[CrookedJock]

  Hi! I don't exactly know why it has taken us so long to get round to becoming a member, we have surfed the site many times over the past few years, but following the fantastic festival in Forfar on Sunday, we have finally gotten around to it.
My wife and I are based in the lovely conservation village of West Linton, Peebleshire, Scottish Borders and have owned 36acres on the edge of the village for just over two years now. So far we have been working hard to improve the ground as it was left fallow for many years (and some nice person left tons of old wrapped haylage bales to rot and spread fragment of black polythene everywhere!). We have been clearing out drainage ditches, working on flood management (very glad we did this after such a wet year!), repairing and resurfacing tracks, fencing (about 1km by hand), ploughing, harrowing and resowing mixed grasses. We now have 12acres of great grazing with another 12acres of improved grazing. The remaining 12acres is of peat bog, mixed woodland and river margin.
To date we have established a flock of Registered Hebridean Sheep, Clydesdale & Cob horses, some chickens and are looking to get some Belted Galloway Cows soon. It has been a steep learning curve and we are only just at the start!
We loved the Festival in Forfar at the weekend and are very much looking forward to next years. I would love to bring some of my Hebrideans along then and get more involved.
Thanks to everyone involved in setting the festival up.

[Ina]

Sounds a great set up - welcome to TAS (from somebody who is only a would-be smallholder... still dreaming!). I agree - Forfar was fantastic.

[Currently pondering]

My husband and I went to the Forfar show yesterday as we are in the infacny of looking into buying our own smallholding.  I would agree that the show was fantastic and the demonstrations expecially were really useful and more than one person told us about the accidentalsmallholder website and so here we are.    Although I am slightly terrified by the idea, I basically grew up on farms in Fife but have been a city dweller and an accountant for a number of years now but the fact remains that I'm never happier than when I go back to visit family in Fife and get out of the city limits.

Any advice would be appreciated in how to make the transition. 

[HappyHippy]

Hello and welcome to TAS 

Glad you enjoyed the festival 
Can't wait til next year, eh Rosemary 

[Lesley Silvester]

Hi Crooked Jock and welcome to TAS from  Shropshire (in between the clouds).  Sounds like you know what hard work is about.  Look forward to hearing more about your venture as time goes on.

[Big Light]

Welcome to TAS from Kinross-shire from a fellow Heb keeper

[Rosemary]

Hello and welcome from a very tired Accidental Event Organiser  Hope we meet up soon.

[SallyintNorth]

Welcome to CrookedJock  from north Cumbria.

Although I am slightly terrified by the idea, I basically grew up on farms in Fife but have been a city dweller and an accountant for a number of years now but the fact remains that I'm never happier than when I go back to visit family in Fife and get out of the city limits.

Any advice would be appreciated in how to make the transition. 

Well, it isn't for everyone, Cp, but before taking the final plunge, I WWOOFed to get some more and varied experience, to help me know what I really wanted to be doing and to get started on gaining some skills and experience that were lacking.

Ten years ago I was running 'cross-functional business projects' for a well-known telecomms giant, and now I'm a Cumbrian farmer  

And in answer to your next question, "Not a bit." 

[Tiva Diva]

Hi Jock, we're quite near you, at Thornielee between Peebles and Gala. Like you, we've had to put a lot of energy (and money) into neglected land. Perhaps we could meet up sometime!

[darkbrowneggs]

Hi there - and welcome    from wet wet wet Worcestershire 

[lachlanandmarcus]

Hi there to both newbies! (well newbies on here anyway!) from Royal Deeside near Aboyne.
Im not sure how one makes transitions other than in a big leap....or at least several medium leaps.
I ran away from Big Corporate Life - decided after OH lost his mum that life was too short to wish I had done it and not got round to it.
Im (much!) poorer now in some ways and have no holidays but really, in heaven.

[lachlanandmarcus]

BTW Crooked Jock I think we NEED photos of the Clydies pronto......

[Mammyshaz]

Hello and welcome from durham 

[jaykay]

Hi from Cumbria