If you are staying with us on the farm this Autumn, here are 5 things we suggest for the perfect autumn day.

There’s something rather special about autumn here at Kittisford Barton Farm. The days might be getting shorter and there’s a definite chill in the air, but that’s no reason to hibernate indoors. In fact, autumn gives you a whole new reason to get outside, explore the farm and make the most of those cosy evenings in The Cottage Beyond, The Nest or Yonder View.

From woodland adventures and muddy walks to swimming under the lights and stargazing from a hot tub, here are five of our favourite things to do on an autumn day.

1. Head to the woods for the fairy door trail

Pull on your coats and head into the woods for a little bit of magic where, hidden amongst the trees, are our 12 fairy doors, each one waiting to be discovered. The trail is the perfect autumn adventure for little legs, with fallen leaves to crunch through, trees to explore and plenty of opportunities to stop and see what you can find.

It’s a simple walk, but one that seems to spark endless imagination and autumn is arguably the best time to explore the woods, when the colours are changing and there’s a distinctly magical feel to the whole place.

Don’t forget to keep your eyes peeled for wildlife along the way too. You never quite know who you might meet on the farm!

2. Enjoy a swim with the lights on

One of our personal favourites is swimming at The Cottage Beyond on an autumnal evening with the underwater pool lights on. The large windows in the spa hall face towards the setting sun and, if you turn the other lights off, it is really rather wonderful. Let the children burn off some pre bedtime energy with a splash around while you enjoy the slightly surreal experience of swimming as darkness falls.

Or turn the sauna on and enjoy the full spa hall experience with your closest friends or family.

3. Enjoy the dark skies in the wood fired hot tubs

As the nights get longer, autumn is the perfect time to experience one of our favourite things about being here: the stars! We are right on the edge of the Exmoor Dark Skies Reserve, Europe's first, and we benefit from minimal light pollution.

At Yonder View or The Nest, settle into the wood-fired hot tub as the sun goes down and look up and enjoy the spectacular clear autumn nights with stars stretching across the sky. There’s something wonderfully relaxing about sitting in the warmth of the hot tub while the air around you is crisp and cool - all the ingredients for the perfect autumn evening. And if you’re lucky, you might even catch a shooting star.

4. Use our wellies to go for a welly walk through Watery Lane

Autumn in Somerset inevitably means muds. So wellies are an essential item. But luckily, we have the wellies covered (for the adults at least!) Borrow a pair of our wellies and head out for a proper autumn walk across the farm and down to Watery Lane. Crunch through the leaves, splash through puddles and embrace the mud - this is exactly the sort of walk where you don’t need to worry about keeping your shoes clean.Watery Lane is beautiful in every season, but autumn brings its own character. The stream, woodland, fields and hedgerows all take on those gorgeous autumn colours, and there’s plenty to spot along the way.

And the best bit? You can come back peel off those muddy wellies and get cosy again.

5. Head to our local pub for a Dexter steak from our own organic herd

After a day of exploring,swimming or lazing in the hot tub, you will have worked up an appetite so why not leave the cooking to someone else. Our local pub, The Martlet Inn at Langford Budville, is the perfect place to settle in for a hearty autumn meal and if Dexter steak is on the menu, you’re in for a real treat. Our farm is home to an organic herd of Dexter cattle, which we supply to The Martlet Inn, and there’s something rather special about being able to enjoy beef that has been reared less than 3 miles away.It doesn’t get much more local than that.

Autumn might bring shorter days, but it certainly doesn’t mean there’s less to do. In many ways, it’s one of the loveliest times to visit with crisp mornings, a still lots of sunshine over the colourful countryside and those wonderfully dark evenings made for hot tubs, stargazing and cosy nights in.

So pack your jumpers and wellies (or borrow ours!), bring your sense of adventure and come and discover autumn at Kittisford Barton Farm.