Gairloch is seventy miles from Inverness on the North West Coast of Scotland.
The village is typical of highland villages being strung out mostly white houses. The fishing heritage is clearly evident too.
There is evidence of population at least as far as back as the Iron Age. The Vikings used Gairloch as a safe haven too although, pretty much all that remains of the Vikings is place names and the folklore.
Falling under the overall village/settlement of Gariloch there are distinct areas or several small settlements on the north, and east shores of Loch Gairloch and each has a name.
Charlestown is in a relatively sheltered position on the loch and is probably where the Vikings landed and settled. In ancient times getting around the highlands of Scotland was much easier by sea than by crossing the land. It is relatively recent that small harbours like Charleston were vital to the local economy.
In more recent history the fishing fleet at Charleston was very important, and Gairloch was renowned for the excellent quality of the cod. A high percentage of the catch was dried at Badachro another settlement at Gairloch and then shipped from the harbour to Spain. These days the harbour is still used to support fishing, but the catch is mostly crabs, lobsters and prawns, but the majority of the catch still gets transported to Spain. Another income stream from the harbour is that the small cruise ship the Hebridean Princess is a regular visitor.
I am told that visitors by car often miss out on the other settlements including the harbour, by following their Satnav and not straying from the A832 they miss out on a lot or the beauty of the area, including the harbour and the history of the location. Visiting the harbour is easy by car as there is a large car park there and it’s an excellent place to stop and take in the views of the loch.
The main commercial area is at Strath and Smithtown where there are B&B’s, shops, a campsite and a hotel. There are also shops in Pier Road at the harbour, and at Achtercain, there are post offices and local convenience stores at both of these locations as well. Achtercairn is where you will find a leisure centre, police station, library, schools and a small supermarket and garden centre. There is a Bank of Scotland branch at Charlestown.
There is an area of beach known as big sand for swimming and walking, its a safe, sheltered beach with car parking, as well as pony trekking and whale watching.
What makes Gairloch so special is that it is said to offer a little bit of everything that visitors to the highlands are seeking. I don’t know about that, but it looks lovely in this video that I found: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t-5hJqw2FHE
Photo: Bill Kasman on Pixabay