Shooting at Mornacott has got off to a cracking start this season with our first few days having been enjoyed by all.

Several of the guns have been trying their hand at our new high bird gun which sits aside the stone bench that has always proved a popular venue for elevenses during early season partridge days.

We haven’t been able to use this rather large 30mm gun as, sadly, it’s deactivated but with a designed rate of fire of approaching 500 rounds per minute and our average shot to kill ratio 5:1, we might end up having very short shoot days.

 Our annual pre-season beaters’ barbecue last weekend was, as ever, very popular with a full complement of beaters and pickers up joining us to see in the new season. A healthy mix of the old faithfuls together with several new faces served to make the event a very cheerful one despite the frequent downpours.

Given the increased numbers in the team this year we had an even bigger pig to spit-roast. The spit started turning at midnight with Andrew, Charles and Toby all taking turns to stoke the fires throughout the night!

We were delighted to see Dave’s efforts in the gardens paying off at the weekend when Mornacott was judged first in 11 out of the 34 categories in the Molland and District annual show.

We were particularly pleased to win best onions, tomatoes, carrots, and rhubarb all of which will soon be harvested to be enjoyed by our guests over the coming months.

Our Blackberry Gin, chutney and eggs also achieved acclaim combing to win the “craft” section of the show.

Several teams of guns on the shoot have expressed concern with the continued reports of the likelihood of a recurrence of bird flu and the thought has never been far from our minds as well. Whilst our bio-security measures follow all the latest DEFRA guidance the concern is that local chicken flocks, even small domestic ones, may catch bird flu which could result in shooting being cancelled by order of DEFRA in nearby shoots.

That’s why we were delighted when, Yorkshire based, Shoot Protect started to offer insurance cover for teams of guns at very reasonable rates. Shoot Protect can be contacted through.

Our first sale of bullocks at the Sedgemoor Auction Centre this month, saw some tremendous results for our Mornacott herd.  Two of our stores made a very respectable £1205 and in the stirks category, described as a smart consignment from Mornacott, we made second price.  With cattle being drawn from all over the South of England and Wales, the fruits of our team’s breeding and nutrition programme is certainly starting to reap encouraging rewards.

In an age of continuous new breakthroughs in technology, here at Mornacott we've jumped into the 3D virtual world. With the very professional assistance of ACT Studios, all our holiday cottages can now be viewed in a 3D Virtual Tour. We hope you like them!

Orchard Cottage https://my.matterport.com/show/?m=xu5pd2yGdXz&qs=1

The Old Stables https://my.matterport.com/show/?m=9MK1QSmVrEQ&qs=1

Barn Cottage https://my.matterport.com/show/?m=US1BkHnUJcS&qs=1