Loch Broom

 

In Gaelic Loch Broom means “loch of the rain showers” appropriately enough but my sister Lucy’s constant gloomy prognostications of imminent foul weather have forced the weather gods to modify their plans and day after day we have had sunshine and cool crisp temperatures.

We started the day at lunch time with what in the States would be called a rehearsal dinner, except we didn’t rehearse anything and my anxiety meter should be climbing off the charts. I’m supposed to usher a battalion of wedding guests to their places Saturday, then walk Lucy down an unknown aisle and give her away to Luke. Except I have no clue about any of it  so I guess it’ll be fine on the day. I’m assuming a pose of debonair self assurance that I do not feel inside. The lunch however was fabulous at the Dipping Lugger a restaurant named for a sailboat -a lugger- that dips, or lowers it’s yard or lug, to tack the foresail; and  if none of that makes sense to you don’t worry as it’s just a name for a very discreet eatery in Ullapool. Its billboard-free discretion illustrated here by Duncan my nephew:

It was a  tasting menu lunch with wine and thoroughly Scottish in intent. The menu was obscure enough the meal was an adventure ending in Murder, a blue cheese course (Blue Murder) to illustrate how this fine eatery prefers not to take itself too pompously. I want to bring Lucy here on my dime on my next visit.

The snack was a mushroom Madeline with a cheese cracker and cheese custard. 

The halibut, cured:

Warm brown bread and dill butter which I’d never previously had:

 Layne should have been here as she has the tastebuds for all the nuances. Venison with a cube of black pudding, which is blood sausage made with oatmeal and has a very different texture from South American blood sausage which I don’t like.  This I enjoyed. 

Mixed chocolate dessert:

And a blue cheese plate with oat cakes finally:

It was a great lunch in good company. It put me in mind of eating at the famous Osteria Francescana in Modena one of the world’s top rated  and I preferred this place, with its unpretentious sense of humor, the surprise menu and highland highlights. The best part was the head chef was unwell and his 22 year old sous chef ran the lunch service which was astonishing. He didn’t miss a beat.

And as if on cue a fishing boat was drying out on the foreshore right in front of the restaurant, left high and dry as the tide retreated.

Ullapool has a string of dilapidated unoccupied waterfront homes just begging for owners. I suppose the prices must out of line with reality but it surprises me to see prime waterfront unused. There was some work underway nearby and my nephews who know everybody stopped to chat. 

There was among them Rich from Trenton New Jersey who has spent a lifetime in Scotland after marrying a lass from Glasgow and moving to Ullapool for the lifestyle. No regrets apparently and no wonder.

I got dropped off at the farm as I wanted to walk a lovely sunny afternoon away. I met Big Duncan, he of the red hat preparing the wedding chariot for service with refreshed brakes. Lucy mentioned one of her sons found the brakes to be lacking (I’m not sure what trauma was involved in the discovery) and Big Duncan said he’d fix them.

Work can always slow down for a natter with Lucy’s neighbor Johnny joining in. 

Solais (“light” in Gaelic pronounced more like solace) showed me the farm whose buildings I used to wander around 60 years ago.

These buildings have existed for more than a century and the corrugated iron roofs, beautifully curved are still solid. 

The irony Solais noted was the newer shed, half their age, is in worse shape than the original buildings. 

The farm also has a cattle shed nowadays used for the sheep as needed, 350 of them wander the land. 

And a walk-in cooler to handle the deer killed during the stalking season. People pay good money to hunt deer across the hills. 

Solais cleans the deer himself after he or a client shoots them. It’s no easy business to get a gun licence in the UK with a lengthy background check and interviews with police. A drunk driving arrest would be enough cause to be denied a rifle or shotgun license. And any such conviction in the future would lead to his license being revoked. 

There are also the portraits of Lucy’s parents in the farm office, our father and her mother.

All this history on top of a large lunch meant I  needed a walk. 

The Scottish saltire, the cross of St Andrew. Lucy wants independence for Scotland especially since Brexit, but that moment seems to have faded perhaps temporarily. Scotland does have its own parliament and laws and its own national health service as part of a devolutionary drive intended to head off independence.  The struggle against separation has been helped by some substantial scandals plaguing the governing party’s leadership, but the possibility of independence isn’t far away for many residents of Scotland. I’d choose Scotland over England the way things are, if faced with the need to choose. 

