When I first arrived at 42 Acres the first words I said when I got out of the car were “wow! this place is amazing”. Even though it’s called 42 Acres there are actually 173 acres – maybe it should be called 173 Acres instead! (I later found out it originally started with 42 Acres and grew).
My mum, dad, brother and I first settled into the Library Barn, our home for the two days we stayed. It was huge (as was the cinema-sized TV screen!). After we had settled in and had some dinner we set off to explore. We ended up at the Treehouse – it was amazing! It was full of really cool, old stuff; a telescope, old books like the Complete Works of William Shakespeare (Part IV), and an actual typewriter. It felt like a
being in a mix of Hagrid’s Hut and Dumbledore’s office. Cosy but lots of cool curiosities (like never-ending stairs in a glass case).
The next morning, we looked around some more while my mum did yoga. It was cool seeing the stork enclosure (one day they will be released into the wild), and a herd of deer ran in front of us. Later in the morning we went on rewilding walk with Raf which was really fun and I learnt loads about beavers and saw telltale signs like footprints, a HUGE lodge, dams, watery areas and teeth marks in chopped down trees. Did you know? An adult beaver is as tall as my 4-year-old brother if it stood on its hind legs.
After lunch we went back down to the lake and went in the rowboat. It was so peaceful and relaxing I felt like a character from one of my books. I tried rowing (it was hard work!). We saw geese, ducks and ducklings, and butterflies. We didn’t see any beavers because my brother didn’t stop talking! Afterwards my mum and I went to the dock and paddled our feet in the lake (there were lots of tadpoles).
Later in the afternoon we did a family fire craft experience with Raf. It was lots of fun. I made good sparks with the flint and steel and set fire to cotton wool pads. We also learned how to make fire using a lens with sunlight. We cooked bread on a stick and toasted marshmallows over the campfire (even though I burnt mine a bit it tasted delicious).
I had the best time at 42 Acres, and I would definitely visit again. It was peaceful, there was so much nature, I laughed a lot with my family, and I really liked all the cool things there were to see and do (especially the treehouse, lake, bluebells and rowing boat!).
