The Cottage "Sous La Garenne" is a quiet and unspolied place 13km far from Honfleur and 175km from Paris.
It is located in the heart of a natural, wild and protected landscape, in a field of 2 hectares overlooking the Seine Estuary.. The half-timbered building from the end of the seventeenth century, is located on the edge of a small hamlet between the listed castle "de la Garenne" and a breeding of thoroughbreds.
The comfortable and modern house has been completely renovated in an ecological way (solar hot water system, rain water harvesting, straw clay walls, whitewashed). The tiles, oak floors, a brick fireplace,... are noble materials allied to modern technology.
In the village center, you will find a small supermarket, a tobacco bar and a post office
Our place, in the middle of the Natural Park of the Loops of the Norman Seine, tries to be as respectful as possible in term of ecology while bringing the necessary well-being. That's why you will not find, for example, a microwave oven. The rainwater feeds the dishwasher, the washing machine and the two toilets. The hot water is heated to the maximum by the sun. We have a Polyflam system that allows to have a real stove that heats the whole house while being able to make a classic fire, which is nice in the winter.
We also have electric heaters with dry inertia. We count on each one to put them to a minimum and especially not to make them work by leaving the windows open, for example, or leaving them at the top when you leave for the day. All these small steps help us to reduce our electricity consumption which the supplier is Enercoop (exclusively green electricity) of which we are members.
The cottage was built in its entirety with ecological materials; we try to use only environmentally friendly products for the cleaning and maintenance of it.
Outside, we leave the tall grass to the maximum so that all insects and other animals can live! In permaculture, it is thought that there are no weeds (thistles, nettles, etc.) and that we must leave as many places as possible with a minimum of human intervention to encourage the return or protection endangered species. The size of our field allows us this while having a corner lawn, relaxation, etc ... For example, thistles, in addition to bringing us goldfinches, produce purple flowers that are delicious in herbal teas and an excellent remedy thousand years against the evils of liver. The soup of young nettle sprouts with mint leaves is a delight! Not to mention the donuts of acacia or elderberry flowers, the red berries of saskatoon or the flowers of borage that sublimate any dish! So enjoy it !
Depending on the period, you will have as neighbors frogs, owls, bats, storks and other rabbits, badgers, etc ...
We wish you an excellent stay.