North Yorkshire’s cosy new cabin stay with a lakeside sauna and pub - The Times
I’ve been lucky enough to stay in some quite fancy hotels over the years: the kinds of places where they might bring a special little plinth for your handbag when you sit for dinner so that it doesn’t have to suffer being slung over your chair or — gasp — left on the floor. But I now know what true luxury is. It’s birdwatching from bed.
It’s the first morning of my stay in a glass-fronted cabin in ancient woods looking onto Yorkshire moors and I’m still in pyjamas watching a quietly dramatic air show from three kites as they swoop and glide over Ilkley. I’ve got my first coffee in hand and all the components I need to make the perfect doorstopper bacon sandwich once I put down the binoculars, pop on socks and wellies and get to my fire pit outside. The wood-burner at the foot of the bed is already lit. My dog stretches out before it. Honestly, what could be finer — or cosier?
Denton Reserve is a 2,500-acre estate in North Yorkshire that’s home to a grade I listed Georgian hall (which you can hire to stay in, along with a farmhouse cottage sleeping six and six coach-house lodges for two or four), and has carefully embraced rewilding. It recently opened three cabins in the woodlands of the estate, far apart enough from one another so that you can experience the most splendid isolation.
It’s worth pointing out that you’re encouraged to walk from Denton Hall to your cabin on arrival, presumably to get into the spirit of off-grid life. I foolishly didn’t register how long the walk would take (30 minutes) and my daughter and I brought a silly wheelie suitcase I had to drag across a stony, soggy path in the rain. A backpack is strongly advisable and it does nudge you into bringing as little with you as possible. Don’t do as I did — embrace your inner nomad and travel as light as you possibly can.
It’s hard to think of our small forest home for the weekend, called Peat Moss, as just a cabin. It feels like a hotel suite in the middle of nowhere with no staff fussing over us yet every requirement met. High thread counts, wool blankets, sheepskin rugs, a tiny but perfectly equipped kitchenette, a little shower room (organic toiletries) that looks more World of Interiors than anything to do with outdoor living and plenty of logs for the fires (inside and out). The stylish shack is impeccably designed by Koto, the climate-conscious architectural studio known for creating top-notch huts for luxury wellness retreats and private landowners. The vibe is cosy but industrial with a palette of concrete, chocolate, charcoal and oak. It’s the kind of chic sustainability that the eco-elite might commission in Ibiza — but here we are, a short taxi ride northeast from Ilkley train station.
Obviously, there’s no television. This is a place to unplug completely, enjoy stillness without discomfort. Your screen for the weekend is the spectacular view through the floor-to-ceiling windows. There’s an overhead skylight too with a remote-controlled blind; the childish thrill of unveiling the view to the skies from bed was something I couldn’t quite get enough of. That said, you could leave the blind open and fall asleep under the stars, serenaded by a bedtime owl chorus — tawny, little and barn are frequent flyers in the area.
For me, the big food shop that goes with a self-sufficient country break is the most tedious part. But here you can skip all that and yet still feel you’re not cheating with the Denton Delivery Service, which offers prepared meals, breakfast hampers and simple picnics quietly delivered to your hut or even left in your microfridge prior to your arrival. As well as the bacon and eggs, we had a delicious butterbean and roasted squash stew with seasonal mushrooms that we warmed on the fire pit — which definitely counts as campfire cooking (low braised chicken and venison stew were also on the menu). Apart from removing a lot of hassle, it meant that no food was wasted, which often happens on camping trips. There were even some marshmallows for toasting on the fire. Very Bear Grylls.
As you can imagine, leaving the hut is hard — in fact, I think I could fill a day reading, amateur indoor twitching and tending to stoves. The space is perfectly designed for you to unplug and relax. But it did feel like a crime not to go for a hike.
Walking maps are left in the room, as are dry robes for use after wild swimming — they really have thought of everything — so we took a hike to the Upper Lake on the estate. It’s well-marked through woodland, peatland, farmland and streams and should take about 45 minutes. But we ambled instead of rambled. Why not? We’d booked ahead for the lakeside sauna, so it was super-hot by the time we got there and towels and water awaited us. We had the lake and the sauna to ourselves — a highlight of the trip. Sauna-ed, cold-dipped and replenished with the sandwiches the Denton staff had left with us in the morning, we continued the relaxed trek to supper at the Penny Bun, a fabulous gastropub with five bedrooms also owned by the estate in the pretty village of Askwith.
Booking this is advisable — always a good sign. The fare is, broadly speaking, hearty but modern British, made with hyper-local and seasonal produce. Think slow-braised pork, lamb belly, venison or wild trout and veg from Denton’s kitchen garden. We tried the sticky toffee pudding. Did I say tried? More like devoured. There’s a well-curated wine list and adventurous cocktails that can change with the seasons (mains from £26, B&B doubles from £180; pennybunilkley.co.uk). It’s possible that the latter was the reason we were in no mood for an expedition back to Peat Moss and took a local taxi to a spot on a B road closest to our hut. Thank goodness Denton staff had given us the What Three Words locator for our off-grid lodgings, or we’d never have found it in the dark.
When we did arrive back the electricity was off, which also meant no running water — though we were well supplied with bottled drinking water so didn’t have to go full survivalist. An emergency number meant we could be assured that someone would come and fix the problem first thing. It was part of the adventure for us and it brought us closer to nature. Joking apart, this really is the type of seclusion I can really get on board with — you’re off-grid but toasty and feeling thoroughly looked after from afar.
We all have those moments when we want to just stop the world, be alone on the wiley, windy moors by day and sleep in the woods by night, away from all the clicks, bleeps and notifications of modern life — possibly even away from people. I crave this sort of mini-escape every few months and usually opt for a country pub stay and a walk. But this is a greater escape with greater seclusion; a nature fix without the hassle of tents and hot-water bottles — though hot-water bottles are provided just in case. Of course they are.Lesley Thomas was a guest of Denton Reserve, which has two nights’ self-catering for two from £600. The cabins close for the season at the end of October and reopen in March 2027, but the rest of the accommodation is open year-round (dentonreserve.co.uk)
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