Visiting The Scottish Highlands

Way back in May, Rob and I went on a big family holiday to Spain. We stayed in a beautiful villa called Casa Verde, tucked away in a tiny Spanish village. It was peaceful, relaxing and highly enjoyable, and we had a great time. I was so enamoured with Casa Verde that I wrote a post about it.

A few weeks later, I got an email from Val – the owner of Casa Verde. My mum had booked Casa Verde after we stayed in another of Val’s properties in Norfolk, and I wrote about that, too – sensing a theme here? I absolutely love Val’s interior style and talent for creating beautiful holiday homes around the world, so when she asked if I’d like to stay at her country cottage in the Scottish Highlands I couldn’t said ‘omg-yes-please’ fast enough.

We arranged to visit the weekend after our anniversary and asked our pals, Matt and Lil along too. If you’ve been reading for a while you might remember that Matt and Lil got married on exactly the same day as we did last year – a complete coincidence and a shame at the time as we couldn’t celebrate together, but pretty fun now as we can do joint anniversary stuff!

Val’s cottage is called Kathleen’s Croft and it’s nestled right up in the Scottish Highlands. We decided to drive up from Leeds – an easy 8-hour trek! We left with a car-full at 9.30am, stopped in Glasgow for lunch at Ox and Finch (thanks to Kate’s recommendation – it was delicious) and after picking up our shopping at Tesco in Inverness, we finally arrived at the cottage in pitch black around 9.30pm.

Despite the complete blackness, howling wind and total absence of other people, Kathleen’s Croft was warm and toasty and there was a bottle of red waiting for us. I didn’t expect anything less from Val – after staying at two of her other properties I know how great she is at welcomes.

After a late dinner of tasty steaks and much, much wine, we headed to bed and woke up to some serious views. I mean, look at this place! Kathleen’s Croft overlooks Loch Torridon and the Torridon hills and on Saturday morning we walked along the Loch into the main part of Torridon, stopped for a coffee at the General Store then headed down to the beach.

I absolutely love trips like this. Blustery walks, loads of food, roaring fires and good company equals a perfect weekend in my book. After our beach japes we headed back to the cottage and ate all the cheese.

On Saturday night, Matt cooked the most amazing meal – duck, potatoes, pickled radishes… all the good stuff. We ate, we played board games, I read The Little Friend feverishly and it was just so great.

Sunday was spent exploring the other side of the Loch and the Torridon Hotel. Look at those piggles! Stomping about by the Loch was a good way to work up an appetite for dinner later on – we returned to the Torridon Hotel’s restaurant for their 5-course tasting menu and it was AMAZING. Such a nice way to round off a perfect weekend.

We had THE BEST time in the Highlands. I can’t recommend Kathleen’s Croft enough, and the surroundings are just stunning. The long journey is totally worth it (particularly after your first glass of wine) and the feeling of content will carry you through the drive home. Go! Go now!

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