The Old Coach House

19/08/2024

This is an amazing chance to look behind the scenes … so much history just 10 minutes from here!

https://www.facebook.com/100064440949648/posts/926250196199670/

13/08/2024

Great news for our current and upcoming guests, as this useful village shop opened today!

On the main road, with plenty of parking - it’s perfectly positioned for guests to stop and have some fresh sandwiches made for them as they head out for the day, or to pick up some fresh produce and quality items for supper on their way back home after a busy day exploring.

11/08/2024

Most people enjoy spending time with the llamas during their visit, but you don’t have to be a fan of llamas to stay here - we have lots of other wildlife to spot too!

Insects, butterflies, toads, deer, foxes and rabbits all cross our land at certain times of the day and we’ve plenty for plant lovers to spy too.

We’ve availability coming up in the autumn so do book now for your chance to get fully immersed in nature!
ochnettlebridge.co.uk

04/08/2024

Lovely day for being outside!

This morning, I spent a few hours next door in Harridge Woods nature reserve helping other volunteers to pull out Himalayan Balsam plants which are non-native and highly invasive!
We also got to learn about “stoggles”, which is the local term for a specific style of pruning trees. It provides an amazing habitat for fungi and tiny animals in the lower levels of the ancient trees.

This afternoon spent time with our current guests, out in the fields with the llamas 🥰

13/07/2024

We are so lucky to have a few acres of land that are teeming with wildlife. I quite enjoy taking interested guests on a wildlife-spotting walk around the valley, pointing out the best places to spot rabbits, foxes, specific birds…..

Today, curled up in long grass, with the llamas grazing close by, we literally stumbled across this little beauty.

After taking a couple of hurried pictures, we beat a hasty retreat and left it alone to enjoy the last of the summer sunshine.

So well camouflaged

09/07/2024

There’s some clever swans in Wells 🦢 🦢

09/07/2024

They say things come in 3’s - and tomorrow’s guests have 3 new things to enjoy!

During a rare gap between bookings, I’ve recovered the dining chairs and the sofa - upcycling them instead of buying new!

But the most exciting new ‘thing’ is a new addition to our welcome pack of tasty local produce - cheese biscuits made from Wookey Hole Cheddar. Mmmmm, tasty 😋

19/06/2024

Days 1 - 15
We've been so busy here at The OCH with guests, I haven't been logging our efforts for the 30 Days Wild Challenge 🤦‍♀️

However, we started off the month in an amazing fashion after we received confirmation that our garden is great for wildlife! Other things we've done so far included:
💚Volunteered in the neighbouring nature reserve
💚Refilled all our wildlife water spots, bird baths and bird feeders
💚Watched the local birds (spotted wagtails, buzzard, red kite, robin, blackbirds, swallows, pigeons, bluet**s, house sparrows, and bullfinches
💚Went wild rabbit watching
💚Cleared the footpaths over our land to help walkers access the countryside without getting ensnared in the brambles!
💚Spent a couple of hours in the fields with our guests, showing them the local wildlife spots - and we even spotted Mr Fox!
💚Did a spot of hedge trimming - eco-style!
💚Replanted the summer hanging baskets and tubs with bee-friendly plants
💚Educated people as to the best way of picking up snails if you need to move them without causing them any damage
💚donated some spare/excess plants to a local commemorative garden.

11/05/2024

Because you only get that one chance to make a great, first impression!

Lovely sunny weather and a little gap between guests, means we’ve grabbed the chance to refresh the exterior paintwork.

But our next guests needn’t worry about painty smells - we only use Little Green Paints which are a water-based, low odour, environmentally friendly, low VOC paint option.

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05/05/2024

Beautiful view from the office this morning!

As part of my commitment to helping the local environment, I volunteer with the Somerset Wildlife Trust’s, East Mendip Conservation group.

Today we were working in Cockles Fields (just across the road from the Old Coach House), clearing brash from the meadows - left over from clearing away the fallen ash trees after the recent storms.

Stunning scenery - and we were very lucky with the weather!

23/04/2024

Absolutely love Wells 😍 and this photograph is so beautiful, I just had to share it!

Springtime in Wells 🦢☀️

Did you enjoy a beautiful weekend in Wells?

22/04/2024

HAPPY WORLD EARTH DAY! 🌍

Here at The Old Coach House, we are keen to adopt sustainable practices to ensure our holiday let does as little damage to the environment as possible. We've done all the hard work (and got external validation to prove it 😉), so you can enjoy a guilt-free stay 🥂.

19/04/2024

Spring has officially sprung! 😍

This rather grainy photo (I didn’t want to get too close), shows the return of our first pair of swallows, who were spotted flying around The Old Coach House, getting first dibs on the best nest to spend the summer here in!

These remarkable little birds have just flown here, all the way from Africa, where they prefer to spend their winters.

Last year, we had 3 pairs of swallows who raised 35 youngsters between them. These youngsters won’t return this year, they will hopefully return, once they’ve reached maturity.

As with our 2-legged guests, I’m leaving these 2-winged guests alone to relax, unwind and recharge after their journey here. We’ve left them a welcome pack (containing fresh water and as many insects as they can manage to eat), but are on hand in case of need (sometimes a fledgling falls out of the nest and needs to be returned).

Nb. Please be reassured, that I would never take a crafty photo of our 2-legged guests on full zoom, whilst hiding behind a hedge 😉

We still have availability for stays in May and June, so if you’d like to relax, rewind and recharge here, watching the swallows swoop and glide around the valley, then do book soon!

