Bude, Cornwall - Forda Lodges & Cottages

They've Arrived!

2012-02-01T16:07:00.016Z

We have now welcomed 650 tench, bream and crucian carp (upto 10 inches in size) into their new home - Meadow Pond.

Colin was there to make sure that they settled in nicely - and Boris and Buster were there as the official welcoming committee!

Out With the Old.......

2012-01-12T10:20:00.002Z

Well it's been little over a week since we waved goodbye to the last of our New Year guests, but it has been a hive of activity here at Forda!

As many of you know, we always take the opportunity in the few short weeks that we are closed to not only plough ahead with our ongoing maintenance programme, but also to make improvements to the accommodation.

So, amongst all of the painting, varnishing and groundworks, one of our projects this year is concentrating on our two Delta lodges.

All new interior doors have already been hung and brand new bedroom furniture is on the way - we think that the end result will be fabulous!

Pictures to follow soon....

Merry Christmas!

2011-12-27T12:19:00.002Z

Wishing all of our Forda friends old and new, a very Merry Christmas.

The Bude traditional Christmas Day swim went ahead as planned (and the weather was much kinder this year than last!)

You can see for yourselves how it went here

We will be posting again within the next few weeks with details and hopefully some nice pictures of our new arrivals - fish!

In the meantime, enjoy the New Year celebrations and we look forward to seeing you at Forda very soon!

Tight Lines!

2011-09-13T11:55:00.003+01:00

The ponds here at Forda have been fishing really well throughout the season, and fishing lessons have been very popular. This picture was taken last week and shows coach (Colin) and pupil (Abbie) with a lovely 12lb carp.
We hear that Abbie has since challenged her dad to a fishing competition - and from the progress that she made during her holiday at Forda, we think that she'll win!

Tweet Tweet!

2011-08-25T14:00:00.002+01:00

At Forda we have decided to embrace technology and as from today will be using Twitter (alongside Facebook, Blogger and of course our website) to keep all of our friends, old and new, up-to-date with news and special offers. You can follow us on Twitter from here!

Filling Up Nicely!

2011-07-06T14:33:00.004+01:00

As you can see from our latest photographs, the new pond is filling up nicely and the grass has taken wonderfully (we've even had to mow it a few times!) Won't be long now until we begin introducing some new fish.

It's All Green!

2011-06-04T14:51:00.004+01:00

Our hard work over the winter is finally showing results. The new path at middle pond is looking beautiful (all of the mud has gone!), and access is so much easier now.

The new pond is coming along a treat too, and the new grass is growing nicely (despite the lack of rain!) Now we just need it to fill up before we stock it this winter.

'Excellent' Water Quality for Our Local Beaches

2011-06-04T10:08:00.003+01:00

We are pleased to report that the Marine Conservation Society annual study has again announced that our local beach Sandymouth and all three Bude beaches (Crooklets, Summerleaze and Widemouth Bay) have again all achieved their distinction of 'excellent' water quality for 2011.

Our First Ducklings of the Year!

2011-06-03T13:52:00.003+01:00

Our first brood of ducklings arrived shortly after the goslings, and thanks to Mrs. Duck's best efforts, four of them made it through the dangerous early days, and are now thriving!

Their antics are quite comical to watch, and they are already brave enough to approach humans for food - all under the watchful eye of Mum!

Our New Arrivals!

2011-05-04T15:14:00.002+01:00

A few weeks ago, we found that two Canada geese had taken quite a fancy to Forda, and decided that the island on bottom pond was the ideal place to set up home. We've patiently watched whilst Mother Goose sat on her nest, and finally been rewarded with a pair of beautiful goslings - a first for Forda!
The proud parents have led their offspring around the whole site, and are clearly taking their roles very seriously!
Just waiting for the ducklings now......

Glorious Spring!

2011-03-25T14:53:00.000Z

20° C on March 25th!

With no rain or wind for weeks and glorious spring sunshine, the daffodils are looking wonderful this year.

Record Low Tide

2011-03-25T14:08:00.003Z

With the moon so close, last weekend was set for record low tides. Many set off for the beach on Sunday to see what was there..... The mythical submerged forest did not materialise but it was a goldmine for mussel pickers!

This picture shows the huge expanse of sand at local Duckpool beach.

And the work goes on....

