Meet your hosts
Meet Julia & Andrew
Hello, I am Julia and I taught in Devon, Hampshire, London and Hong Kong for several years before returning to West Devon with my children. I grew up in this area of land between the moors of Dartmoor and Bodmin moor in the Tamar Valley. As a young girl, I used to ride past the gates at Borough Farm and was always intrigued by what lay inside. I couldn’t believe my luck when its previous owners decided to retire after living at Borough for over 60 years - and so our adventures at Borough began! Our idea to start a glamping business here was formed in 2006. Our stunning views give our holidays the wow factor. Previous guests have called it the prettiest farmyard in England!
When I am not looking after guests and my three children Jack, Izzy and Oscar, or renovating or farming, I adore being in the garden. Andrew, my partner, loves nothing more (well, apart from fishing) than being up to his elbows in organic soil in the garden; planting, weeding and most excitingly harvesting delicious produce which is available for our guests both as fruit and veg boxes or prepared meals. Oh, and Andrew is also a very good cook! So if you get a chance, try his cooking. Nothing pleases him more than producing a plate of food which was all grown on our farm.
The children have their own expertise which completes our team. Jack is an expert in design and video production and is the brains of the team. Izzy is our medic and expert cake baker and breakfast maker. Oscar is our tour guide, keen driver, and fire maker and is endlessly patient and informative with young children – oh and pretty good at catching the animals too! Together with Laura who is our expert cleaner, flower arranger and wonderful bed maker, and Geoff and Brian who tend the gardens, we are all here to welcome you.
Wildlife & Environment:
A lot of my inspiration at Devon Yurt comes from the natural world. I studied wildlife and natural history photography and am often absorbed with photographing the changing seasons and wildlife. We are blessed with an abundance of wildlife here at Borough – buzzards soar overhead and swallows visit in the summer nesting in the barns. We hear owls at night and being in a remote location means we get the most amazing starry skies. There are badgers to watch for and we often find stoats and hedgehogs in the hedgerows.
We share the 18 organically farmed acres here not only with our lovely guests but also with our much-loved animals. These are our rare breed Devon and Cornwall Longwool sheep, our three Connemara ponies and gorgeous chickens which supply beautiful fresh eggs all year round – and not forgetting two gorgeous cats and the latest addition, our Labrador puppy! You can also bring your own horse along to ride on the moors and beaches!