Description
The Brochs of Coigach are as much works of art as the most luxurious holiday houses you can think of. They were designed by an award-winning architect. The larger of the two, Gille Buidhe's Broch, includes within its 1540 square feet (143 square metres) a huge open plan drawing room and dining area, a large kitchen, three further rooms, a large bathroom with sauna and shower, and another toilet.
Large panoramic windows bring about a feeling of being right in the middle of nature, though the inside provides the utmost luxury with underfloor heating. Each window frames a stunning view of the coastline. There is a breakfeast patio opening up to the morning sun and a patio to the southwest to capture the evening sun. The building grows, as it were, out of a hillside and is encased in natural dry stone walls. Its outlines follow the irregular contours created by the surrounding landscape. The interior incorporates highly innovative environmental features. It is equipped with free WiFi broadband Internet connection and a high quality Bose sound systems.
The view goes right across islands, the sea and into the mountains, uninterrupted by any other human habitation. The location warrants absolute privacy. There is an elegant Morso wood burning stove to watch the flames of a fire in the evenings. There are also unusual antique displays in glass cabinets. Original works by some of the best contemporary Scottish artists hang on the walls
Gille Buidhe's Broch is available on a daily basis, just like a hotel. The house is situated at the end of a private farm track within four acres of its own ground. If you wish, you can order an occasional dinner brought to your accomodation.
Polbain by Achiltibuie is one of a number of small hamlets on a peninsula that abuts from the mountainous Northwest cost of the Highlands into the Minch, a broad waterway between the Scottish mainland and the Outer Hebrides. The revered Scottish poet Norman MacCaig called this landscape 'masterless and intractable in any terms that are human.' It is one of the most unspoiled and outstandingly beautiful areas of Europe. One might observe a sea eagle hunting for fish. Porpoises and minke come this way. Occasionally, pods of bottle nose dolphins pass by, jumping in and out of the water as if for pure joy. Seals are always around. Despite its remote location, there is a Michelin star restaurant in the vicinity as well as a highly rated smoke house that produces some of the best smoked salmon in Scotland. There are opportunities for hill walking, climbing, sea kajaking, sailing and motor cuises.