2011-03-18T12:00:00.005Z

Not ones for resting on our laurels (!) we took the opportunity to make full use of the diggers whilst they were here. Our plan to widen the path around middle pond came to fruition.....

As did our new drainage ditch and wider path at top pond....

Thankfully, the glorious Cornish sunshine ensured that the ground didn't stay muddy for long!

Tale of the Lonesome Willow

2011-03-09T15:32:00.007Z

As the fine, dry weather and sunshine continued, we decided that the time was ideal to plant and seed the island of our new pond, before the water got too deep!

Jim and Colin spent a few days toiling in the spring sunshine digging, raking, planting seeds and bulbs, and of course the weeping willow.

Now its down to Mother Nature to do her bit, before we start to think about the fun part - FISH!

Almost Done!

2011-02-23T11:28:00.005Z

Just a few finishing touches, and we're almost done! The diggers have almost finished here, but our hard work will continue! Whilst we will need to allow the new pond to settle for a while before we can actually fill it, there is plenty of sowing and planting to be done in the meantime!

Rallying the Troops!

2011-02-16T10:19:00.006Z

So the digging continued in earnest despite the freezing weather (don't be fooled by the blue sky - it was cold!) but Gillian was on hand with jugs full of steaming hot soup to keep the wheels moving!

It was worth all of the effort in the end, and we could finally see how our new pond was going to look........

Fishing Hut on the Move

2011-02-11T14:31:00.004Z

Sometimes, there are crucial decisions to be made, and luckily for us Gillian was on hand to make them! In this case, the tackle shed was in the way of our new pond and had to be moved!

Regular fishers here at Forda will be relieved to hear that the shed survived the move intact, and lives to store another day!

The Big Dig

2011-02-08T16:14:00.003Z

Diggers arrived at the end of January, and watched over by Jim and Colin (like anxious fathers to be!) the new lake finally started to take shape.

Countless tons of earth were expertly moved around, transforming Forda's landscape!

Further pictures and updates to follow very soon!

A New Addition

2011-02-04T11:09:00.005Z

Preparations for our new pond went ahead as planned in January, and many chilly days were spent clearing the scrub land, chopping down trees and lighting huge bonfires (which not only got rid of the waste, but went a fair way to ensuring that we didn't freeze!)

Eventually, we managed to transform the area from this........

to this.........!!!!!!!

The next step was for the diggers to arrive - more on this to follow very soon!

Let it Snow!

2011-01-25T11:06:00.008Z

First of all we would like to wish all of our Forda friends, old and new, a very happy and prosperous New Year!

And talking of New Year (and Christmas too) the festive season here at Forda was the coldest in over a hundred years, and blanketed in snow!

It certainly looked pretty, but we did have a few concerns about whether or not our guests would manage to get in (and out again!)

Thanks to a friendly neighbour who cleared a pathway through the snow with his digger, crisis was averted!

Even the frozen lakes didn't deter our fishing guests, and we're pleased to report that one guest had a very productive session on Christmas Day.

An unexpected visitor

2010-11-23T09:44:00.004Z

With the lodges empty for a few short weeks, the ducks have been regular visitors to the house. They're obviously missing the attention that they receive from our guests (and we suspect that they are looking forward to Christmas, when they can visit each lodge one by one, filling their tummies as they go!) and so are demanding food from the garden.
Word had obviously spread in the duck community about Forda, and we were delighted to welcome a newcomer (pictured) who came and spent a few days here (on holiday perhaps?)
We've not been able to identify him from any of our bird books, and have concluded that he must be a hybrid of some sort. If anyone has any ideas as to his breed, we'd be most interested to hear from you! But, whatever he is, he seemed to enjoy his stay here.

New Spa Treatments

2010-09-16T11:52:00.003+01:00

Our therapists are always thinking of new treatments for our guests to enjoy !
Keighley has attended some really interesting seminars and workshops this summer at Spiezia (the Cornish organic producers) and has now added two new treatments to her repertoire at Forda. There is a new “Cornish organic anti-ageing facial” and a “Hands & Feet Treat” - everyone has loved them so far! Our full current treatment list is available on http://www.forda.co.uk/

Kilk in Bloom!

2010-09-11T13:44:00.000+01:00

This year's flower festival has just taken place in Kilkhampton, and this year the theme was Trades & Professions.

