Campsite and yurts in Sussex, England
How this holiday makes a difference
Environment
Since moving here, we have stopped the use of chemicals on the farm, Hidden Spring now has an abundance of wildlife from badgers (more often heard than seen), and foxes to birdlife; both green and spotted wood peckers are often seen and Tawny owls are frequently heard with their eerie cries through the night. Due to the way our holding is managed insect life abounds, although some are more helpful than others!
Of the most helpful must be our ten hives of bees, all thriving despite world wide concerns. Not only do they pollinate our fruit, the honey is fantastic, and for sale if you can get to it before us and our boys.
The varieties in our vegetable garden reflect our belief in heritage seeds and not infertile hybrid types, we seed save and support seed exchange. We are always keen to find old and unusual types to vegetables to grow - especially pumpkins and squashes, of which we are very fond!
We only cut back our road side hedge, (the council insist for road safety) and then only when the birds are not nesting. All the other hedges flourish and the fruit and shelter accounts for much of the birdlife we see and hear daily, as well as giving the farm a cosy protection.
We ask our guests to Recycle what they bring (facilities provided), or reuse if possible, as well as reducing what they bring - shop locally! We are looking into a grey water system for the toilets and solar boosted showers for the future, as well as better systems for our own home.
There are excellent recreation possibilities in the area many within a short walk, that don't need the use of a car. The Cuckoo Trail, just minutes away, is a must for walkers and cyclists - family friendly too as there is no traffic to worry about along this disused railway line. It also acts as a wildlife corridor and allows users a rural insight you just can’t get sat in car.
Community
We encourage our guests to buy locally and try local food, we have an excellent local farm shop (within walking distance), plus three good pubs - again within walking distance. They like us try to use locally produce as much as is possible and we have built up working relationships, that have been mutually beneficial. As a family we believe in local produce - home grown when possible! Links to these are all available through our website, although most of our recommendations are given personally.
The wood we sell for campfires comes from a long established local family. Bimbo, now seventy, still works all day and has never let us down. Be warned though get him talking and the stories of forest animals and woodmanship will keep you there all day!
Over the last few years we have hosted craft workshops here. This started out as a helping hand to a local willow weaver and trug maker, and has become a twice yearly fixture with some now familiar faces returning each year to learn more new skills. We believe strongly that such skills have a place in our modern world and should be encouraged and passed on. We use some of the workshops' bean support in our veg garden every year and they are as useful as they are eye-catching.
Landscape
This part of England is a fascinating area, and not one either of us grew up in, although Tam grew up a short distance away on the West Sussex Downs. But you only have to look at the map and you begin to see the old drove roads, used in times past to take pigs to the oak woods to fatten up on acorns. Look at some of the names, Furnace Lane, and you are looking back at a time when wood powered iron foundries and even gun powder mills!
The daily and yearly cycle on the farm enhances our appreciation of the landscape and each year we see where certain birds nest, how many cubs the foxes have, or how the newts in the pond are doing.
Hidden Spring is our home and we want our visitors/ guests to enjoy it and the surrounding area as much as we do. So whether it is chatting about our sheep, or where best on the farm to find mini beasts - we have some of the biggest dragonflies you have ever seen, or helping to plan a day walking starting right from your tent, we are happy to help and share the knowledge we have gained - and we are still learning!
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