The house itself was built to house mining engineers at the turn of the 20th Century for the newly reopening Phoenix United Mine. It’s constructed of local granite and built straight onto the ground (no foundations, just earth and rock beneath us). The apartment is a later addition, built in 1989 so is of a modern construction.
We keep rare breed chickens and honey bees (as well as two border collies) and grow as much of our food as we can manage within the constraints of the number of hours in the day and other calls on our time! Please note that the bees are not kept in close proximity to the apartment – they are housed in an adjacent field.
It’s our intention to live a life that’s as low-impact as possible, hence we’ve planted over a hundred trees to provide us with carbon-neutral fuel and are currently investigating other methods of reducing our carbon footprint.
David is an illustrator, selling his illustrations through an online agency and Linda is retraining to become a dietician at Plymouth University.
Photo copyright © 2008 Anthea Castles