Press & guest feedback
Real Homes - July 2011 - 'Victorian Restoration Project' - article on the restoration of the house (NB we don't live in the house any longer, the piece was written some time ago, but only just published)
Country & Town House Magazine - June 2011 - 'Home & Away - Five Gorgeous Holiday Rentals'
Red Magazine - Feb 11 - 'Best House to Fill With Friends'
Grazia, Feb 09 - Fabulous country houses to rent.
Mail on Sunday, July 08 - article on the owners, Paul & Kirstie Jackson, and the interior.
For copies of the above articles, high resolution photos & a press release please contact Kirstie on 07979 306079
Some comments from our Visitors Book
April 2011 - Graham. Congratulations - what a magnificent home you have here. All your hard work & artistic flair has really impressed us.
We have been so lucky with the weather - a week of wall to wall sunshine, allowing us to enjoy surfing at Woolacombe, Croyde & Puttsborough beaches.
The garden has been wonderful for the young ones to play hide & seek, and also for their Easter egg hunt.
We have really enjoyed our week - celebrating 2 x 70th birthdays & 1 x 40th! Thank you for the welcome pack of scones & clotted cream, fresh flowers, superbly equipped kitchen & lovely white bed linen & towels. Wish we could have stayed longer!
April 2011 - Wallace. We had a fantastic week at the Quarry. Everyone loved the house & their rooms, the Wendy house and toys were a great hit with the toddlers.
The teenagers loved their rooms - said it was the poshest place they had ever stayed in. I loved the kitchen and using the aga. Loved the whistling kettle. The living/dining room was beautiful, we had the french windows open and had coffee on the terrace. Gorgeous views. We were tempted to use the fire but it really wasn't cold enough to warrant it. We had some fabulous family dinners around the big table. Loved your art work and the library. As for the big bath - we had to make bookings to use it!
The scones, cream and jam were delicious and such a lovely welcoming touch. Thanks also for the tea, coffee etc. The house was well equipped, ample cutlery and china etc. Good quality linen and towels. I could go on for ever.
I love Ilfracombe it's a beautiful seaside town that remains relatively unspoilt. We had breakfast (twice) at the Tea Garden (recommended). My husband and I dined at Eclectik - (highly recommended). The teenagers went to the cinema (good value at 2.99 a ticket during weekdays). We loved just wandering around the harbour area and mooching around the gift shops.
We had 2 really sunny days - Sat and Sun. Went to Croyde beach, hired wetsuits and went body boarding. Never thought I'd be in the sea in April! Went to Woolacombe also. All in all a great holiday was had by all. Could have done with another week there to do all the things we didn't do the first week. Didn't get a chance to walk up the hill, or down to the beach at back of house. Oh well, maybe next time....
Sorry to go on - but we all just loved the house. You should have heard the "oohs" and "aahs" and "look at this" when we first explored the house!
Thanks again for a memorable holiday.
March 2011 - Stewart - Hi Kirstie
Well, none of us wanted to leave... And here's what Annabel (the hen) has to say:
'Want to BUY her house! Extremely comfortable beds, fabulous showers,
the furnishings were incredible, the whole house vibe - well, we
already want to come back for a week with other halves! Would be
amazing. Loved all the thoughtful extras like towels, hot water
bottles, blankets. I'm biased but how could anyone top the quarry for
a hen do?!!'
Hope we left everything just as you would like. Ann Burnham was great and SUCH a lovely lady!
Thank you SO MUCH for everything. It was totally great and everyone loved it.
Feb 2011 - McDonald - My apologies for not contacting you sooner but time as usual has run away from me and suddenly it’s over a fortnight since our wonderful long weekend at your beautiful home. I know you don’t live there, and it is mostly let, but it is so obviously a warm and welcoming home that I can’t think of it any other way. We had a brilliant time doing not a lot but in a perfect environment! I took all kinds of “stuff” that we just didn’t need as The Quarry is so well equipped. And of course we all took far too much food and drink, and made heroic efforts to consume it . The beautiful scones, homemade jam and clotted cream that we jumped on with great speed on our arrival set the tone for the rest of the weekend! Many thanks for providing just the best setting for a birthday I would have liked to pretend hadn’t happened!! Really hope to return later in the year.
Feb 2011 - Cole - A fabulous weekend. Lots of relaxing & a fantastic walk The Grampus. House was brilliant & just what we needed. We will be back!
Feb 2011 - Salisbury - A fabulous house & a fabulous weekend with my girlfriends to celebrate my upcoming wedding. The house is just amazing & the walk along the beach from Puttsborough to Woolacombe was just what we needed after a great night out at The Eclectic.
Jan 2011 - Somerville - A lovely location to celebrate a 70th & a 21st birthday! Beautiful house & thanks to Ann for the great food on Saturday night... Many thanks!
