Lochinver.

Lochinver is a very special place. It's a long way from anywhere, literally at the end of the road. The stereotype would be that it's a quiet, sleepy little place - and as ever the stereotype would be largely wrong.

Not entirely wrong. Lochinver and its surroundings can indeed offer all the peace and quiet you could possibly eat. Culag Woods, on the southern shore of Loch Inver is a case in point. There are forty hectares of mixed woodland here, with beautifully constructed paths, an extremely impressive viewpoint, carved stones and all manner of interesting things. On a sunny day you can stroll through the dappled shade and soak in the peace and quiet. The Culag Community Woodland Trust which manages the wood and holds them under a fifty year lease from the Assynt Estate and the Highland Council, has provided all manner of interesting and entertaining things to attract your attention. There are forty hectares of mixed woodland here, with beautifully constructed paths, an extremely impressive viewpoint, carved stones and all manner of interesting things - including the largest Heronery in Britain.  

On a rainy day, you can do the same thing, it's no less interesting, just wetter...

Culag woods is a good example of the spirit of the people of the area though - it's a long way from being the only community run resource hereabouts, about which more later.

Lochinver's main reason for existing has traditionally been fishing, although unlike most fishing communities the town doesn't cluster around the harbour, rather it sits next to it.

 The harbour divides into two parts, which I think of as "the big bit" and "the marina". I suspect they have proper names, but I've never known them. Pictured here is "the marina", where the smaller boats tie up, as seen from the end of the harbour wall. It seems to me that this section of the harbour has become increasingly busy over the last few years as tourism has become a much more important plank in the harbour's economy.


The trees on the right are Culag wood, and the strange dome shaped thing in the middle of the horizon is my favourite hill, Suilven. As you can see, from Lochinver this massive hunk of Torrodonian sandstone looks pretty much unclimbable, which is perhaps one of the things I love about it.

In fact, probably the most difficult thing about climbing Suilven is actually getting to it. The ascent is actually rather straightforward, although pretty steep, but whichever route you choose it's at least an eight mile walk from the nearest road.

To my eternal regret I've only climbed it once (so far at least) and I don't have any pictures from the top, so you'll have to take my word for it that the view across the Inverpolly estate is spectacular, although actually perhaps the most entertaining thing at the top of Suilven is the summit itself because it's so incongruous.

For a start, from Lochinver - which was the first view of the hill I ever had - you can't tell that the mountain is in fact a ridge about two thousand meters long. The main summit, known as "Caistel Liath" (Gaelic for "Grey Castle") is at the end you can see from Lochinver, and from here you'd  imagine it to be a dome shaped mound. In fact when you're up there the impression you get is of a large cricket pitch with a trig point in the middle - you get very little impression of slope. The middle section, which I've always thought of as "the saddle", although I have no idea why, is known as "Meall Meadhonach, gaelic for "middle round hill" and the minor peak at the south eastern end of the ridge is known as "Meall Baeg", or "little round hill". I can't imagine why, since neither of them are round, but it makes a change from another variation on "Ben Mor", so I'll let them off.

The most whimsical thing about Suilven however is the fact that, after you've climbed the impossibly steep but surprisingly easygoing slope up to Meall Meadhonach from the southwest - which is the easiest ascent in my view -you turn left and are immediately greeted by a dry stone wall. With a gate in it. Not even kidding. Well, there's no actual gate, just the space where a garden gate sized gate would fit. More astonishing, the wall doesn't seem to constructed from the reddish torrodonian sandstone that the hill is made of which means that somebody physically lugged what looks like a couple of tonnes of stone up the slope.

To build a wall which separates a bit of empty hill from another bit of empty hill. Honestly, it's worth the climb just for the chance to marvel at the human capacity to achieve amazing, if amazingly pointless, results...

However, I'm not supposed to be telling you about Suilven, I'm supposed to be telling you about Lochinver harbour. So, take a look at the panorama above. It was taken from the end of the main jetty,to the right of the image is the area I referred to earlier as "The Marina" where the pleasure boats and smaller fishing vessels tie up. To the left is the deep water area where the big fishing boats tie up. That two tone beige and brown building is the fish dock/market.

