Wookey Farm

The world famous Wookey Hole Caves, a Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI), has been used by humans for over 45,000 years. But it’s only in the last couple of decades that the limestone caverns have also prompted an array of other attractions. Wookey Hole’s website now points you to the 4D cinema experience, pirate adventure golf, Valley of the Dinosaurs and a scale model village, among many others. The latter replica doesn’t show a goat farm anywhere on the model. But, back in the real world, it’s little over two miles from the caves that you’ll find one – a sweet little smallholding on the edge of Wookey Village. And the farm boasts a cracking pint-sized campsite too.

Established by friendly proprietors Ian and Sarah Davies, the two-and-a-half-acre site is split across pair of adjasent meadows; the first with a recycing bin, firepit and picnic table at each of the shrub-lined pitches, while in the second you can just pop your tent where you please in the open grassy space bordered by the River Axe (bring your own firepit if you wish to have a campfire).

Sarah and Ian take pride in offering a basic and sustainable camping experience. Loos are are clean and well kept but of the composting kind and there are no showers on the site at all. You’ll have to take a dip in the river if you’re truly desperate for a wash – idling its way lazily past the site it's great for paddling and dam building, while tire swings hang from a couple of large oak trees on the bank.

Yet while Sarah and Ian have worked hard to craft the perfect family campsite, there’s no denying that their first love at Wookey Farm is still the animals. Their herd of near-100 goats – curious British Toggenbergs with white stripes down their faces and a tendency to nibble toggles off your overcoat – is milked twice a day (watch in the milking parlour at 8:30am or 5pm). There’s also a pair of Gloucester Old Spot pigs, a clutch of egg-laying hens and a bashful donkey named Mr Pickles who, once befriended, is exceedingly fond of a rub behind the ears.

In summer, Sarah supplements the farm’s usual cheeses with homemade halloumi – a superb treat when toasted over the campfire – as well as goats’ milk ice-cream, which is only available to campers and tastes all the sweeter as a result. Their other cheeses are also sold at markets around Somerset, including in nearby Wells on most Wednesdays. It’s well worth popping to the tiny city anyway to marvel at the grand gothic-style cathedral before venturing into the Mendip Hills for a walk. It’s also a 15-minute drive to Glastonbury and just over half an hour to the Somerset coast. That’s all if you get past the endless list of attractions at Wookey Hole, of course. Adventure golf anyone?