Dec 2010 - Callanan - What a wonderful place to see in the New Year & my 30th birthday! The house is absolutely lovely & a great place to entertain. We especially loved having big log fires & cooking fried breakfast on the AGA. Thank you again for the very warm welcome.
Nov 2010 - Stewart - What a wicked house, absolutely perfect place for a surprise 40th birthday! Loved the walks... apart from the bus from Lee not turning up! We would love to come back & am sure there's going to be a New Years or Christmas spent here sometime in the future, many, many thanks.
Thank you Kirstie for making it all so easy to organise & Ann's catering on Saturday night was fantastic - proper winter home cooked fayre. A really great time has been had by all, many thanks.
Nov 2010 - Hughes - We have had such a great weekend and absolutely loved this house, the furnishings & finishing touches. The scones & clotted cream were fabulous! We walked from Ilfracombe and did a lovely circular walk via Lee - stopping at The Grampus for a welcome pint. Thank you so much.
Nov 2010 - Frankel - Beautiful house, stunning setting - everything perfect. I dare anyone to come here & not go home with plans to entirely re-decorate their own home! We're all v jealous of your interiors taste!
Oct 2010 - Landino - Warm, friendly and very homely. We have had a wonderful family gathering come holiday, come birthday celebrations (60th). Wonderful house, wonderful town, a very beautiful part of the country. We all loved it, thank you.
Sept 2010 - Worlock - A lovely house for a family reunion & 80th birthday celebrations. We all had a great many laughs - weather stayed fair & some of the family even managed a morning surfing! Dogs loved the coastal walks & beach. Thank you for the delicious scones, cream & jam - very yummy.
August 2010 - Turner - Just got back from Illfracombe, and had to say we loved the house, the history and your history, great space for us all to use as a base, we did a lot of walking and the weather was kind to us....
Our favourite bits:
* The Harbour
* Tunnels Beach
* The Aga - we stayed in and cooked most evenings, not what we planned...
* Lunch on the Terrace in front of the vine room
* The coastal walks from the back garden – although only some of us walked back from the Grampus Inn
* The Body boards and bucket & spades to keep the little ones happy on Woolacombe beach and the “big ones”
* The Scones , Jam & Cream lasted us all week.
* The quality towels & bedding – does make a big difference.
* Even loved the drive, once we got used to it.
* Loved the CD collection – and the take home CD as a quarry souvenir ( making breakfast to cool tunes...)
Will always remember this week and hope to come back some time. Thank you.
August 2010 - Heywood - We had a really good holiday at the Quarry. The weather was mixed but we made the best of it and enjoyed it all. The house is tremendous and we all felt very comfortable and at home in it. The bedrooms were very nice and the bathrooms and availability of hot water excellent given the large numbers. We also thought it was very well equipped and the luxury of an Aga was great. I could have read almost the whole week, such were the number of books that I wanted to pick up and read.
A week was not long enough to do all the things we would have liked to do but we have all come home very happy with our break and pleased that we chose to come to the Quarry and that area of North Devon.
The fish from the harbour fish shop was excellent and some of the party went for a fish lunch at Morthoe which they said was wonderful. Thank you very much for letting us stay there and providing such a good house for holidaying in.
June 2010 - Palmer - WOW! What a wonderful house. Nice & roomy. Kids loved it, fishing & chilling to music. We loved all the original ideas, scones & flowers. Our wedding at The Tunnels was a dream, we were even honoured to have a spectacular sunset when we let off our chinese lanterns on the beach.
June 2010 - Winkworth - We have all fallen for The Quarry & are mentally redecorating our own homes.... Fantastic base for a big get together - none of us want to leave!
May 2010 - Langton - A wonderful weekend with the family in this amazing house. Ann (our cook) organised a delicious meal for us.
May 2010 - Wakefield - Had all the family staying together while we got married- fantastic time had by all! The house exceeded all our expectations, perfect place for very young kids and the older ones could hide away easily! Really impressed by all the details - made all the difference - we felt so welcome here. Tried out loads of the recommended 'Things to do' - beautiful walks, visiting Lee village is a must & our daughters loved the Dinosaur Park. Even the Grandparents enjoyed it! Will definitely try & come stay at the house again. Lots of love x Keep up the good work!
April 2010 - Illey - The promise from the weather man was sun, sun sun, but even rain on the last day couldn't dampen our fun. A wonderful property & location for us all to meet up. Only a short stay so plenty more for us to do, hopefully we'll be back. Thanks from all.
April 2010 - Batten party - My daughter Millie & I came from California. The house, weather, beaches, walks & food could not have been better. A truly wonderful weekend & a perfect house for our family reunion. Thank you so much.
