— What is the history of Botelet farm?
Julie: “Our great grandparents lived in the Manor from 1860 until the farmhouse was built in 1884. Our grandfather was born in the ‘new’ farmhouse in the November of that year. Our father was also born here and lives here still. The fourth generation now, my brother Richard and myself, are continuing the family tradition. We're not organically registered but we do farm in an organic style — using neither fertilizers nor sprays. We belong to the Countryside Stewardship Scheme in which small grants encourage farmers to look after wildlife, protect nature and prevent overproduction. Hedge, gate and fence renewal coupled with the planting of one thousand hedging plants take place each winter. We do most of this work during off season when we have more time.”
— Botelet living room
— And when did you start renting Botelet out to guests?
Julie: “The Bed & Breakfast was started by our grandmother in the 30s. There were few B&Bs around at that time and it soon became an enterprising sideline. Our mother continued the B&B when we were children. Together our parents renovated a redundant railway carriage (a banana van) during the early 60s and let it out as a self-catering chalet. It was amazing for its era and continually booked. We’ve been letting our present two cottages out since about 1987.”
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— And the Bed & Breakfast is in the main house?
Julie: “Yes, the Bed & Breakfast is in the main farmhouse. We have two rooms, one double and one twin. The twin has a small double bed and a single bed, so it can also be configured as a triple. Both rooms share one bathroom. This works extremely well, we are loath to alter either the original bedroom’s size or style.
Guests enjoy a vegetarian, mainly organic, non-cooked breakfast seated together at a long scrubbed pine table. In this traditional farmhouse kitchen, filled with light through Georgian windows, there is also a sitting area where visitors are encouraged to relax and browse over maps, local information or current magazines. It has access to the original dairy where they are welcome to make themselves a cup of tea. Both rooms have a fine example of a local slate flagstone floor.”
Guests enjoy a vegetarian, mainly organic, non-cooked breakfast seated together at a long scrubbed pine table. In this traditional farmhouse kitchen, filled with light through Georgian windows, there is also a sitting area where visitors are encouraged to relax and browse over maps, local information or current magazines. It has access to the original dairy where they are welcome to make themselves a cup of tea. Both rooms have a fine example of a local slate flagstone floor.”
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— What’s the essence of the farm at Botelet?
Julie: “Our mission is to give a glimpse into life on a Cornish farm, slowly evolving over generations. Saving the good bits of the old and adding snippets of timeless modern design.”
— Botelet bedroom
— It’s all about healthy lifestyle, sustainability, being good to the environment, isn’t it?
Julie: “Yes, that’s what we try to promote here and hopefully that’s what we’re doing. We installed two wind turbines, so our primary sources of energy are from our domestic wind turbines and solar panels on both cottages, topped up with green tariff electricity when required. And the cottages are supplied with logs for the woodburners that have been harvested from the farm, so staying at Botelet leaves only a gentle footprint!
Our water at Botelet is from our own borehole. It's fantastically pure water. We recycle everything and use eco products for cleaning. We’ve always lived a sustainable type of lifestyle even before it became fashionable — we were brought up that way.”
Our water at Botelet is from our own borehole. It's fantastically pure water. We recycle everything and use eco products for cleaning. We’ve always lived a sustainable type of lifestyle even before it became fashionable — we were brought up that way.”
— Picnic
— How would you describe the style of the farmhouse?
Julie: “The style? Well, we’ve left most of it as original as possible. It has slate or wooden floors, traditional fireplaces, lime mortar on the walls and even paintwork visible from when it was built. There is however an exciting mix with this old style of unusual lighting, artwork and some cutting edge design detail.”
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Transportation
Eat & Drink
Activities
Sights
