down to the river and cross over.
The River Barle flows gently under the bridge. The stony, shallow river bed makes it the perfect place to cool off in the summer. It’s also a great spot for children to play and swim, helped by body boards, inflatables, snorkels and fishing nets. Certainly a lot of fun to be had by all.
One great aspect of the area is that, when you want a break from being in the river, you can just sit, relax and drink in the stunning scenery all around you. Take a short walk to see more.
River Barle upstream from Landacre Bridge
A fantastic day out and one we thoroughly recommend to our guests, since it is only 24 miles from The Old Quarry. Even if you don’t fancy getting your toes wet, we can’t think of many nicer places for a walk or a picnic.
Two weeks ago we reported that Visit England recognised our efforts to prepare for guests in this time of coronavirus. Today, we’re very excited to reveal that we’ve become AA Recommended as COVID-19 Confident. This industry standard mark means you can have increased confidence when planning you next stay with us.
This award feels like a bigger achievement than the first. For this one, we prepared and submitted our Risk Assessment and cleaning plan for independent scrutiny. After reviewing these, they’ve granted us this status without needing to come back to us on any of our plans and approaches.
By being recognised in this way, The Old Quarry is deemed to:
Have social distancing and safety measures in place as well as a suitable Risk Assessment completed
Be following government and industry guidelines for COVID-19
We’re recognised as being COVID-19 Confident, so you can be confident to book and stay, knowing that we’ll be following the best and latest guidance every step of the way.
In the week that we open our doors again with government restrictions having been lifted, I have to say we’re looking forward to the rest! Lock-down has clearly been a difficult time for many, but at The Old Quarry it seems to have been a very busy time too. As we look back over the last few months, it’s actually amazing to see how much we have done this year already.
Some of the changes won’t be tangibly visible. We spent considerable time sourcing new blankets, cushions and other items, so that we could double-up on items and swap them in during changeovers to help keep our next guests as safe as possible during this COVID-19 time. At the same time we had to research and purchase cleaning equipment and materials to help combat the virus.
We’ve also organised safety checks on our gas, electrical system and log burner; sorted out our new website, bought new award-winning mattresses for each bed with new bedding to go with them. Most of the changes, however, have been outside. It actually started in January, as we redressed the driveway.
Being in a wooded area, it’s only natural that, over the years, decaying leaves and other organic material are going to get added to the area and, unfortunately, the driveway was not exempt and had become more mud than driveway in places.
First stage was to scrap away the top layer of mud, grass, leaves and so forth. With over 40 metres of driveway and an ample parking area to cover, there was quite a mound of material to dispose of by the end of this stage.
Then the material that was going to be put down instead arrived (just managing to back in through the gate!). The more permanent solution would have been to put down a hard surface such as tarmac or block paving, but we felt that this would detract from the natural feel of The Old Quarry, so we opted instead to redress the driveway with gravel – twelve tonnes of it!
Before this could go down, however, the base had to be prepared by levelling and compacting it as much as possible.
Only then could we start adding the gravel on top. Unfortunately, with the delivery lorry only just managing to make it through the gate, the materials were all at the wrong end of the cabin and over those three long days a wheel-barrow sure got a lot of use moving the stone to where it needed to be and it felt like my arms had probably grown half an inch in length by the end of it! And then we had the job of raking it into place and making sure it was evenly spread in all areas.
Still, when you step back and look at the difference, I hope you agree it was worth the effort.
This was only stage one of the changes we’ve made during 2020.
We’re very pleased to announce that all our hard work in considering how best we can reopen to the public as government restrictions on holidays are reduced has paid off. We’ve been awarded Visit Britain’s “We’re Good To Go” certificate.
This mark is awarded in recognition that we’re following government and self-catering industry guidelines for COVID-19. We have a Risk Assessment in place and have processes to maintain cleanliness and aid social distancing. More details on this can be found on our dedicated COVID-19 page. All of which adds up to making The Old Quarry an even better choice for your holiday this year.
Rumours abound that holiday lets may well be allowed to reopen in early July, so we’ve been busy thinking about how that could work at The Old Quarry. It’s been a bit of head-scratcher at times, but we think we’ve found the best way forward and have taken the following steps:
Develop a Risk Assessment to look at where COVID-19 related hazards lie and what we can do to mitigate these risks.
In response to this, make adjustments to our cleaning regime so that we’re not just cleaning but disinfecting too.
This means we’ve had to invest in duplicate items so that we can swap in clean ones for new guests as well as equipment to help us prepare the property as efficiently as possible.
Despite this, there’s still going to be an increase in the time it now takes to turn a property round between guests, so we’re changing check-in and check-out times to allow for this
We’re also going to ask guests to play their part to keep everyone safe by bagging up their bed linen and towels at the end of their stays as well as keeping us informed about any coronavirus symptoms that develop before, during or in the few days after a stay.
And, finally, we’re changing our booking conditions to give full refunds or an opportunity to postpone to a later date to those who can’t travel due to public health measures.
More details on these additional measures can be found here. No-one can ever guarantee a place is virus free but, hopefully, these additional measures will mean that everyone can book and stay with confidence.
The last couple of times we’ve been at The Old Quarry, I’ve seen a pair of visitors that I’ve not seen before; we seem to have been adopted by two partridges. They’re a really nice addition to the local wildlife, but it’s not the best timing.
The last time we popped over was to do some work on the lawn area to try and smooth out some of the unevenness and fill in some holes. We’ve recently invested in a few garden games (Badminton, Volleyball, Quoits and Boules) for guests to enjoy and so wanted to make sure the lawn area was suitable for playing on without running the risk of turning an ankle. So, in addition to putting down new topsoil, we’ve also been scattering grass seed across the area. The partridges must be thoroughly enjoying the feast!
We live in strange times and while, for many, it might feel that life has stopped (or at least life as we knew it), there’s no telling that to the wildlife and nature at The Old Quarry.
Taking heed of government advice, we’ve had to close The Old Quarry for the last few weeks due to the coronavirus lockdown and been unable to travel there ourselves. This week, in order to accept a delivery of brand new award-winning mattresses for the beds, I had to make that trip.
So much has grown up and so much gardening needs doing; just when I was feeling like I was getting on top of it for the first time over winter! Some wonderful splashes of colour around the place though and a great reminder that the spring follows the winter; that life carries on; that hope remains.
