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We just managed to stay open for Christmas Day, but entered Tier 3 soon afterwards and had to close. Passing quickly through Tier 4, we were soon in a lengthy third full National Lock-Down. Usually, the time between guests is a matter of hours and the time we have available for maintenance is limited. Our enforced closure meant three and a half months between guests. It was a sizeable window to get a big job done and there was none bigger than a brand new kitchen.

Ever since we bought The Old Quarry in December 2018, we’d been aware than this needed attention at some point. The kitchen was over ten years old and beginning to look tired. Having low wall cabinets hadn’t helped, as the toaster’s heat had damaged them. This wasn’t in an unobtrusive area either, but the first thing you saw as you walked through the door! In fact, our Christmas guests phoned soon after arriving to ensure we knew that the damage wasn’t their fault! Here was our moment to change that.

A lot of measuring up and thought ensued. We drew up a wish list for the brand new kitchen. At the top, was trying to raise the wall cupboards, create more usable space and install a dishwasher. We were keen to add this appliance after hearing it is the fourth most desired item when choosing holiday accommodation). A large part of creating more usable space was going to be clearing the worktop. This would mean moving from a free-standing to a built-in microwave, so reducing cupboard space. This dishwasher addition was only going to steal even more space. We were already very conscious that guests had little space to store their shopping. It was quite a conundrum, that required careful consideration.

As part of the process, we phoned guests who had booked with us again to see what we should consider. Their thoughts chimed with ours, with a dishwasher and raised wall cabinets getting the most frequent mentions. We spoke to other holiday let owners and gathered their thoughts. This process helped us see that designing a kitchen for holiday accommodation is different to designing one home. Simplicity and ease of use are so much more important when different people are using the facilities every few days.

More than once we heard the recommendation to consider induction appliances rather than gas. We certainly liked the idea of not having a naked flame in a log cabin! With only the hob and oven using gas, it would simplifying things to remove the gas system completely. At the same time, we were aware that some people, such as those with pacemakers, are warned off using induction. We certainly didn’t want to force any of our booked guests to cancel by making such a change. Phoning each in turn, we checked there would be no issue before deciding induction was the way we would go.

Decisions made, we found our supplier and negotiated the price. We researched and shopped for the new appliances we wanted to install. We found a local fitter (the brother of one of our regular guests as it happens!) to do the installation. We booked in the installation to finish with three weeks to spare before the first guests arrived. This left plenty of time – or so we thought!

One fitter couldn’t work for the first couple of days, having been hit for six by his COVID jab. The job was going to have to go on for longer and then we encountered issue after issue. Firstly, our suppliers didn’t send all the parts. Then they sent the wrong parts. Then we found out that the dimensions they’d listed were incorrect and the microwave didn’t fit. Then, to cap it all off, we discovered that they’d made errors when measuring and the kitchen wouldn’t fit!! Much head scratching and clever problem-solving ensued, together with many trips to and from the suppliers to remedy the situation.

By the time the finishing touches had been completed, it was probably two weeks after we’d anticipated having it ready. We were pleased to have it all in place and working perfectly for our guests arriving a week later. They’d be able to enjoy it without any idea of the stress that had gone into fitting it in time. All we had to do was write some simple instructions for our guests on how to use the new appliances. There was no better way to do that than to road test the new kitchen ourselves.

It was then we discovered a manufacturing fault with the hob, which meant it cracked upon first use. There was also a manufacturing mistake with the oven which meant that the door wouldn’t stay open. We managed to get the hob replaced quite quickly, but the oven issue was misdiagnosed. It took three engineer visits to realise the door was missing a pane of glass and so wasn’t properly balanced. Unfortunately, this meant that our first (very understanding!) guests had to have two people to use the oven safely.

We got there in the end and, despite the many hassles along the way, it was worth it. The Old Quarry now enjoys an up-to-date, brand new kitchen. It should last for a good many years to come. We’re certainly not looking to repeat this whole experience any time soon!

Each year we hold a Photo Competition that allows our guests from that year a chance to win a discounted holiday next year. We’ve not had our full complement of guests in 2020 due to lockdowns and tiers, but there are some cracking snaps. Voting will soon be open on our Facebook page!

Our walk starts in Holford. This small village, set in beautiful surroundings with a history of silk making, was home to William Wordsworth for a year. You pass the remains of the silk factory in Holford Glen. Bryan Adams fans may recognise it, if they’re familiar with the video to his hit song (Everything I Do) I Do It For You.

Heading up the valley, we crossed over the Holford stream and walked up through the trees and onto the open hillside, with the gorse and heather in bloom, to join the path running between the two lesser peaks of Lower Hare Knap and Higher Hare Knap.

Walking south, our goal was the summit of Black Hill which stands above the village of Crowcombe.

Standing at 358m, it is one of the highest peaks in the Quantocks and the views are fantastic. There’s certainly a reason why the Quantocks were the first to be given Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty (AONB) status in England. 

From there, we headed East past Wilmot’s Pool towards Dead Woman’s Ditch. This is an alternative parking spot for this walk, ignoring the Holford village section. Proceeding along the quiet Five Lords Lane, the trees here are quite striking, with many having grown in corkscrew fashion and looking dark and sombre. It somehow adds a sense of medieval mystery.

Moving onto a path once more, the route then begins to drop through Lady’s Combe to meet a small stream. It’s then a simple task of following the stream back to Holford. All this section is within the shade of trees at the bottom of the valley, criss-crossing over the small stream. It’s a delight with the sunlight filtering through the leaves and dancing off the surface of the water. 

Joining again the path at Holford, we chose to stop at the Combe Hotel for a spot of lunch, which was very pleasant in the autumn sunshine. Another lunch option would be the Plough Inn in Holford itself, but we’d chosen a day when it was not open.

Total Length : 5.77 miles (9.23 km)
Total Ascent : 888 feet (271 m)
Difficulty Level : Moderate / Challenging
Estimated Time : 2 hrs 33 mins
Travel from The Old Quarry : 14.5 miles / 40 mins

We’re going back again to the theme of what we were able to get done during lock-down. Having already redressed the driveway, we used our extended holiday from guests to then turn our attention to the lawn area.

We’re very careful not to cultivate the grounds since, to our minds, their untouched feel gives the place an added charm. The wildlife certainly seems to agree with this policy as we have it in abundance.

While we don’t cultivate, we are certainly busy outside. We’ve spent many a day over the last year alone dealing with nettles and brambles. We hope we manage this in a a discrete way than maintains the wild feel.

Despite this, we did decide to do something about the lawn this year. When you next arrive you’re not going to find stripes have been mown into it. Nor will it be precisely edged. What you will find is a more level surface than before. We decided to do this as we’ve invested in a few garden games (badminton and volleyball for example) and having more of a flat area for guests to play was always going to be helpful!

We’ve added 1.5 tonnes of top soil and compost to lawn surface and used it to fill in the many dips. We then applied a liberal sprinkling of grass seed, which was left to germinate under covers.

Unfortunately, this work coincided with the start of the driest spell we’ve had this year. So, despite frequent watering, we had to sprinkle seed a second time. I suppose we should be grateful that lock-down was sufficiently long that guests didn’t arrive when all we had was bare patches!

Now, it’s greened over perfectly. Without reading this article, we doubt many would know we’d even done anything to the lawn. But, while the feel of the place hasn’t changed, we hope the feel underfoot has!