Kinloch is much more than a
traditional Bed and Breakfast. 90% of my guests take dinner
with me and the food is very highly rated.
More like a traditional Lodge or Guest house, Kinloch is
the ideal place to stay on your visit to South Uist, providing
a very high level of accommodation at every level.
Kinloch stands on the shores of Loch Druidibeg, a National
Nature Reserve (NNR) run by Scottish Natural Heritage (SNH)
on the island of South Uist in the Outer Hebrides (sometimes
referred to as the Western Isles).
Please also note that whilst many of my guests are fisherman,
over 60% of my guests are general visitors, and all are most
welcome.
Note that I normally require bookings of 2 nights or more.
Kinloch is really not suitable as a one night stop halfway
between A and B.
The house is set in an acre of mature wooded gardens, rare
in the usually treeless South Uist, and has its own Loch frontage,
offering fantastic views across the reserve to the hills on
the East coast.
Both golden and sea eagles fly in sight of the garden, otters
work the nearby lochs and brown trout rise at the bottom of
the garden.
This is a wonderful place to come to fish, bird watch, play
golf, horse ride, walk, paint or just relax in a compelling
natural environment. There is a much wider range of activities
on the island than is appreciated. See Other activities
section for a fuller list.
2011 was a very successful year with the usual mix of fishermen
and more general visitors.
I already have many bookings for 2012, including a high percentage
of repeat business, and therefore strongly recommend early
booking.
I was very pleased that apart from the general home comforts,
the quality of the food received even better comments than
usual.
See www.tripadvisor.com
which has an increasing number of reviews from my guests.
Fly Fishing
South Uist truly offers some of the finest wild Brown Trout
and Sea Trout fishing in Europe.
There is not a stocked rainbow on the island. Whether fishng
from a boat on one of the Estate machair lochs for specimen
Browns or Sea Trout; or walking the hills, fishing the literally
100s of lochs run by the local Angling Club, for smaller wild
trout this will be a unique fishing experience.
Many of my guests come to stay with me and fish, and I have
considerable fly fishing experience both on Uist and around
the world and can help advise of the best package for each
individual.
For full details about the fishing see the relevant section
in this site: The fishing. This section also includes a full
6 year summary of catch returns.
Follow the attached link to a recent review of 8 days at
Kinloch; fishing in South Uist - it gives a good impression
of what it can be like www.fish-wild.co.uk
By no means do all my guests come for the fishing, and general
visitors are more than welcome. Many come to enjoy, or take
part in one of the following.
Bird Watching / Wildlife
The bird watching on the island is spectacular; most particularly
for raptors and a very wide range of wading birds, plus a
range of occasional rarities.
Kinloch is perfectly placed between the machair and the high
ground on the East to take advantage of the full diversity
of birds and wildlife. See “Other activities”
for more detail.
I highly recommend Steve Duffield as a guide to show you the
best of the birds and wildlife – www.western-isles-wildlife.co.uk
– he will take you out and show you the birds and wildlife
and on cold days bring you back to the warmth of Kinloch,
comfy sofas and home made scones.
In summer the days are very long and from June onwards the
machair is at its best.
In the Summer the machair is home to many corncrakes –
they can be heard calling on most days – actually seeing
them is more difficult.
The flora and fauna of the machair can truly be described
as “unique” – this is a very rare environment.
The island has a large head of pure Red Deer and an abundance
of otters. There are no foxes or badgers on the island.
Shooting / Stalking
Guests staying at Grogarry Lodge have first call on the keeper's
time, and the shooting, so opportunities for my guests are
very limited.
There is some excellent stalking available from August 12th
and that can be organised for my guests by arrangement with
the head keeper. This encompasses both culled stags and trophy
heads.
Golf
The links at Askernish, some 15 minutes drive from Kinloch,
was originally laid out by "Old" Tom Morris in 1891
and is now fully restored.
Some regard this as the finest 18 holes links course in the
world.
Visitors are welcome and golf clubs are available for hire.
See www.askernishgolfclub.com
for an update of progress.
Walking / Climbing
There is a very wide range of walking and climbing opportunities.
The whole of the East coast side of the island is largely
uninhabited and one can spend as many, or as few, hours as
one chooses walking in wild places; with only deer and eagles
for company.
Horseriding
There are 2 stables on the islands offering horse riding,
and a range of rides on and off road, including the beach.
The west coast has 20 miles of silver sand beaches stretching
from the Ardivachar headland to the southern tip of South
Uist, broken only by one or two rocky headlands – OK
maybe the weather is rarely suitable for sunbathing –
but you may be surprised how few people you meet. You will
however see the large flocks of waders, a wide range of ducks
and gulls, lots of seals and even the occasional otter that
all feed on or off the beach.
Check out www.ridehebrides.org
which describes some of what is possible and is the web site
for the Uist Community Riding School - the main stables on
South Uist and Benbecula.
Cultural activities
There are a range of opportunities to get involved with Gaelic
culture and a rather fine local museum at Kildonan. There
are also a very wide range of archaelogical sites on the island
including Neolithic dwellings, Viking round houses, chambered
cairns, "brochs" and "duns".
Should the weather be absolutely appalling, or you just need
to get out of the wind, the sitting room is available throughout
the day for guests wanting to just relax and read a book in
the warm.
I offer a Bed & Breakfast only service, Full Board, or
a mix of the two.
Flexibility to suit you is the key.
I can accommodate a maximum of 5 guests,
which allows for a “house party” atmosphere, and
a very personal service.
It also allows me to arrange meal times to suit the best fishing
or bird watching times, rather than the other way around.
I am confident that you will have a memorable stay here, regardless
of the weather or the number of fish you catch!
I look forward to hearing from you.
wegg@kinlochuist.com
|