All of the entries were very impressive, not to mention extremely clever and inventive!

Our submission here at Forda (pictured) was created by Gillian (with a little help from her friends!) and some of the flowers used are actually made from dishcloths and rubber gloves!

Gillian chose the title 'domestic engineer' but it has been suggested that 'domestic goddess' may have been more appropriate!

Forda Article Published by Visit England

2010-09-03T11:14:00.005+01:00

We're thrilled here at Forda to have been featured in an article by 'Quality Edge' - VisitEngland's magazine.

The article was written for the trade to highlight the importance of cleanliness - with their research showing that "94% of guests consider the cleanliness and hygiene standards of accommodation to be either extremely important or important". We can only agree!

The article says that "about 10% of self-catering properties got top marks for housekeeping, compared with about 6% of guest accommodation and 2% of hotels."

Forda was the only self-catering place from the whole of the UK included in their article because we have achieved a perfect 100% score for several years in the VisitEngland inspections for cleanliness!

They even included this picture of our ladies ! - we are very fortunate to have such a great team of cleaners - without them we couldn't keep up the high standards.

Thank you girls!

Swallows

2010-08-10T16:51:00.003+01:00

We're very happy to report that the swallows returned to Forda once more this year - providing hours of amusement for our guests as they safely raised their young families before leaving us for another year!

Top Gear

2010-08-10T16:05:00.004+01:00

Many of you are no doubt fans of Top Gear - and will have watched 'Jezza', 'Hamster' and 'Captain Slow' on Sunday 18th July, facing the challenge of building their own interesting motorhomes for a trip down to Cornwall.

Towards the end of the programme they were filmed driving up the A39 through Kilkhampton, and the London Inn was clearly visible.

After this they went to Hartland Quay - where Jeremy sat on a rock eating ice-cream whilst Hammond and May pushed his motorhome over a cliff in the background!

Nice weather for ducks - and fishing!

2010-08-10T14:17:00.005+01:00

Well, the weather has been a little variable these last few weeks - we've had glorious, sunny days interspersed with...well, pretty wet ones really!

Luckily, the rain hasn't dampened the enthusiasm of the fishermen and women here at Forda, and by all accounts the ponds have been fishing really well.

The biggest photographed capture so far this season is a 14lb common carp - congratulations to Dylan Taylor (pictured) for that one! We know that there are bigger fish just waiting to be caught though, and will publish new photos as and when we get them.

We're really pleased that we've been able to introduce some brand new anglers to fishing, thanks to Colin, our fishing coach. Judging from some of the successful catches following a coaching session, we're pretty sure that we've created some life-long fishing fanatics!

All Change!

2010-08-10T12:40:00.006+01:00

The end of July saw some changes here at Forda!

Our manager Bee decided to head for pastures new (literally!) and is embarking on a new career looking after animals and farming at a local attraction. We wish her the very best of luck for the future.

And speaking of luck, just as Bee left, Jayne & Colin arrived.

They have been trying to move to the area for some time, having spent all of their holidays here at Forda for the last ten years. Finally, they've sold their house and made the move, so we are pleased to welcome Jayne to the team, in place of Bee.

Colin is an experienced angler and qualified fishing coach, and has already carried out some coaching sessions for our guests, which have been a great success. Several years ago, Colin taught our son Harry how to fish and he has since become a very keen and competent fisherman.

Forda mentioned in Daily Mail Travel part!

2010-03-24T13:35:00.004Z

We are absolutely delighted to (unknowingly) have been featured in last Saturday's travel part of the Daily Mail in a nice spread about Cornwall!

From glamorous camping to boutique B&Bs, Cornwall is leading the way for the modern traveller | Mail

www.dailymail.co.uk

Camping, caravanning and B&Bs have always been a staple of Cornwall holidays, but now camping is taking a glamorous turn, B&Bs are offering a touch of luxury and boutique hotels springing up all over the region.

Bit o' fencin!

2010-03-24T11:59:00.002Z

It's been an awfully rainy week so far and, sadly, it doesn't look like it's going to lighten very much for the next week or so. I've thrown a tentative eye on the long term forecast and I'm holding my breath a little on that one too... it doesn't look to good at the moment...

