Welcome

    Bev and Mark welcome you to their home from home self-catering country  cottages Oakpond and Oaktree with a hot tub (optional) which sits in front of a beautiful wildlife pond amongst an abundance of trees and wildlife set on 140 acres with the nightly hoots from our resident owls. To keep the peace and tranquility which the farm cottages have to offer, we only book one cottage out at any one time unless both cottages are booked by the same family.

    Our other lovely cottage is  Oakwood and this  is situated in the quiet hamlet of Ighfield. Oakwood is a spacious detached bungalow and is located on a peaceful location with no passing traffic.

    Whitchurch is the oldest town in the county and is also  a Walkers Welcome town with over 15 circular walks leading out onto the Shropshire Way and the well know Sandstone Trail.

    We live in a beautiful area of rural North Shropshire and we farm 280 acres.  Our farm  is further on down the lane from our farm cottages cottages and so we are on hand if you need us.  The fields are mostly used for grazing and for making our winter feed of silage and hay. Our suckler herd of British x Blue and Bazadaise x Blue are home bred and our three bulls produce good progency. The oldest bull we have is Graham and he is very gentle and is a British Blue, whilst Nodsey our other British Blue is a lot younger, both are out together with their herd and are best of friends. Our newest bull Horrice is a Bazadaise and he runs with the heifers.  We produce a lot of hay and silage bales for our cattle as well as a small quantity of haylage for our two horses Bug the Cob and Nell the fresian who are our lawn mowers.

    Our two rescue dogs Mo and Manaskin have all come from cruel backgrounds and they still have nightmares.  Manaskin was only 11 months old and already been to five homes until she came to us. All we can say about this dog is that she is a very tough nut to crack!! Mo was thrown out on the streets at xmas time and she was only 3 weeks old.

    Home From Home

    A perfect base for exploring Staffordshire and the Welsh borders as well as Cheshire and Shropshire and also for the world-famous Ironbridge.
    Our Gold award winning cottages have been awarded  for excellent customer skills and cleanliness with quality. Most of our bookings are from repeat guests who have been coming for quite a few years.

    Oakpond is perfect for couples and the smaller family or if booked with Oaktree will cater for the larger family. Oaktree is perfect for two people who require a spacious abode with the advantage of a large balcony.

    Oakwood is our beautiful detached bungalow which sits in a very quiet spot in the sleepy village of Ightfield. There are many walks from the door which go onto the Shropshire Way and to The Olde jack Inn which is a great dog-friendly pub. The cottage has a cosy wood burner and a full-size bath which is very relaxing after a good days walk.

    Eating Out

    We have four good dog-friendly pubs which are within 5 minutes drive as well as an Indian restaurant who will deliver to the cottages. Our local community-run pub the White Lion has a lovely walk from its door down to Brown Moss Nature Reserve which has lovely woodland walks and the Chef In The Wood is there selling his home-made tasty pies and cakes plus refreshments.  The Olde Jack Inn and The White Lion at Ash Parva (voted the best oub in the country) are within a 10 minute drive.   We have a mitchelin star restaurant ( featured on Master Chef)  in Whitchurch as well as a very good italian eatery and six pubs. There are quite a few tearooms and cafes in this old bustling town.

    Walks

    There are numerous scenic walks including The Sandstone Trail and The Shropshire Way. From Hawkestone Follies to the hills of Bickerton and Beeston to the canalside walks. Whitchurch is a Walkers Welcome town. There are five lovely walks from our farm cottages and six waks from Oakwood.  The Long Mynd and the Welsh hills are lovely to walk on and not too far away.
    Guests are most welcome to join us on our walking group walks which are held every wednesday.

    Location

    North Shropshire is the home of the third-largest raised mere in Britain, raised because the peat-forming mosses flourished in the watery hollows left behind as the last period of glaciations receded northwards.
    We have Fenns and Whixall Mosses which is located between Whitchurch to the north of Ellesmere and Brown Moss Nature Reserve which is only 10 minutes away from our cottages. Both sites are a site of specific interest, but they are also a European Special Area of Conservation as well as a Wetland of International Importance.  Prees Heathland Common is well known for its Silver Studded Butterflys and is a lovely walk amongst the heathers.
    All our cottages are based in the sleepy hamlet of Ightfield which has a lovely church which dates back to the Doomsday book and the church has cinema nights and tea and cake mornings as well as other activities.

    The Frogs Retreat

    Our private hot tub is available to book separately and is a special touch and adds that extra indulgence to your holiday stay but not everyone wants to use one and so we charge separately, so you don’t pay if you don’t want to use it.

    The Perfect Holiday Stay

    We are very lucky to have two charming gardens to visit which are Wollerton Gardens and Hodnet Hall Gardens which are only 10 minutes away. Hawkestone Follies is also another gem to visit with its caves and follies as well as the Dorothy Clive Gardens. Grinsall Woods is a perfect place for walking and seeing the summit and we are not far from the world famous Ironbridge Gorge. Audlem village has canalside walks and tearooms which is close by as well as Brown Moss Nature Reserve with its woodland walks.  Alderford Lake has paddle boarding and wild swimming as well as a very good tea room.