Now i’ve always been a huge fan of camping. I think it gives the individual a healthy appreciation for modern amenities. It’s a great feeling (in my opinion) to have to ‘fend for yourself’ for a while. Call it character building.

However it’s not for everybody. BUT ! There is a happy medium.

I’m friends with a few chaps from one of the ‘survival’ forum i used to frequent. One of them mentioned about a possible winter mission up to Dartmoor. Yes please. The original plan was to head up to a camping site somewhere near Buckland. Throw up a large communal tent and light a fire. The usual stuff. Then we’d sit about in folding chairs, cook a little food, have a few drinks and chat the night away. However as the date drew nearer it became apparent this might not be viable. It rained solidly for the entire week prior. When the date came the wind picked up and the rain continued to drum down. We did however manage to rent out a camping barn in a nice area. What the hell is a camping barn ?

We were due to meet in a small village called Holne, just outside of Buckfastleigh. This is on the East side of Dartmoor. As it live in the South-West it mean’t a drive across Dartmoor. Excellent ! After stuffing some gear into a bag (rather hurriedly) i headed off at lunchtime. It was a good two-hours to get out of Cornwall and up onto the moors. The drive through the middle of the moors i’m very familiar with (Tavistock-Princetown-Two Bridges-Postbridge). However Holne is in an area i’ve been to before. This required a little map research before heading out. I’m pleased to say i didn’t need to use satnav to get to the destination. The drive across the moors is stunning. Once you turn off the main for Hexworthy the scenery is amazing. A long windy drive up a hill (that never seems to end) reveals a view from the top that i only wish i captured on film. You also drive across a rather old stone bridge that spans a reservoir. Then you get to Holne. It’s a sleepy village that comprises of a few small houses, farms, a pub, post office and tea rooms. It is also home to the ‘the stone barn’, our digs for the night.

The barn itself was surprisingly comfortable. Everything was hand-made from stone and wood. Yes it was a bit draughty and yes there were a few cobwebs but on the whole it was perfect. The upper-floor (attic)it empty so you just pitch your camp-bed on the floor. Downstairs there are a couple of picnic benches to sit on, wood-burner, fridge (meter), oven and sink. As well as a decent selection of pots and pans. The chaps were already there when i arrived so i quickly set-up my sleeping gear and pulled up a chair and got some tea on the go. One of the chaps bought a portable DVD player so we watched a rally interesting documentary on a group of people that took part in an experiment in the ’70′s. They had to live as an iron-age village for a YEAR. No big-brother stuff here. It was pretty hardcore.

We decided that the pub had to be sampled. So after cooking up a spot of food (washed down with a few glasses of cherry mead) we headed up to the pub. The weather was still foul and it was pitch black (no streetlights). The pub itself was a decent size and very welcoming. There was nobody else in there so we had the place to ourselves. The owner stoked the fire for us and poured out a few tankards of local ‘dartmoor ale’. It was gorgeous. I think we ended up sampling 6 or so pints. After a stumble back to the barn and a little more mead we turned in for the night. It was very windy outside but it was warm enough inside. I had a good nights sleep. In the morning we had a bit of a fry-up and tidied the place up before saying our goodbyes.

It was a good night and certainly something a bit different. It was also very cheap.

If you want to get out and see a bit more of the countryside but don’t want to stay in a tent then i would recommend these camping barns. You get all the modern amenities but still the feeling of ‘looking after yourself’. The area we stayed has to be seen to be believed. Perhaps you’ll join us next year ?

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