Finistere it is!

Went to a hobbit estate agent and viewed three places in or near to the Armorica National Park. Two we're seriously thinking about, one we ain't.

Place no.1: 1930s farmhouse with a hangar and a gite, on one hectare:

Place no.2: an organic farm with 2 hectares, polytunnels and a tractor:
Place no.3: an old set of cottages with outbuildings, on 2.3 hectares (a hobbit is opening the door):

The organic farm was too much work - the place was a dump, dark and damp, and some hippy had smeared the walls with ochre but had forgotten about the rotten sills, the tiles, and the hact the the hangar blocks out the sun. Fields were too wet, polytunnels were HUGE and needed reskinning, so "non merci" to that one. Suprising how photos don't tell the true story.

Place no.1 was perfect -apart from not enough land. There was a perfect neighbour who was also a smallholder, knew the area, knew everyone, and loaded us up with fresh organic veggies, but he told us that it would be hard to find extra land if we needed it, so unfortunately house no.1 was out.

This leaves house no.3. which needs a bit of work. We went for a second viewing and deicided to put an offer in, and it was accepted! So now we're panicking a little about the amount of work to do, and the fact that what we've dreamt of is about to happen... be afraid!

The secret garden.

View from house no.1 to front gate and spring-fed pool through trees.

House no.1 - a 70s interior decorator's wildest dream inside!

View from the houses to the third barn.

6 acres, mature oak and ash, some hazel and sweet chestnut coppice, 3 small barns, one big one, two houses, springwater on the land, nice and quiet and private. Large town of Carhaix about 10km away which hosts huge music festivals, near the national park, good deep soil, job done*.

Our new life starts this Friday when we sign for it!

*apart from the total modernisation of the houses, and getting a new wood and solar heating system, insulation, new kitchen and bathroom, starting veg beds from scratch, putting boundary hedges in, planting an orchard, building a greenhouse/polytunnel, making a dairy and brewery, and maybe having a cup of tea every now and again.