Never mind, can't hang around because of a bit of rain. We've decided to replace all the fencing around the Barn and the main house, and even with the rain falling steadily, we've been out there helping the professionals! We are now enjoying a rather open and pleasant view across to the Barn for a few hours, until the new panels go up.

We tried to be kind to the beautiful clematis that was sprawling along the old fence, and did our best to not damage it too much when ripping out the old fencing panels and posts. We did have to cut it back to its main branches, but luckily, it's just about the right time to treat this type of clematis to a rigorous cut (with winter clinging on so late - usually you'd cut back around late Feb, early March), so we are hoping that we'll be rewarded with lots of strong new shoots this year., even if our share of flowers might not be so abundant this year.

We'll upload some more photos of the finished project soon! It will certainly smarten this part of the grounds up no end again!

Injured duck makes it against all odds

2010-03-10T09:51:00.010Z

We've gained a little friend here at Forda! It's one of the resident male ducks, and he somehow managed to seriously injure his foot last Autumn.

The first couple of months he was hardly capable of anything but sliding around on his belly, with his injured leg trailing behind him uselessly. When swimming, he would go round in circles. The only serious means of getting around quickly was flying.

On closer observation we found his leg and especially his flipper seriously mangled. We gathered that he must have either been attacked by a predator or got tangled up one way or another.

Against all odds, he survived, be it with a little help from us. We fed him extra rations of grain and as long as there was water close by to slide into, and land & take off from, he was relatively safe from his enemies, especially Mr. Fox!

He now comes and visits us in the garden at the main house on a daily basis and still demands his special ration. He has become quite tame and will even eat out of Gillians hand.

Being an invalid will probably mean that he'll never mate (again) in his life, but at least he is healing slowy and can hopefully enjoy another spring and summer at Forda!

How to start a fire!

2010-03-02T15:17:00.006Z

We had a really good day yesterday, clearing all the debris of our serious hedge cutting last week. It was a wonderfully sunny and warm day, and it was a joy to be able to do some more work outside.

Although we had little wind, we managed to get the fire going in the end. What you need is A: a farmer who know what he's doing (well - sort of ;-)), lots of paper and cardboard, and a little bit of liquid fuel, just to liven things up now and then.

Although one wouldn't believe it, this picture was taken late in the day around 4 pm - we had just piled the last lot to burn on and (as you can see in the picture) were enjoying the fruits of our labours (we needed that!). The last lot was reduced to ashes surprisingly quick - it was all burnt down by 5.30.

So we now have a nice, open hedge bank at top pond and our fishermen will hopefully be glad to have more space and less chance of getting their lines caught in any shrubbery!

2010-02-26T16:26:00.004Z

We've had a fairly dry week here, even though the forecast told us to expect inches of rain - it never happened. So we took the opportunity to clear some of the overgrown hedges at top pond to give our keen fishermen a little bit more space. It had been creeping further and further into the grounds (as they do) and no amount of hedge cutting could really tame it - so we decided to be a little more rigorous this time!

Maybe, one day, we can lay some of our ancient Cornish hedges properly. It is fascinating to see how these burst back into life after having been maltreated in such an awful way. And hopefully the banks that have been cleared of scrubs and bushes this week will produce some fantastic new wild flowers!

Change of Guard

2010-02-26T15:16:00.011Z

Our wild flower bank is now truly bursting into colour, with a change from the dominating white of the snowdrops to a much richer shade of purple and purple/white of the crocuses!

We always find that once the crocuses are out, things speed up very quickly. Not long now and the grass will start growing again. Nature seems to be waking up slowly but surely. Trees are budding in earnest and much of the wildlife is getting down to the serious business of defending courting grounds, mating and nesting.

Frog spawn in our pond

2010-02-13T15:55:00.003Z

First frog spawn of the season found in the garden pond!

It has gone quite cold again this week, with our ponds and lakes freezing over once more, yet that doesn't seem to stand in the way of budding life in the frog world! We couldn't quite believe our eyes when we found the first frog spawn in our garden pond, frozen into a thin layer of ice.

We did inspect our fishing lakes and river too, but couldn't find anything there (yet), so we either have an exceptionally eager (or is it daft) pair of frogs in the garden, or the garden micro-climate is a little more favourable.

As we are planning to clean the ponds out next week, we'll be moving it all into a quiet spot further up the water feature and hope for the best!

