Knoydart

Sitting in an elevated position a short distance from Loch Nevis’ lochside, Knoydart Hide has a vantage unrivalled even in this small community, from which you will truly be able to experience the remote and breathtaking beauty of our little corner of the world.

Known as Britain’s Last Wilderness, Knoydart has no street lighting, no pollution, no mobile masts and no roads; it is possibly the last place in the UK that you really can escape the rat race. Being accessible only by a 20 minute boat ride, or an 18 mile hike over the 3,000 ft munroes, Knoydart, known as The Rough Bounds, has escaped over exposive to man and traffic, enabling the wildlife and the natural landscape to prevail.

Sandwiched between two sea lochs, Loch Nevis (gaelic for Heaven) and Loch Hourn (gaelic for Hell), and separated from the rest of Scotland by three munros, this remote and rugged landscape is one of the most romantic settings you could ever wish for and yet, despite its unusual location, Knoydart’s history is as much woven into the fabric of Scotland as the rest of the highlands.

The Highland Clearances

During the Highland Clearances of the early 19th Century approximately 1,000 Knoydart residents were ordered to leave their homes by landowners who, caring only for their own profit, wanted to convert the land for sheep farming. Leaving behind their homes, livestock, family and friends, the residents of Knoydart were boarded on to the St Sciillery and sent, in horrendous conditions, to Nova Scotia in Canada.

The scar left by these previous residents can still be seen in the landscape of Knoydart today; the old black house crofts lie in ruin and the old lazybed ruts (potato furrows) and disused peat banks stand proud on the hills and can be seen when the bracken dies back and the hills change colour.

A New Community Is Born

Since the original residents of Knoydart were so cruelly forced from their homes, the estate of Knoydart has been owned in turn by playboys, football managers, nazi sympathizers and absentee landlords but, thankfully, in 1992, the Community Buyout finally succeeded in securing the land for Knoydart’s current residents and bringing stability after several hundred years of flux.

Since then, the population of Knoydart has doubled and now stands at 140; now a thriving community, Knoydart boasts a nursery, primary school, marine boat school, post office and, of course, The Old Forge, mainland Britain’s most remote pub. Thanks to an entrepreneurial spirit and a cosmopolitan vibe, Knoydart is home to various artisans and skilled craftsmen, ensuring that the traditional trades are kept alive and the community remains self-sufficient.

All of this means that history is very much alive on Knoydart and visitors have a treasure trove of experiences to explore; from the Victorian folly, Brocket’s Monument, to the cairn to the Seven Men of Knoydart and their last famous land raid; find out why Lady Brocket allegedly threw all of her best china in the Loch, discover who Odette Hallows was or see where the S.O.E. training schools carried out their secret manoeuvres. Whatever you choose to do, you can be sure that Knoydart will live up to all your expectations and more.