Beautiful converted barn near Sarlat, heated pool

La Grange at Le Clos du Comte is a beautifully converted stone barn, originally dating from 1848, and located in Mas de Cause, a hamlet about 2 km above the village of Daglan. It is within 25 km of the medieval town of Sarlat and all the major sights of the Dordogne, including the Vallée des Cinq Chateaux. At the end of a busy day, you can return to relax on the estate, which comprises 18 hectares (approximately 45 acres) of unspoiled, utterly tranquil forest and pasture. The space La Grange comprises a large living room, a big fully-fitted kitchen with dining area, 4 bedrooms, 3 en suite bathrooms, a separate shower room and a separate toilet. There is one bedroom with a king size bed and one bedroom with a standard bed plus the possibility of an additional single bed; each of these has an en suite bathroom (shower, basin and toilet). The third bedroom has two single beds and an en suite bathroom; the fourth bedroom has two single beds and use of a separate fourth shower and toilet. At the front, the barn looks out over a fragrant courtyard, filled with roses, lavender and jasmine. At the back there is a lovely terrace with a big sunblind when needed, with a view over a field and coppice towards a walnut grove. The gorgeous pool (shared with our two other gites) is 12m x 5m and has a built-in seat at one end where you can laze in the water on those hot summer days. It's surrounded by plenty of chairs and loungers and beautiful landscaping, heated to 26C in summer and cleaned daily for your enjoyment. In winter, you can have the pleasure of a warm floor with underfloor heating. The home still has much of the character of the original barn. The door to the living area is in the huge archway built to take a horse and cart. There are two very attractive double stone lintels in the kitchen and one in a bedroom; these were, apparently, a rather ostentatious sign of the farm’s wealth at the time when the barn was built. The aim of the conversion was to keep these features while providing all the modern conveniences that you expect. Guest comfort is one of our priorities, from the deep leather sofas in the living room down to the fluffy Egyptian cotton towels. The estate of Le Clos du Comte is truly idyllic. It sits on 18 hectares (approximately 45 acres) of unspoiled, utterly tranquil forest and pasture. Almost the only sounds you’ll hear are birdsong, or the chirping of the crickets on a summer’s day. Almost the only light you’ll see at night will come from the moon or the stars. It’s a nature lover and stargazer’s paradise. The property teems with wildlife year-round. In September and October, during and after rutting season, the red deer stags converge behind our house to battle it out and, when the fighting is over, to graze. Roe deer can be seen any time – and frequently make a nuisance of themselves in the garden! The wild boar are most visible on winter evenings, when they’ll emerge from the forest to eat any walnuts left over in the groves. Spring and summer are the time for birds. Every year, a pair of kestrels return to nest in a niche next to our bedroom window, and the courtyard has been selected as home by black redstarts, swifts, blue tits and sparrows. In summer, the hawks soar on the thermals, and we see or hear blackbirds, robins, cuckoos, hoopoes, owls, woodpeckers, finches, nuthatches, wrens …… I could go on. In spring and autumn, we’re right under the migration route of the cranes. And there are butterflies everywhere.