Is this the perfect retreat for the country sports enthusiast?
The Edwinsford estate offers salmon and trout fishing and some of the finest shooting in South Wales.


The spectacular Edwinsford estate in Carmarthenshire has come to the market via Strutt & Parker at a guide price of £2.2 million– and it's certain to appeal to sportsmen and women who are handy with a rod as well as a side-by-side.
Current owner James Philipps calls it ‘the perfect retreat, somewhere unspoilt that time seems to have forgotten’. A keen fisher-man and country-sports enthusiast, who purchased Edwinsford six years ago in search of the simpler life.
It sounds as if he'll miss it: ‘The 2017 fishing season has been the best since I owned [it]… Historically, the estate produces 40 salmon and 60 sea trout a year’.
‘I have rarely come across an estate with such scenic surroundings and genuinely impressive fishing credentials,’ enthuses selling agent Matthew Sudlow.
‘The top quality sea trout (Sewin) and salmon fishing is famous here, and the Cothi – the principal tributary of the Towy – is one of the best sea-trout rivers in the British Isles.’
Mr Philipps’s great-grandfather owned the Dalham Hall Stud, which was passed down to his father, who sold it to Sheikh Mohammed in the 1980s. Edwinsford, too, has its legends.
‘Many years ago, the owner, Sir James Williams-Drummond (last of the Williams-Drummonds to own the estate) left the entire estate to his valet, a Mr Coombes of whom he had grown rather fond,’ explains Mr Philipps. ‘The valet had no children so when he died some eight years later he in turn left it to his housekeeper – unusual for the era.’
Exquisite houses, the beauty of Nature, and how to get the most from your life, straight to your inbox.
Today, it’s one of South Wales’s finest sporting estates, extending to about 540 acres with rights in perpetuity over a further 300 acres.
Several ponds have been created, for duck drives and flighting, and there is woodland, as well as five miles of double-bank fishing, with about 70 pools and catches.
At the estate’s heart is Slatehill Farmhouse, a lovely four-bedroom barn conversion with a south-facing terrace. At 913ft, Lethr-Llwyd, the mountain above the farmhouse, is a spectacular vantage point from which to view the glorious Cothi Valley, which, during spring and summer, comes alive with rhododendrons and bluebells.
There’s also a three-bedroom Keeper’s Cottage (currently occupied by the gamekeeper) and Bothy, plus numerous barns and outbuildings. Pretty Cwm Cottage, by the river, is suitable for restoration.
A stunning estate with a castle, farmhouse and thousands of acres of sporting rights just off the M4
A huge estate with extraordinary sporting and fishing rights has come to the market, offering a huge amount of land
A beautiful country house and estate in the heart of the Surrey Hills comes to the market
The present owners have spent £6m to make Pickhurst, at Chiddingfold the ultimate sophisticated sporting estate.
The investment appeal of a sporting estate
Anna Tyzack looks at the market for sporting estates, only a few of which come to market every year
Annunciata is director of contemporary art gallery TIN MAN ART and an award-winning journalist specialising in art, culture and property. Previously, she was Country Life’s News & Property Editor. Before that, she worked at The Sunday Times Travel Magazine, researched for a historical biographer and co-founded a literary, art and music festival in Oxfordshire. Lancashire-born, she lives in Hampshire with a husband, two daughters and a mischievous pug.
-
This blissful converted mill has sweeping views, a breathtaking library and gardens by a Chelsea gold medallist
Penny Churchill takes a look at Stanbridge Mill, one of the finest properties for sale today in the west country.
By Penny Churchill Published
-
The smooth collie: A working breed with beauty and brains
Once the go-to Scottish herding dog, the smooth collie is as elegant as it is dependable — a working breed with beauty and brains.
By Victoria Marston Published
-
This blissful converted mill has sweeping views, a breathtaking library and gardens by a Chelsea gold medallist
Penny Churchill takes a look at Stanbridge Mill, one of the finest properties for sale today in the west country.
By Penny Churchill Published
-
Portmore has it all: A 3,459-acre Scottish estate for sale, with a signature Baronial sandstone mansion at its heart
For sale for the first time in 40 years, Portmore Estate is everything you could ever want in Scotland.
By Penny Churchill Published
-
Location, community and charm: the enduring desirability of London's mews houses
From birds, to horses, to beautiful family homes, the mews of London are some of the nation's most sought-after homes. But why?
By James Fisher Published
-
The distinctive and historic home that might just be 'one of Dorset’s most picturesque'
Grade II*-listed Manor House, set in just under eight acres, dates from the 16th century.
By Penny Churchill Published
-
A 17th century farmhouse in Surrey with one of Britain's oldest squash courts
Fords Farm is on the market for the first time in over half a century.
By Penny Churchill Last updated
-
The 15 best-value commuter towns for people working in London, according to new research from one of Britain's top estate agents
Savills have released their list of the best-value commuter towns in Britain. But do the sums add up? Toby Keel takes a look.
By Toby Keel Published
-
What everyone is talking about this week: Where are the new Cotswolds?
The appearance of American Vice President J. D. Vance in the Cotswolds is a sure sign that they're saturated, but where else can you escape to that has the same charm?
By Will Hosie Published
-
19 outstanding country homes, from £450,000 to £20 million, as seen in Country Life
A spectacular country house in Yorkshire and an enormously impressive Channel Islands retreat are among the stand-out homes on the market this week.
By Toby Keel Published