Williamston Cowshed

A former milking parlour and winter refuge for the cattle of the 1,000-acre Williamston hill farm, Williamston Cowshed boasts a tranquil setting within the estate at the foot of Williamston Moor. Dating to 1836, the stone building has been sensitively converted into a three-bedroom holiday cottage by the 11^th generation of the Gill family to run the estate, Neville and Viv Gill. Set around a cobbled courtyard alongside the adjoining Williamston Barn, the property is available to book independently or together for larger groups.

Williamston Cowshed not only pays homage to its heritage with its name and the provision of organic Cowshed bathroom products but also in its many original features, such as the original exposed beams in the vaulted open-plan kitchen and dining room. This welcoming space is flooded with light thanks to the skylights that run the entire length of the room and beyond, continuing along the hallway and linking it with the two-storey section of the property that houses its three ensuite bedrooms.

With its bucolic location, Williamston Cowshed offers visitors the opportunity to experience the rustic charms of a working hill farm as well as explore the wild beauty of the surrounding Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty (AONB). The rugged environment is reflected within the Cowshed with framed botanical prints, two-foot-thick walls hewn from local stone and dotted with alcoves that house old lamps and books, and a wallpaper-sized print of the immediate area’s ordnance survey map in the sitting room.

Thanks in part to the extensive conservation measures introduced by the Gills across their estate, such as planting over 2,000 trees and creating habitats for local wildlife, installing a wind turbine to generate electricity for the farm and using biomass wood boilers to heat the Williamston Barns, the area teems with wildlife such as red squirrels, curlews, lapwings and oystercatchers as well as red and black grouse and roe deer. You’re likely to stumble across these, and plenty of other local residents, while following the walking farm trails available within the estate and beyond.

In addition to offering guided wildlife tours on request, the Gills can set up picnic lunches at a shepherd’s hut that sits just below the brow of Williamston Moor, affording outstanding views of the North Pennines, and can also help book stargazing trips to local Dark Sky Discovery Sites or tastings at the local micro-brewery.

ADDITIONAL ACCOMMODATION

For guests looking to holiday together, Williamston Barn & Cowshed can be booked as one unit sleeping 14 guests.