The House
Wind your way through the high hedged Devon lanes to Babbling By, cross the little stone bridge and just up the hill is your journey’s end. Just a word of warning - arriving is the easy part, it’s leaving that’s difficult…
How homely it feels when you step inside the door, how very lovely. The feels are gentle and welcoming, interiors combine country living and modern comforts to perfection. Off the hall, there’s an open plan kitchen, dining and living room where French doors open to the veranda running the length of the house. Next to the living space a conservatory opens onto the garden, on the other side is a cosy living room where you can stretch out on the sofa and watch TV.
Upstairs a landing takes you to Bedrooms 1-5, 2 shower rooms and a family bathroom. Bedroom 6 is in the annexe, which is perfect for a couple who like their own space; downstairs there’s a kitchen, living/dining room and shower room, upstairs is the bedroom, with a super king bed, a free-standing bath and doors that open onto a balcony.
The gardens are a dream, catching the sun for almost all of the day; the hot tub is on the veranda so the outlook is perfect, of big lawns and trees, and meandering paths, with the constant sound of the river murmuring along. There are orchards, all proud and puffed up with apple blossom in the spring, heavy with fruit in the autumn; these are carefree days, of croquet on the lawn, picnics on the riverbank, and when evening comes creeping in, toasting marshmallows around the firepit
Local Area
If you fancy venturing out when you’re staying at Babbling By you won’t have to go far to find country pubs, award winning attractions and activities. Set out from the doorstep for a stroll through Buzzards Woodland (NT), where the ground is awash with bluebells in springtime.
Have a mooch around Tiverton and go up to the Grand Western Canal Country Park to amble along the towpath, or take a ride on one of the few remaining horse drawn barges in the country. Come back for freshly baked scones in the Canal Tea Rooms & Gardens, or drinks on the floating Duck’s Ditty floating café-bar.
Take the kids for day out at Wildwood Devon where they can spot the animals, ride the zip wire and drop slide in the woodland playground. Have a fun-filled trip to Crealy Theme Park where there are over 60 rides, heaps of attractions and live entertainment.
Further afield you can have an Exmoor adventure, tramping the lush river valleys, the wooded hillsides and the high heaths where red deer and wild ponies can be seen roaming free. You can even venture over to the Jurassic Coast for a day by the sea at Lyme Regis, Beer or Branscombe.
But maybe you won’t feel the need to go anywhere at all because you’ll be so happy in your own little world at Babbling By. Imagine, at dusk, a soak in the hot tub, stars twinkling above you, a big fat moon peering between the trees as you gather together, toasting marshmallows around the firepit in the orchard; the only sounds are your happy voices, the occasional hoot of an owl, and the river contentedly babbling along. Every moment becomes a memory.