Wigtwizzle - Norman Smith's Travel Blog.: Highlands Holiday

We had arrived at our holiday home the previous night after a grueling 320 mile car journey. I hated the A9 as it just seemed to go on forever and seeing Inverness as we headed down the long incline was the most welcoming sight I'd seen in a long time. Half an hour later a big cheer went up as we drove through Achnasheen as we then knew we were nearly on home territory. Kinlochewe and then Loch Maree were soon passed and our spirits rose even further when we saw the sign post to our ultimate goal, namely Badachro. After quickly unpacking, we walked to the nearby Badachro Inn, had a pint, came home for some food and finally collapsed on the settee and chilled.

The next morning we awoke to find fine weather but, as we'd had such a tiring day driving up, we decided to stay local and just explore Gairloch and neighboring Strath. Before setting out on the road, I went to suss out a wreck we had seen as we arrived. This proved to be far from an easy task as I was too large to get through the kissing gate to the shoreline. Not being a person who gives up easily, I waded through a couple of wet fields and then clambered over a rickety stile to get there.

My return, after taking a couple photos, wasn't straightforward either. Wading back through the fields wasn't an option I was prepared to take so I took to a path marked "for private use" which skirted a large house and garden and this thankfully took me back to the road. Fortunately there was either no one in the house or alternatively, they didn't fancy confronting a large bedraggled stranger!

After that, the day was rather uneventful. We had a coffee and cake in The Mountain Coffee Company Cafe, explored the adjoining Hillbillies Bookshop and then took to the beach to do a bit of beach combing. You could tell that both the cafe and bookshop were run by free spirits as the atmosphere in both was so friendly and laid back. It was like taking a journey back to the late sixties and early seventies hippy era. All that was missing was the smell of weed which thankfully had been replaced with the smell of ground coffee.

A lot of the photos in this blog were taken from Strath Beach, where we spent quite a while just wandering about and snapping anything which took our fancy. The views across Loch Gairloch were quite spectacular, from the majestic Torridon Hills standing above the skyline in the southeast to a distant Rasaay and The Isle of Skye over to the west. On a clear day I should imagine you could see as far as The Outer Hebrides. I had often stood on the shoreline cliffs of Skye and looked across the Sound of Rasaay to this part of the mainland but this was the fist time I had done it the opposite way and the view was just as beautiful.

We then started to head back towards Badachro, stopping at Charlestown to have a walk around the harbour. As chance would have it, The Old Inn was conveniently situated next to the harbour so it was an opportunity not to be missed. The weather was very mild so we were able to sit outside but visitors to Scotland will know that mild weather and a damp atmosphere means only one thing...MIDGES! I thought they would all have died at that time of year but how wrong I was as a few of the nasty blighters had a right feast on my arms and head. The feeling of well-being and the beer far outweighed the hassle of the midges though.

Once back in Badachro, I went out with my camera as the light was so good and got some lovely shots of the harbour and jetty. It was a nice and unexpected end to the day.