The loch side cottages are also vacation rentals 

A large group of Scandinavians  came  by walking along the shoreside path. In Scotland private land is not as private as in the US and hikers can cross land on recognized trails quite legally. 

The A835 from Inverness to Ullapool

If you can’t beat ‘em, join’em: walkers welcome

The red line marks my walk

Passing place 

Loch Broom at dusk

Home sweet home

Solais and Duncan helped advertise the family business many years ago when they were a lot younger…

The hillside and loch side cottages are popular but with enough notice they can be had for rent for the ultimate highland vacation. And Lucy is pet friendly. Works for me. 

Ullapool

 Ullapool was founded in 1788 as a fishing village and until recently survived off the bounty of the sea but these days tourism is the driver.

Ullapool has a population around 1500 people, jobs are available but as usual in these kinds of communities it’s hard to make ends meet here never mind thinking about buying a house. You’d be hard pressed to find a home for less than half a million dollars unless it’s inconveniently located outside the village. 

This a neat tidy village bustling with events and shops of all kinds including a well stocked “charity shop” as thrift stores are known here. My jacket for the wedding came from here for five bucks Lucy told me. 

I recall formal meals at the Caledonian hotel which half a century ago was the place to go. Lucy tells me it has lost some of that luster but is working its way back as time changes all things. I still like the exterior look. 

Nowadays there are many more restaurant choices in such a small town. 

And ethnic foods are also available mostly in the summer months of the tourist season. Ullapool is too cold for me but I really enjoy the warmth of the people and the small town atmosphere. 

I had never heard of a refill store, a place where you bring your containers to refill them with pastas or nuts or seeds or even soaps and detergents. Lucy was looking for gram flour which is British for chickpea flour and here it was in tiny Ullapool. 

There is a supermarket of course which also now incorporates the post office since the last post mistress retired and the stand alone office was closed. Tesco is a nationwide chain: 

I remember the old sea mine standing on the sidewalk in Ullapool since forever. It’s supposed to raise funds for distressed seamen, but Lucy gave me a stricken look and said she’d never put any money in it and of course neither have I. It’s padlocked so there’s no way to know if there is any cash in there:

Ullapool has a new waterfront promenade made of locally quarried stone:

And a proper new marina for fishing boats and pleasure craft. 

The Harbour Trust spent about six million dollars three years ago to create this new waterfront and ferry terminal. 

And there is a new in 2022 ferry terminal for the twice daily service to Stornoway on the isle of Lewis. 

Calmac is the ferry company that serves the Hebrides and the communities along the west coast,

…and the harbor also is a stopping point for Norwegian flagged ships that supply the salmon farms on Loch Broom, controversial as they are. Farmed salmon are raised in terrible conditions I have discovered, crowded pens filled with sea lice that eat the salmon alive. But there’s money to be made of course and local jobs at stake. 

We had lunch at the Ceilidh (“Kay-lee”) Place where the ceremony will be performed.  I had celeriac soup which looked like potato but had a slight carrot flavor. Made extra good with Scottish oatcakes from a surprising menu that reaches far beyond traditional Scottish dishes and the dining room was packed. 

We inspected the venue and walked around town with Lucy who has plenty on her mind already taking time to show us the sights. 

The Summer Isles are half an hour away by boat. 

I got some information about the islands from the Internet as I have never been myself and it’s about time I did visit.

It was a lovely sunny afternoon though bitterly cold in the wind. The sheep didn’t mind. 

The road out to the point was a classic Scottish single track, well paved as always but only wide enough for one vehicle. Fifty years ago the main road to Inverness was like this but nowadays it’s only side roads. 

There are frequent pull outs called passing places and the rule is you are never ever allowed to park in them. They are strictly for moving vehicles only and they are marked with a white diamond sign. 

The passing place was on the left, our side of the road so he waited until we reached it and pulled in to let him by:

And because this is the Highlands the two drivers wave as they pass. 

Loch Broom Wester Ross

The view from my cottage

Ullapool

The Ceilidh Place, Ullapool

The Fowler Clock, Ullapool