Wild Oak Woods

A aimé peaceful, off grid. friendly host. compost toilets and facilities worked well.

N'a pas aimé track up to the huts was quite bumpy. whilst you are with nature and in a middle of a wood there is sort of a sense of feeling a little trapped as no walks into the woods directly from the huts - you have to walk back down the track to 'get out'. also, from the huts you have the view of the two other huts, so not as remote and immersed in nature as you might hope, looking at someone else's car. whilst staying there i did not find the people in the two other huts terribly friendly and to be honest one man made me feel a little uneasy. whilst this is not the fault of the host and i accept will not apply to everyone, it was my experience. my children are not the most rowdy but there are not the quietest either. i did not feel as though i/we could relax and was constantly telling them to be quiet as no one else could hardly be seen or heard - presumably they sat in their huts in quiet... it seemed a little odd. I also found it strange that the kitchen provide plates, cooker, utensils, washing up liquid and sponge - but no tea towels.

i feel bad by writing the above, but there are some points that i think would be worth sharing to make others aware. this is meant by no means as a criticism of the host and the facilities as they are excellent.

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A aimé Remote and quiet, yet only 15 mins walk to the beach, 10 mins drive to nearby town. Lots of wildlife like deer, birds etc and quiet, no noise from traffic, other visitors.

The hut was basic and clean, exactly as shown and just what we wanted.

Communal facilities were excellent. Toilets and showers clean. Kitchen well equipped, you wouldnt need to bring anything about from own food and drink. Has jobs, kettle, oven, cutlery and crockery there.

Friendly and helpful owners and staff, Elspeth and Fiona were more than helpful in giving us tips on what to see and do in area.

Is well located to explore wider Dumfries/Galloway region.

N'a pas aimé Nothing. Only gave a 5/10 for WiFi as there isn't any (thankfully) but decent 4G if you need it. Is sort of place you'd come to for digital detox rather than being stuck on your phone anyhow.

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A aimé Very much enjoyed spending time away from screens and being surrounded with nature. The little cabin felt cosy and surprisingly really warm (the weather probably helped). The kitchen was very useful. Elspeth (sorry if I am misspelling) was really welcoming and helpful the entire time.

N'a pas aimé As much as I understand it we disliked the toilet situation and the lack of running water at the cabin to wash hands etc..

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Réponse du gestionnaire : Thanks for your review, it's always nice to be called welcoming.
I'm a little bit lost with a couple of things our bigger huts have attached private compost toilets and these have portaloo type sinks with hand washing water, perhaps I didn't make this clear enough during the check in walk through. Our facilities block is usually praised for it's cleanliness however, with all shared facilities, apart from directly after cleaning, they are only as clean as the last person to use them has left them.
I'm glad you enjoyed the wildlife, we are a very quirky little site and we totally get we are not everyone's cup of tea but glad this did not detract too much from your stay.

A aimé Total peace and quiet, beautiful woodland setting.
Surprisingly few midges which was a bonus!
Great communication from host prior to trip, thank you Elspeth.
Basically, wild camping but with the bonus of a compost toilet, shower and kitchen area if needed.
Within walking distance of pretty little loch (Barend) and huge open beach at Sandyhills.
If you want WiFi, power showers and entertainment then this isn’t the site for you. However, if you want to spend a few days in a magical little spot, immersed in nature with nothing but birdsong around you, then definitely book your pitch!
As advertised, the campervan pitch is slightly sloping but absolutely fine with chocks to level it out.

N'a pas aimé Disliked nothing, though couple of things to be aware of:
Part of the track in is quite steep and gravelly so whilst driving slowly, you will need momentum to get up the slope! (Elspeth kindly pre-warned us about this)
Also, the Daisy hut is fairly close to the campervan pitch, but if you park sideways with the sliding door on the far side you see nothing but bracken and trees- which is perfect!
Understandably, no fires on site.

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A aimé The Cabin was tucked in a sheltered Valley surrounded by mature trees with loads of wild life on your doorstep. A short distance from the beach and a 10 minute car journey to neighbouring towns. (The Anchor pub in nearby Kippford is a must for lunch or dinner) Loads of trails to walk nearby. The Cabins are cosy with the log burner on. We had a great time with our 2 year old grandson.

N'a pas aimé JJ's chip shop in nearby Southerness.

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A aimé Facilities were excellent. Kitchen was well equipped and very clean. Toilet was also very clean. Site was very quiet and in a lovely location.

N'a pas aimé The campervan pitch is very uneven and not level. There was also a bad smell of a dead animal near the toilet, though we appreciate the owner of the site had tried to identify and remove this it was still lingering while we were there.

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Réponse du gestionnaire : We are what we are and we are not what we are not.
We aren't a normal touring caravan site and this booking came about due to an error on the Pitch up site which I had not spotted. We usually have a two night minimum stay but decided to honour your booking as the mix up was a technical glitch and not at all your error.
What we are is a tiny little site in a haven for wildlife and unfortunately wildlife sometimes means wild dead and this unfortunate creature had inconveniently died in the vacinity of the facilities block leaving a vague smell for a short period of time which we can only apologise for. We offer a unique opportunity for people to encounter wildlife up close and personal but totally get this is not the sort of encounter most people would relish.
With regard to the campervan spot not being level, its not. We are a tiny site in a hidden valley with granite hills surrounding and all our land is sloping due to closely underlying bedrock, We never intended to cater for campervans but in Covid we added this one space as people had no where to go and people loved it so much we have retained it because not everyone can afford to stay with us in one of our camping huts and we strongly believe in providing affordable opportunities for people to experience our stunning site in the beautiful Stewartry National Scenic area.
Since your review I have tried to alter the name on the Pitch up listing to slightly sloping campervan spot, lets hope I can achieve that to save any future upset. I can only apologise for not making it clear to you at the time of booking that the spot is slightly sloping, I've got so used to campervans carrying chocks to level up and with the initial confusion around this booking I've clearly neglected to mention that you do need chocks in that space to level up.
Please excuse the long winded reply and thankyou for your feedback and dropping our overall rating to 9.9 as I always feel that straight 10 ratings seem a bit false, you have made our site ratings look more real and reminded me to emphasis the need for chocks. To sum up this has been my error in accepting this booking because we are not a normal touring caravan site we are a tiny little haven in a hidden valley surrounded by hills, trees and wild life where you can be at one with nature and people that are looking for such an experience love it here and I always say people looking for a normal site might not be happy here and for which I can only apologise.

A aimé Everything x

N'a pas aimé Nothing

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A aimé Welcoming, friendly and really helpful…no WiFi or internet but that what I was wanting lovely deer park next door and beach

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A aimé Super quiet- could only hear natural sounds, well organised, very clean, plush toilet, very helpful owner.

N'a pas aimé I couldn't get phone reception on site, but I could if I walked down the road for 5 minutes.

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A aimé Lovely eco-friendly accommodation. Everything needed for a relaxing break. Location fantastic. Quiet and less than 10 min walk from a long and beautiful beach. Would definitely recommend and return without question.Welcome and helpful host Elizabeth.We would definitely go back

N'a pas aimé nothing

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