The harbour pilot lived here because the house sees everything: the mouth of the harbour, the stack beyond it, the weather coming in off the Atlantic before anyone else gets a look. When a ship needed bringing in, he went down the lane. That was the job for a hundred years or so.
We bought the house in 2019, spent two winters putting it right, and opened with three rooms because that's how many good ones the house had in it. We didn't squeeze in a fourth. You'll notice the difference at breakfast, where there is always a window seat, and on the stairs, where you won't queue.
It's a granite house, so it's cool in summer, and the stove in the sitting room earns its keep the rest of the year. Books everywhere, maps of the path, and honesty bottles on the dresser. If the weather turns, you could do a lot worse than a slow day in here.
