Nine Months On · 2026

Bringing a vision to life at Coombe Meadow

Nine months ago, we began a new chapter at Coombe Meadow.

When I first came to this beautiful valley, I already had a very clear vision for what it could become — a place where families could slow down, spend time together, reconnect with nature and experience the simple joy of being around animals.

I knew it wouldn’t happen overnight.

There were lodges to refresh, spaces to improve, animals and land to care for, and countless little details that needed attention. But there was always a direction.

Nine months on, it is incredibly rewarding to look around and see so much of that original vision beginning to take shape.

Some things are finished. Others are still very much a work in progress. And there is plenty more to come.

But Coombe Meadow is changing.

And, more importantly, it is becoming the place I imagined.

Making the lodges feel like home

One of our biggest projects during these first eight months has been giving each of our lodges the care and attention it deserves.

New sofas have arrived. Curtains, cushions, throws and soft furnishings have been changed. Bedrooms have been refreshed, bedding improved and countless smaller details considered — often one lodge and one room at a time.

We never wanted to take the character out of the lodges or turn them into somewhere that felt overly polished or impersonal.

They are timber lodges in a beautiful Cornish valley, surrounded by trees, wildlife and the sounds of nature. That is part of their charm.

Our aim has simply been to make them warmer, more comfortable and more welcoming, while keeping the character that makes them belong here.

Slowly, each lodge is finding its own personality.

And there is something very satisfying about walking into a finished room and thinking, yes, this feels right.

From Coombe Mill to Coombe Meadow

Another very visible change has been our new identity.

Coombe Mill became Coombe Meadow.

It may look like a simple change of name, but for me it represents something much bigger.

The word Meadow reflects the place I saw when I first arrived — the open valley, the river, woodland, animals and the sense of space and freedom that children experience here.

Over the months, that identity has gradually appeared everywhere.

A new logo. New signs around the valley. New photography. Changes to our website. New stories being shared through our social media.

And one simple sentence that brings the whole idea together:

Come home to nature.

These changes haven’t created the vision for Coombe Meadow. They are helping us express the vision that was already there from the beginning.

Little by little, the outside is beginning to reflect what I could already see in my mind nine months ago.

New life in the valley

Of course, not every change has been planned by us.

Nature has been busy too.

This year we have welcomed six beautiful new fawns into our deer herd, and watching them grow stronger and more confident throughout the summer has been one of the quiet pleasures of life in the valley.

Then, on 19th August, something much smaller arrived.

Our guinea pig Clover gave birth to five tiny babies.

Some of the biggest changes at Coombe Meadow really do arrive in the smallest packages.

Within no time at all, the babies were following Clover around, squeaking for food and discovering fresh grass and dandelions.

On sunny mornings we began bringing Clover and her babies outside onto the grass during Feed Run. Six guinea pigs eating together can clear a patch of grass with remarkable enthusiasm — rather like a team of very small lawnmowers!

And, of course, our young guests have loved them.

Some of the babies have even been named by children staying with us. Crunchie and Fairy are now part of the Coombe Meadow family, their names carrying a little memory of the children who chose them.

We have also welcomed new chickens this year, adding even more chatter to our mornings.

These are small moments, but they are exactly the kind of moments I hoped children would experience here.

Not simply looking at animals from a distance, but getting close enough to watch them, feed them, learn about them and begin to understand that they are individual living creatures with their own personalities.

Mornings at Coombe Meadow

If there is one part of Coombe Meadow that captures what we are trying to create, it is probably our morning Feed Run.

Every morning starts with baskets being filled and vegetables being chopped.

Then at 9am, little boots begin appearing at the bridge.

We head around the valley together — feeding pigs, chickens, sheep and goats, visiting the deer and, finally, spending time with our guinea pigs.

For the children, it is fun.

For us, it is simply part of caring for the animals every day.

But somewhere between those two things, something rather special happens.

Children become involved. They ask questions. They remember which animal likes what. They become braver. They slow down and watch.

And parents slow down too.

Some families have been coming here for years, and it has been especially lovely to welcome returning guests this summer and hear them tell us how much they can see Coombe changing.

Children who first arrived here as toddlers are coming back older, taller and still remembering the animals they met on previous holidays.

Those are the moments that remind us that a family holiday is rarely just about where you sleep.

It is about spending time together and creating memories.

Nine  months of working together

None of these changes simply happened.

There have been some very long days behind them.

And I am very grateful to have Steve by my side.

I arrived with the vision, but bringing it to life has very much been something we have worked on together.

From lodge improvements and changeover days to feeding animals, repairing things, moving furniture, putting up signs, solving unexpected problems and discussing the next idea — there always seems to be something happening at Coombe Meadow.

Some days we finish one job only to discover another three waiting for us.

But when we look back over eight months, it is surprising just how much has changed.

And through all that work, one of the loveliest parts of our first year has been the people we have met along the way.

We have welcomed wonderful new families and many returning guests.

We have received thoughtful messages, drawings from children, kind words at the end of holidays and lovely reviews from people who have noticed and appreciated what we are trying to create here.

Those connections have helped make our first year not only busy and rewarding, but a genuinely happy one.

Nine  months on

Nine   months ago, I arrived at Coombe Meadow with a very clear vision.

Today, when I walk through the valley, step inside the lodges, see the new signs in place, hear the animals waiting impatiently for breakfast and watch children running down to join the morning Feed Run, I can see that vision taking shape all around me.

There is still plenty more to do.

Some projects are finished. Some are underway. And others are still waiting patiently on my ever-growing list.

But the vision I arrived with nine months ago hasn’t changed.

If anything, it has become even clearer.

We are building a place where families can spend real time together. Where children can get muddy, meet animals and experience nature at close quarters. Where a holiday can feel less like escaping everyday life and more like returning to something wonderfully simple.

And when I look around Coombe Meadow today, I can already see the place I imagined beginning to emerge.

We are exactly where I hoped we would be.

And this is only the beginning.

Come home to nature.