April 2010 - Batten party - I came from Canada for our family reunion, having spotted your house whilst surfing the net. It has been a perfect venue & I will take many good memories of the very English house & a great reunion back with me. My family there will be very jealous! The kids loved the claw foot bath after swimming in the sea! The bedding was great & the kitchen well stocked. Thank you!
April 2010 - Batten party - Very memorable weekend together. Lovely to enjoy your house to share time time together. Great to be so near coast path & the harbour. Blessed wtih beautiful weather. Thank you.
Easter 2010 - Duffy. Easter! Almost killed the poor Tesco man who had to deliver our large shop up the hill!! Had a lovely holiday in your beautiful home - well located & brilliantly equipped for all our needs. Enough space that we could barely hear all our teenagers on the top floor - bliss! Many thanks for allowing us to share in your 'dream home by the sea'.
March 2010 - Wooding etc - Had a wonderful weekend, the house is amazing. 11 adults & 5 children - it has been just right for us. We loved the walk to The Grampus, Woody Bay is also lovely. We'll come again, thank you.
New Year 09/10 - We had a wonderful time - especially the kids who used the hall as a racing track with all their mini trucks, pushchairs & trolleys. The toys were a bit hit. The house is beautiful and we enjoyed all the quirky details. Looking forward to coming back in the summer sometime.
August 09 - Longhurst. We all had a spectacular stay. The house itself and the history behind it is one thing, the others are the comfortable rooms, homely sitting room and the amazing kitchen. We are all hoping to come again, thank you.
August 09 - Young family. Had a lovely time. Kids on the beach surfing every day, did the walk to The Grampus - good fun! Cafe Espresso worth a visit. Barnstaple was a good trip on a rainy day. Croyde & Woolacombe beaches - fantastic. Thank you for the scones & the body boards etc.
August 09 - Williams family. We had a great time - thanks! Five children, two sets of grandparents & Mum & Dad all had a really lovely old-fashioned holiday. Swimming, crabbing in the rock pools - we LOVED the Tunnels pools - walking & eating huge communal meals in your lovely house. We got through quite a few bottles of wine too. It was the perfect holiday house.
July 09 - The Doohans. Wow! We all loved it - the house swallowed us up so easily and we never felt on top of each other despite being 8 adults & 8 kids! Thanks for all the little details with the decor - we appreciated it all. Much love, the Liverpool crew.
July 09 - Bobin family. A wonderful 10 days in such a beautiful home. We had a memorable family holiday - 4 generations from 3 months to 81 years! The house was perfect for all of us - we loved Woolacombe beach. We shall be back, thanks for the stay.
April 09 - Longstaff. A wonderful weekend away with the girls. The house exceeded all expectations & is just beautiful! We'll definitely be back again soon. Thanks to Mitch for being patient with us!
16/04/09 - Jeffrey. I write for each & everyone of our gang!! Your house offers everything that we could hope for. It has a home away from home feeling. We had lots of hot water, lots of in & outdoor space. The kitchen did it for us all, well equipped & we made very good use of it. The walks were great (so they told me). Thank you so much & we would love to visit again.
27/03/09 - Geddes. A beautiful, stylish house in a lovely, old fashioned seaside town. House was perfect - comfortable beds, lots of hot water & a great garden for adventure. Did all the recommended things plus cycling on the Tarka Trail from Bideford & the Lynton/Lynmouth train thing. But still have so much more to try & no time..... Would love to return.
3/01/09 - Hardwick. Thank you - this is a lovely house. Very comfortable for a large group - there were 11 of us and we managed very well for our week. We particularly enjoyed the countryside & the wonderful beaches. We hope we can come again sometime.
26/12/08 - Hurlow. We had a wonderful Christmas family gathering. We all thought the house & facilities marvelous, and the surrounding countryside great. Some of us even went surfing on Boxing Day!
28/11/08 - Falcone. Thank you! We have had an amazing time, I cannot remember when we walked so much. Your house is beautiful!
31 Oct 08 - Charlie & Derek. Thank you so much! We've had the most fantastic time. Fabulous house & fantastic to discover the coast here. Great walk to Lee. Loved it all!
1 Oct 08 - Smyth. The most amazing house! Such space & style. We will recommend to all our friends - truly stunning. Can't wait to return.
19 Aug 08 - Bizley/Rees & Alcarns. What a perfect way to celebrate my birthday. Your house is amazing & set the scene for a wonderful weekend with friends. Everything thought of in a very stylish way. We'll come again! Thank you.
8 Aug 08 - Sowerby Family. We've had a fantastic week in your fabulous home. Spent every day on Woolacombe Beach bar one, and that day we did the walk to Lee with lunch at The Grampus. Highly recommended - and we did it in the pouring rain!
