We are retired professionals (Financial Director and assistant-head teacher; both 54)with children that have fledged and fled the nest. So home reflects our own lifestyle, resting in the little known secret of the Colne Valley near the Essex/Suffolk border.
Indoor relaxation can either be by the wood-burning fire in the snug front lounge or in the grand pine-clad lounge at the rear with its 16 feet high gabled ceiling where dinners can be fine and romantic. The kitchen is spacious, too with glorious natural light and a further dining table. The main bedroom is in the older side of the property, circa 1830, with a view of the birds in the hedgerow. A bed settee is available in the smaller lounge for other guests, A large walk-in shower room completes the nest inside. Outside is a long lawned garden with a view to woodland from the decking. Garden furniture and boulles are there for peace or play. Beyond our boundaries can be explored with the help of our maps and suggested strolls through rolling valleys and people-less places although more organised points of interest are also aplenty. Come and enjoy our secret.

Hill Cottage rests outside the small village on the slopes of The Colne Valley on the edge of Constable and Gainsborough Country, yet a walk away from the trains to London, Harwich and the East Coast. Colchester, Britain’s oldest town is just 10 miles away with its castle, galleries, museums and progressive zoo. The area around us is a bit of a secret. Chappel village boasts its own steam railway museum at the end of the country’s 2nd largest viaduct and Terry’s famous Swan pub / restaurant where fish and steaks are his specialties. Tranquillity resides on the doorstep in the open spaces of The Millennium Green or the Colne Valley Walk that travels extensively east and west. Along it are ancient woodland, old watermills, splendid pit-stop pubs and bus stops that will get you back to the cottage. Here, with no houses in sight, you can rest on the patio with a glass in hand and watch the bird-life.

We are happy to talk to anyone who fancies an exchange because we love to travel and see the world outside. We truly love where we live, it is a beautiful place and that drives us to find similar beauty everywhere.
Contact anytime.
Cheers
Cathy & Jim

France: a minimum 1 month stay but very flexible ofr the right swap
CHELTENHAM: a long weekend, a week or even longer, all are no probs.
LAKE DISTRICT: 5 days minimum but anytime beyond that.
SCOTLAND: 5 days minimum but anytime beyond that.

FRANCE a place with a community feel to it
CHELTENHAM: A visit when the racing is on, but lengthen the stay to enjoy the fine county.
LAKE DISTRICT: Preferably away from the madding crowds of the larger towns.
SCOTLAND:Preferably away from the madding crowds of the larger towns.

Cathy & I have retired early to enjoy times because togetherness is our greatest wish. We love the world and learning our place within it. We are both 57, but rarely act it. We have just had 6 months on the Isles of Scilly where we learnt to sail our boat and Cathy taught me to ride a horse along the beaches. When aged 50, we took up surfing (waves, not the net). Can we learn to speak Thai? Keep trying.

English, Français, English (UK)