Keeping it familiar makes for a fulfilling birthday trip

Country Notebook

AMIDST the responsibilities that come with adult life, of which there are many, it’s not very often that the opportunity arises to feel like a child again.

And with the past year dealing us all an unbelievably poor hand of cards, any chance to forget about Covid-19 - even just for a few hours - should be greeted with open farms.

That’s precisely why I chose to whisk my best friend off to the War Horse Valley Country Farm Park last weekend, as a surprise day out for her 29th birthday. Yes, we were the only adults there without excitable young children in tow, but for us the escape was through simplicity. No bright flashing lights, just good ol’ fashioned fun.

After winding through the lanes, you’ll find the War Horse Valley Country Farm Park tucked away at Parsonage Farm, near Iddesleigh in the heart of Devon. It was around this very farm and the parish of Iddesleigh that Sir Michael Morpurgo, one of the UK’s best-loved authors and a childhood hero of mine, set his novel War Horse, which has gone on to captivate millions both on stage and silver screen.

So for the very affordable entry fee of £6, we whiled away the hours exploring the World War 1 and War Horse exhibitions, housed in a magnificent 400-year-old cob barn; took a tractor and trailer ride around the farm, bottle fed the tame lambs, and devoured a cream tea - the Cornish way, naturally! And browsing the collection of antique farming equipment, it really makes you wonder how anything ever got done!

Growing up in Cornwall and spending plenty of time on farms - now and back then - my trip to War Horse Valley may not have been an eye-opener in that respect, but it did reinforce exactly where my heart lies - in the great outdoors.