Check in, then check out for a unique glamping experience

Three huge canvas tents, pitched in the Alloa countryside, overlooking a beautiful nature reserve with lochan views and the chance to switch off completely, and that means no phones, no electricity, but all the essentials and luxury that us modern softies need in order to survive at all.

Sarah Peck and husband, Robin along with their four little girls, have been working on this diversification from their Gartmorn Farm, formerly a chicken and turkey farm, for the past few years, and opened their first tent in June last year.

Sarah’s artistic stamp is all over these huge tents, she's a natural interior designer, inside is a dream. Forget your camping basics, here you have a leather settee, a dining table, a range cooker and stove, two bedrooms with full sized beds along with cosy quilts and fur blankets and the wonderful cabin double bed, that everyone fights over to sleep in. All the tents sleep six comfortably.

Snuggle down at night in your crisp white sheets, under a thick duvet with a hot water bottle at your feet. Then enjoy breakfast outside in the fresh air, surrounded by the sounds of nature. Toast marshmallows on the fire pit while the kids run free in this safe and freeing location.

It all started a few years back when the couple came back to the farm after Sarah’s parents were thinking of retiring. They knew they had to come up with something to keep the farm sustainable. Sarah had floated this idea years before and was met with a resounding no!

“We knew we had to take a chance, so we took a holiday at a safari tent site called ‘A little bit of rough’ in Rutland. We did spend quite a lot of time talking to the owners who couldn’t have been kinder and more supportive. They gave us lots of excellent advice and we kept in touch afterwards, messaging them to ask many more questions.

“But the most important thing was, that the kids had an absolute ball. We already live in a lovely countryside area, the kids are outside all day, they have lots of freedom here, but there was something about being in the safari tent and feeling so at home that made the trip so memorable.

“We went in March, so it was freezing! I’m not a natural camper,” says Sarah, “and I don’t like being cold, so Robin was sent through in the morning to light the stove and get the kettle boiled before I would even step out from under the covers.”

For their own project, they did look into funding the diversification with grants, but after going down that route of trying to apply, found the process laborious and felt they should just try to do it themselves.

When the decision was made that this was the plan, they went for it. They bought all three tents at the one time, which meant that Robin, who works offshore, had his work cut out when he was home. Laying foundations, flooring, building the tents and getting the site ready.

There’s no electricity, but there is a solar charging station for mobile phones, as Sarah says, everyone needs their phone. There are lighting options around the tent for night time. Fairy lights, solar lights etc. There’s a wood burning stove and gas rings to get the kettle going and to do any cooking you want done in a hurry. There is hot water on tap, particularly helpful when you want to soak in the roll top bath (I know, it’s crazy), but it works so beautifully when you see inside, and a solar powered light in the toilet. The interiors have a wow factor that has to be applauded.

Sarah says she has had the best time buying things for the tent. “I don’t have any grand plan, I keep buying things that I love, then at some point when I sit down and open all the boxes, it just seems to work. I wish I could buy all these lovely things for my house, but I’m not allowed,” she laughs.

“I’m very pernickety, and I like things to be right, so I’ve been buying all these lovely things as I refuse to put anything in the tents that looks a bit naff. We are selling an experience here and have been delighted with the feed-back from our guests.”

There are two or three little Harry Potter references around the tents that guests pick up on, and kids love that the cabin bed has a blackboard on one side that they can chalk on, and the adults leave lovely messages for Sarah and Robin thanking them for such a lovely trip.

As the tents are located on a nature reserve, there are tracks and paths all around the farm. You can bring bikes or walk the paths for miles in this scenic part of Scotland. Sarah often watches the deer that live in the area wander around the tents and hopes that the guests get the chance to see them too.

Muircot Farm Shop is around a half hour walk away through country lanes. Sarah says she suggests to her guests they take the time to make the walk and enjoy Muircot’s amazing breakfast options. She has very kindly been to Muircot and furnished us with a huge selection of cakes to see us through our trip to the tent.

“We initially thought it would be all families we attracted, but we have had lots of couples and groups of friends come and enjoy the peace here. We often get people from the city who just want peace to switch off and they can do that here.”

Sarah explains that she loves any excuse for a party. Greeting new people to the farm every week is her idea of heaven, and she tries to make everyone as welcome as possible. She leaves freshly baked bread, milk, butter and sometimes cake if an occasion is being celebrated. She is chatty and fun but also laid back, and makes for a tremendous host, I predict a lot of repeat customers.

“I want our guests to come here and relax. Sit on the deck with a glass of wine and not worry about the kids. Let them run free and wild. Enjoy the quiet, and notice nature’s theme tune that surrounds us here.”

Enjoy a week, or short break at Dam View. You can now book a two day weekend break.