You'll notice that the bit on the right is reasonably full. The bit on the left is not. Back in the nineties when we first started to visit this brilliant town there would be a couple of boats a day tied up here. Now? Not so much, although while we didn't see any boats here this trip either, we did see a lot of massive refrigerated lorries waiting by the fish dock, which is an encouraging sign.

Besides, there's more to the town than fish.

Between the harbour and the town proper stands the Lochinver Mission. This used to be the Fisherman's Mission, owned and operated by the Royal National Mission to Deep Sea Fisherman, and existed to serve the spiritual and pastoral needs of the fishermen who passed through here. As the volume of fishing traffic declined, the number of men requiring the services it offered also declined until there was no point in maintaining a mission to serve them, so it was closed.

So, the people of Lochinver took it over. They spruced it up, and re-opened it. Now it houses a very bright, clean and airy bunkhouse which can sleep up to fifteen people and a fabulous looking cafe offering locally produced food at very reasonable prices. We haven't had chance to eat there yet, but I've not seen a bad review of the place. They're also intending to open a marine life center to showcase the vast array of fishy type things that live in the waters around Assynt.

And if all that weren't enough, the field in front of the mission building plays host to the annual Assynt Highland Games every August. We missed them this year, but we've been to a couple of games and I can honestly say that if you get a chance, you really should go and take a look - or even join in! They won't let you enter the "heavy" events (like the shot, hammer and caber toss) unless they're confident you can do it without killing yourself, but the other events are open to all.

As I said, we didn't make it for the games this year, but I can't resist adding this image of a man throwing a massive iron weight over a bar. We were riveted by this event and I'm still astonished that none of the competitors got hit in the head! This was taken at the 2010 games, and I think the gentleman pictured here was the eventual winner, but extend my apologies if I'm wrong...

If you make your way from the Mission into the centre of the village there is yet more to delight you. Several art/craft shops can be found here selling the work of local artists, and there are many excellent places to grab a bite to eat. We didn't actually eat at any of them this time around, so you'll have to wait at least until our next visit for a full review of anywhere in the village, but since we're passing I feel I should mention a few of our favourites.

For a decent lunch or evening meal you can't fault the excellent Lochinver Larder which offers a range of Cafe and Bistro delights, but particularly excels at pies. From Chicken Curry to Strawberry and Rhubarb,  their handmade pies simply defy description - and if you think the drive to the far north west might be too far, don't worry, because they'll post them to you! Honestly, I'm not in the business of trying to sell you things, but I love these pies.

If you're a serious foodie and are looking for something just that little but special, I can tell you that two of the best meals we have ever eaten were here in Lochinver.

Sitting high above the town the Inver Lodge Hotel offers dinner to non-residents, and the dining room has an absolutely stunning view of the sea loch. Even more impressive - and where we ate what I think probably was the best meal we have ever had -  is The Albanach.

Now. Technically, The Albanach isn't in Lochinver, it's on the other side of the sea loch in the little settlement of Baddidarach, which is where people in Lochinver move to if they find the strain of metropolitan life a little but much. You're a ten minute walk or a three minute car drive from Lochinver centre, so this is a mere technical detail.

We've eaten at the Albanach twice. On each occasion we were asked when we booked whether there was anything we didn't eat. The chef went out of his way to ensure that we weren't served any of the things we specified. Beyond that, there was no menu. We were served whatever it was that was best that day. The very freshest, in season produce from the region. The food was sublime. The service was beyond reproach. The wine list blew my mind (and I know a little about wine - I used to work in the industry). 

Honestly, the meals we have eaten at the Albanach were the most expensive we have ever eaten, but they were also the best value. I cannot recommend the place highly enough - and of course if you happen to be travelling sans caravan you can even stay there. Even better, since our last meal there the Albanach has been awarded a Michelin star - which is not something you'd expect to find in a village that only has one street.

Food, views, and a people who have a firm sense of what's good for their town and then ensure it is preserved - and there are even a couple of things I'm holding back for a future posting! There is a lot to love in this little fishing community at the end of the road...