Silver Shoes and Golden Stars

With September less than a week away, we've had to turn our thoughts to Autumn and accept that Summer is slowly coming to a close - sob! But thinking back over the last couple of years, September seems to be getting a bit of a reputation for having lovely weather, almost like an Indian Summer.

These past few weeks we've been completing a couple of farming jobs, all of which have been made quicker thanks to a some little helpers. Last week the farrier paid our horses a visit which filled the children with excitement. As the farrier fitted the horse new shoes the look of mesmerisation on the children's faces was a brilliant site. At the end of the fitting, each child received one of the horses old shoes as a little keepsake from their stay at Tregongeeves. I like to think that in a few years they'll find the shoe in a draw and reminisce all their holiday memories. 

So in addition to the excitement of bailing the hay and watching the farrier, we've got some news to share...Last week we welcomed an inspector from the Tourist Board to Tregongeeves and we're very happy to say that we passed everything (with flying colours too!) and retained our 4 glittering golden stars. Having 4 stars is amazing but what really makes our day is reading about your experience on Facebook or on the reviews you leave us with; There's nothing better than knowing you contributed to someones blissful memories. So next time you stay with us, please leave us a review or let us know what you got up to, it really does make our day. 

So with Autumn we get to see a quieter Cornwall which makes it the perfect time for exploring. We love the crunch of leaves under our feet and sitting in front of the open fire down at the Polgooth Inn, so although Summer may be slowly fading away, we've got lots to luck forward to. Here's a few dates to pencil in your diary:

• Gorsedh Kernow: 1st-6th September 
• Bude for Food: 18th-20th September
• Truro Food Festival: 25-27th September
• The Full Monty at Hall For Cornwall: 28th September - 2nd October 
• Lord of the Flies at Hall For Cornwall: 20th October - 24th October 

Down On The Farm

This past week we’ve heard tales of crabbing, sunbathing and sunset walks from our guests, which can only mean one thing – summer is finally here! It’s been lovely to see our guests enjoying the sunshine, with children playing in the courtyard and parents becoming top barbecue chefs in the evenings. We’ve got our fingers crossed that the sunshine is here to stay!

However, we’ve also got some sad news to share with you all. We’ve recently said goodbye to one of our oldest residents at Tregongeeves, Alice, our white donkey. Rescued by Judith in the late 90’s, Alice and her daughter Angelica have lived on the farm for the past 18 years where they have become firm favourites with our guests. Alice was a real lady and loved because of her polite nature; you could always find her waiting patiently by the fence, ready to be groomed or to accept her favourite treat, a carrot.

We'll all miss our Alice, but I'm happy to say that our other donkeys are their usual happy soles and are continuing to work their way through the acres of grass in the sunshine.