Aodann

16/07/2025

How wonderful is this! And look at those blue skies.
Over on a local wildlife page someone has seen dolphins to the north of Firemore Beach!

20/06/2025

There's gold in them there hills!

Oh my - is there set to be a Gairloch Gold Rush? The Gairloch & District Times has the inside track........

Issue 12 is out now. Don't miss it!

13/06/2025

Have you visited Fairy Lochs? It is a very poignant place. This is a good summary from Gairloch Museum of what happened.

The airman were so young and must have been so excited to be heading home.

It was on this day, 80 years ago, the A B-24 Liberator aircraft crashed at the Fairy Lochs, with the loss of life of nine members of crew and six passengers.

What exactly went wrong will never be known for certain. Returning home from Prestwick after the war, it is thought the aircraft, nicknamed Sleepy Time Gal, suffered an engine fire which the pilot tried to extinguish by the standard procedure of diving the aircraft at speed. Examination of the wreckage indicated that one set of propellers was “feathered”, a technique used to prevent non-working propellers from creating drag.

As the plane broke through the cloud, and mountains came into view, close by, the pilot took a wide, sweeping turn. Pulling up sharply put the body of the plane under enormous stress. The bomb bay doors burst open (a known weakness of the B24-H) and detached, taking the right-hand fin and rudder with them before coming down a few kilometres away from the main crash site. The plane evidently broke up quickly in the air, spreading debris far and wide over the hillsides where scattered bits of metal, still to be found, are twisted into outlandish shapes. All crew and passengers were lost.

Roy Macintyre, former Chair of Gairloch Museum recalls, "we were boys playing football on the street outside my father’s shop in Strath, when Kenny Maciver (Padre) said there was an aeroplane with its wings flapping like a bird. I didn’t see it as I was facing the other direction but seconds later there was a bright orange flash above Shieldaig. Later that evening the home guard helped to retrieve bodies from the site and they were put in the garden cottage beside the road. We boys were not allowed to get too close to the rescue efforts."

Many of us may have taken the walk up to the crash site, where the wreckage is visible both in and around the loch. A plaque has been placed on the rock by the loch and this war grave, in such a beautiful place, has such a solemn and poignant atmosphere it serves us all to pause and reflect on the lives that were so sadly lost.

28/05/2025

Another yummy option for pizza fans!

We’re Nearly There… Opening Night is Just Around the Corner! 🍕🎉
We’re so excited to finally be opening Coast Pizza Co this Thursday! We’re almost fully booked for opening night, so if you want to grab one of the last spots, get in touch soon!

If you miss out, no stress – there’s still plenty of room on Friday and Saturday.

Huge thanks to everyone who’s already booked and shown us so much support. We seriously can’t wait to welcome you in!

– The Coast Pizza Co Team x

26/05/2025

Following on from our amazing two weeks at Aodann in May, here are some more highlights - this time its all about gin and seafood!

Our good friend joined us for her birthday and we know she likes a gin and tonic and a seafood supper - and we knew just the places for a special birthday afternoon and evening out....

So, we booked a tour at Badachro Distillery where Gordon and Vanessa have been making lovely smooth gin using local botanticals for some years now.

We'd visited back in the early days but at that time they weren't doing formal talks and tours, so this was something new for us.

The visit started with Gordon inviting us into their home for a rather fine gin and tonic and to talk about how they ended up making gin in the Highlands. Then we went out to the distillery; its quite small and we marvelled at how much they managed to make!

And finally of course there was tasting. They also make vodka and sell whisky but we stuck to gin for fear of a headache!

From Badachro we hit the road over to Lower Diabaig for dinner at the "restuarant at the end of the road" AKA Gille Brighde

As the crow (or eagle) flies, it isn't far away but unfortunately there isn't a road between Red Point and the village (there is a walk which I would LOVE to do one day) so the long way around via Torridon is the way to go - and what a stunning drive!

As we dropped down into the village an eagle flew right over us!

This is such a special spot. We all had wonderful fresh seafood and the restuarant was buzzing - a lovely mix of local people (some had arrived by boat) and visitors. Despite being super busy (you MUST book!) the service was spot on.

I've also put links to websites for both lovely places in the comments.

25/05/2025

Have you popped into the Poolewe Tuesday Market ? If you like the lovely Sugar Croft Faerie that we have at Aodann this is a good place to pick some up to take home along with lots of other great local products - who would have thought there was so much being made here abouts!

24/05/2025

We've just returned from a two week stay at Aodann and feel like we've had two weeks in the South of France! The weather was extraordinary. (But I think some much needed rain is on the way.)

Over the next few days I'll share a few pics of the things we got up to. We had friends join us and it was lovely to show them the area, sometimes we forget how much there is to do here in our little corner of the Highlands!

So, the first post is something new for us - the Achtercairn Archaeology Trail behind Gairloch Museum.

We had no idea what was hiding on the hillside! I've popped captions on the pictures.

It really is quite special. As someone who spent many years living near Stonehenge and covered the summer solstice carry-on for the local newspaper - this felt more special.

The whole trail is about 2 miles and you can pick up a map in the museum for 50p. Some paths are a bit rough, but even if you only do the first half (which is quite easy) you'll see plenty.

The work is ongoing to explore the site and if you subscribe to the Gairloch & District Times you may have seen a feature about it.

It feels a really special place with the hills behind and Skye in the distance.

Ann and Kevin

24/05/2025

We're so fortunate to have this wonderful museum and smashing cafe nearby- if you are heading this way do give them a follow to be up to date on opening times, cake options and more!

19/05/2025

We felt privileged to be able to watch this moving ceremony - thank you to the Arctic Convoy Museum for welcoming everyone to mark this important anniversary.

11/05/2025

The weather has been glorious these past few days and looks to continue for a week or so.

The gorse is in bloom and smelling wonderful, the skies are blue and we've been listening to so many birds, including a cuckoo (who starts very early!)

Today we enjoyed sitting outside at Bridge Cottage Art Cafe who make the best coffee! And are ending the day with a few light bubbles outside overlooking Loch Ewe.

11/05/2025

May has been beautiful here at Aodann (so far!). The gorse is out and smelling wonderful, the skies are blue and there is a pleasant breeze.

Today we have enjoyed really lovely coffee at Bridge Cottage Art Cafe, listening to a cuckoo (which woke me up at 5am!), and a glass of something bubbly over looking Loch Ewe.