Winter 2009 / 2010 – Spring is on its way!

2010-02-05T14:04:00.002Z

Winter 2009/2010 - Spring is on its way!

Sadly for those of you who were on holiday then – but it was confirmed that it was the wettest November on record for this area.

And that was followed by a dry and sunny (but a bit cold) December and then snow! – days and days of the stuff and very rare for here – the most for 30 years. Everything looked so beautiful but getting around on the roads was not easy. We were full for Christmas and New Year but luckily all the arrival and departure days were clear enough for everyone to get here and get home !

The answer to a recent question on QI – it takes Spring about 7 to 8 weeks to get from Cornwall to the north of Scotland so Spring arrives here first!

The first snowdrops were out in mid-January as soon as the snow melted and we now have the first crocuses and daffodils – roll on Spring… and as long as they don’t forecast it, we may have that BBQ summer at last!

Delightful places off the beaten track in Devon and Cornwall

2009-11-25T15:10:00.003Z

It's funny how things go sometimes... Jim and Gillian took a day off last week and went on a bit of a mystery tour through Devon on their way to Sheppy's Cider near Taunton, passing through some wonderful little places on the way, which are worth a visit in their own right!

So we have decided to share the knowledge of these wonderful places to visit that you won't find in every travel book, nor in any of the common visitor publications.

Sheppy's Cider is well worth a visit, by the by, offering a wonderful array of ciders, apple juices and home made preserves and conserves, and a very interesting little museum! The best of all was that Jim rediscovered a cider from his childhood (should he have known about ciders in his childhood????), which may now be offered on our welcome trays!

However, what really impressed them was a little village called Bampton, which is hidden in the deepest depths of Devonshire, just off the A396 towards Exmoor. It is a wonderful, unspoilt village, which seems to still be able to offer a delightful variety of independent shops. Jim was most impressed with the delicatessen shop, whilst Gillian found the restaurant (which was unfortunately closed) offered a most interesting menu! So much so, that they are now planning another trip there to sample the dishes soon!

We hope to have regular updates on these matters and will hopefully publish something of interest quite soon!

Ross Hoddinott Photography | Cornwall

2009-11-06T10:17:00.001Z

Ross Hoddinott Photography Cornwall

These are some stunning pictures by a very talented local photographer!

Boscastle Food, Arts & Crafts Festival

2009-08-31T11:19:00.004+01:00

The Boscastle Food, Arts and Crafts Festival (3rd & 4th October 2009) is organised by the Boscastle Chamber of Trade and Commerce with the support of many other organisations in the area.

This is a wonderful festival with lashings of fresh food, harbour fun and evening frolics and has become more and more popular each year. See local Chefs demonstrating and visit stalls where producers will be selling their food, arts and crafts. Main marquees in the Car Park with supporting activities around the harbour and scenic old village For up to date information keep a check on the Boscastle Chamber of Trade website: http://www.visit.boscastle.co.uk/

22nd Bude Jazz Festival comes to town!

2009-08-31T11:13:00.004+01:00

New Orleans comes to Cornwall! Bude is the small and unspoilt seaside town on Cornwall’s beautiful Atlantic Coast that hosts one of Britain’s leading jazz festivals. The Twenty-second Bude Jazz Festival will pack 166 jazz events into the eight day...s from Saturday 29 August to Saturday 5 September 2009. A single stroller ticket will give you admission to all but two of these events.

So, Forda Lodges in Bude is now officially blogging!

2009-08-26T14:19:00.004+01:00

Well now, after months of saying we must, we should, we ought to... which then turned into we should have really..., we ought to have by now... and other such woeful comments, we have now finally made it! Here is our very own, official blog!

I suppose the reason for not having had a blog until now is simply this: We can't really get our heads around the fact that anyone would be remotely interested in reading about what we have to say and do. But hey, every web marketing geek tells you to have a blog, up your rankings that way and tell the world that - hey, we're here!... so here we are...

Although we obviously have rather a lot to say about how lovely Forda Lodges & Cottages is as the perfect place to stay, we can only say so much without repeating ourselves. So we will probably be using this tool for our latest news feeds and reccommendations, upcoming events in Bude, Cornwall & Devon and other, hopefully more interesting snippets!

So, here goes, welcome to our Forda & Bude BLOG!