08/04/2024

Well worth a visit if you are in the area! I’ve seen an exhibition in the Wells Museum, telling the backstories of some of the patients who were admitted into the hospital/asylum and it was truly fascinating.

04/04/2024

26/03/2024

Well, this looks like fun! Who fancies a trishaw ride around our beautiful city of Wells? Wells Community Network Trishaw is happy to take you and a friend/relative/carer off on a ride around Wells, or slightly further afield along the Strawberry Line towards Dulcote.

✔ Book now, it's FREE (or a small donation would be appreciated)
✔ They have heated packs and waterproof covers to keep travellers warm and toasty
✔ For more information, or to book; call: 01749 467079; email [email protected] or read more at: https://www.wellscommunity.network/wcn-trishaw

19/03/2024

Happy guests make for a happy host!

Lots of happy memories made by this lovely family who have just enjoyed a short break with us.

Dates are beginning to book quickly now, so if you fancy getting away from it all, don’t delay - book today!

02/03/2024

Warm and cozy in The Old Coach House today, despite a light covering of snow across the valley overnight! Not sure the llamas were too impressed though ⛄️

20/02/2024

Pleased to see that the recent very wet weather didn’t prevent our latest guests from enjoying their holiday ….. as they went underground!!

Plenty to see and do around here, whatever the weather!

🦙 🦁 🦒 🚁 🐴 🛍️ 🧭 🌳 🥂 🎱 🛝

13/02/2024

Our guests always get a little welcome pack from us, containing great quality local produce; it’s not often we get a gift in return!

More importantly though - our latest guests really enjoyed their stay 😊, and seems like the llamas stole a couple more hearts!

🦙

30/01/2024

Just recorded our results for the 🦉.

Our most prolific bird on the Saturday morning was the house sparrow, but I also spotted Magpies, Crows, Starlings, woodpigeons and jackdaws, as well as a blackbird, robin, wagtail and goldfinch. We were only allowed to count birds on the ground, not flying over - which was a pity as the surrounding trees were full of birds singing away (including a jay - who sounded as if he was laughing at my inability to actually spot him, so he couldn't be counted 🤨).

Bit of a poor show from the birds really, as during the summer months we can usually count on seeing chaffinches, blue t**s, bullfinches and our beloved swallows.

Perhaps they all fancied a lazy day in their nests?

www.rspb.org.uk

https://bit.ly/3tgxjGS

There's still time to join half a million nature lovers this weekend and help us understand how birds are faring. Together, let's make it count.

27/01/2024

In a rare break between bookings, I have been refreshing some of the paintwork. Not that it was beginning to look shabby, but I want our guests to feel at home when they stay here - and not to feel as if they’re part of a steady carousel of guests coming and going through the front door!

The utility room, cloakroom and family bathroom were the first to get refreshed.

But our incoming guests needn’t worry about painty smells! - We use ‘Little Green’ water-based paints, which not only allow our walls to breathe, but also suit our eco-credentials as this paint’s VOC content is now virtually zero.

That means we don't need to worry about adding any nasty solvent contributions to the atmosphere, or causing any respiratory issues, or nasty smells that may affect our guests….

…. Just a fresh, clean cottage ready to serve as the base for your next Somerset adventure. Book now before someone else grabs your dates!

https://ochnettlebridge.co.uk/availability

02/01/2024

It’s a great start to the New Year, when you find a lovely review in the Guest Book from our latest guests 😍

Seems the games room turned out to be the ideal place to host a very special birthday/NYE party 🥳.

14/11/2023

What’s going on here, I wonder 🤔?

Don’t worry! We’re not holding a table top sale of all our electrical appliances … just getting everything ready for our local and trusted electrician Phil Bridges And Son to carry out our annual PAT safety tests - and this year, also our 5 year safety certification.

17/09/2023

Love walking? We’ve got some amazing walks from the doorstep of The Old Coach House…. But if you fancy exploring a little further afield, then download the free Mendip Passport and explore our beautiful countryside.

We've had some fantastic feedback for the Mendip Explorer's Passport.

If you'd like to download your free copy then please follow the link below. https://www.mendiphillsaonb.org.uk/exploring/passport/

17/09/2023

Somerset Crafts is a great place to visit (we got our Glastonbury area pictures from here which are in the kitchen/family room!). A bonus this week is that they are part of Somerset Arts Week - grab a map and visit more of Somerset’s talented folk while you are here!

14/09/2023

Well this looks like an interesting way to see more of the beautiful Somerset countryside. Book a break with us and spend time on the river with these guys!

Explore the Somerset countryside the best way – by paddling. From Wall Eden Farm you and your friends or family can navigate the River Brue ...

10/09/2023

Wells is only a short drive from The Old Coach House! Having been fully booked all summer, we have availability opening up from mid-September…. so book your short break or holiday with us and see if you agree that Wells is the best!

Wells, in Somerset, has recently topped a survey that asked the public which city was the best to visit for a staycation, beating every other destination in the country.

23/08/2023

Just a short drive from The Old Coach House, there’s always something to see (and do) at the Somerset Rural Life Museum.
Great Autumn crafting programme here 👍

29/07/2023

Love it when our guests leave a review in our guestbook. Love it more, when we can share their happy review with fellow small business owners who also contributed to make their stay a special one! Daniel's Sandwich Bar Thai Food with Nok ❤️