Mist-covered mountains, wild seas and dramatic ruined castles drenched in history make the Isle of Skye one of the most romantic getaways that Scotland, and indeed the world, has to offer. But perhaps nowhere encapsulates the romance of the Misty Isle more than the luxurious hideaway Kinloch Lodge the island’s only Michelin Star establishment. Michael Alexander travelled north to find out more.
Tom and Isabella moved up from London in 2002. “It’s been a steep learning curve and we’ve learned a lot on the hoof!”Tom laughs. But significantly the 2007 appointment of Marcello Tully, Kinloch’s award-winning head chef, has put the heart and soul into creating a feast for every meal. The menu changes daily to include seasonal, locally sourced produce, expertly handled by Marcello and his dedicated team. Buccleuch Estate beef, game, fish and shellfish caught in the local waters and hot-smoked salmon from South Uist are just some of the delicacies served from the rich larder of the Highlands.
The food is matched by one of the country’s finest wine lists, recently given Michelin’s Red Grapes award. Wine, whisky and beer flights are available with each course, carefully chosen to match the food on offer.
Everything we try has an unusual twist. For example, who’d think of combining caramelised banana with salmon as a starter? Marcello would and it works. We both go for venison as our main course and we aren’t disappointed. We decide to take it easy with the wine, though, given that next morning we have an early start ahead of a guided tour of the island with a local ghillie.
After a sumptuous breakfast of delicious porridge, boiled eggs and coffee, we are picked up by Skye Ghillie Mitchell Partridge, who works independently but closely with the hotel to offer all grades of guided walks and fly-fishing trips.
It’s too early in the season to go angling, but, knowing that we are keen walkers who are not scared to get our boots dirty, camouflage-clad Mitch has promised to use his local knowledge to show us the best of Skye’s sealife and mountain wildlife on a single day whilst giving us tips on how to forage for wild food.
Our destination is the 12,500-acre Kingsburgh Estate, a good 40-minute drive away towards the north of the island, and the birthplace of the legendary Flora Macdonald. Driving past snow-capped mountains, sea lochs and tumbling waterfalls, Mitch is in his element as he tells us about some of the guests he’s hosted over the years from “generals to brigadiers to binmen”. He’s spent the day with film stars, an Aborigine and even Japanese visitors who didn’t speak a word of English.
“One of the most interesting was a Sioux Indian from North Dakota. He was in Scotland visiting the Findhorn Foundation at Moray. He was a very silent man, very spiritual. He spoke in poetry. He sat cross-legged listening to the river speaking to him. To me it was just a babbling burn!”
Today, Mitch has the challenge of hosting a pair of Fifers. “We don’t get many of them!” he laughs. But what he is pleased about is the growing number of bookings he is taking through the internet. In fact, he reckons 90% of his business is now booked online.
Despite rising petrol costs (£1.45 a litre on Skye during our visit) and the relative remoteness of Skye in UK terms, he says the rise in ‘staycations’ from UK visitors has boosted his business.
“I wouldn’t be without my iPhone but getting back to nature is what it’s all about,” he says. “People want to get away from it all. For me it’s all about the lifestyle and on my tours, my local knowledge makes the difference.”
Looking out towards the distant peaks of North Uist, we stop so Mitch can use his camping stove to cook us up some shellfish prised from the rocks and, before we know it, we are enjoying the special experience of picking winkles from their shells with the points of a safety pin!
Mitch promised to take us into the mountains as well and in Glen Hinnisdal we see what we came for two golden eagles circling above the trees in their natural environment.
A remarkable spectacle to cap a remarkable weekend.
The romantic special offer two-night stay at Kinloch Lodge, including dinner, bed and breakfast and one-day wild walking or fishing with Skye Ghillies costs £273 pp until March 31, 2011 based on £99 per person per night for dinner bed and breakfast and a day with Skye Ghillie Mitch Partridge at £150 per couple. To find out more visit www.kinloch-lodge.co.uk. To contact Skye Ghillies about fishing or walking tours go to www.skyeghillieflyfishing.co.uk or call 07909 947849.
As soon as we arrived at Kinloch Lodge, accessed via a private driveway and nestled just yards from the south-eastern shores of the island, we knew we were in for a memorable two-night stay that offered the best in Highland hospitality.
Invited to take a seat in the cosy reception area with its crackling log fire and deep sofas, we were handed a complimentary glass of bubbly and invited to relax in what turned out to be the oldest room in the hotel dating back 300 years to the days when this was the hunting lodge of the Macdonalds of Sleat.
In fact, the links to this ancient clan are alive and well with the family-run business owned and managed by Lord Godfrey Macdonald of Sleat and his wife Claire who has carved a career as one of the nation’s best-known cooks. Nowadays, the day-to-day running of Kinloch is carried out mainly by their daughter Isabella and her husband Tom Eveling, assisted impeccably by one of the longest-serving employees at the hotel, reservations manager Rachel McKinnon, and a warm and friendly staff, ranging from local Gaelic speakers to New Zealanders, who exude the impression that they genuinely love their work.
Tom (42), a former London-based Sky Sports football reporter who humourously acknowledges his move “from Sky to Skye”, takes pride in giving all guests a personal welcome and tour of the premises. We are no exception, and we learn a lot about the efforts that go in to making residents’ stays as comfortable as possible.
Original portraits of Macdonald ancestors hang on the walls, while family photographs, fresh flowers and, come evening, flickering candles, make for an unforgettably romantic scene.
Taking time to relax in our room with its spectacular views out over Loch na Dal and the Cuillin, the dramatic beauty outside serves to maximise the cosiness within. But such is the warmth of the welcome we’ve experienced, my wife and I can’t help but feel that we’re staying in someone’s house rather than a hotel.
Invited to the bar for a pre-dinner drink, Tom explains that this “home from home” feel is exactly what they are trying to achieve at Kinloch. He explains how his mother-in-law Claire established the hotel business in 1972 and over the years she wrote articles and books that cemented her reputation as a self-taught cook. Today, she is famed not just for her cooking but also for her demonstrations, which she hosts from her very own kitchen.
Continued…
As soon as we arrived at Kinloch Lodge, accessed via a private driveway and nestled just yards from the south-eastern shores of the island, we knew we were in for a memorable two-night stay that offered the best in Highland hospitality.
Invited to take a seat in the cosy reception area with its crackling log fire and deep sofas, we were handed a complimentary glass of bubbly and invited to relax in what turned out to be the oldest room in the hotel dating back 300 years to the days when this was the hunting lodge of the Macdonalds of Sleat.
In fact, the links to this ancient clan are alive and well with the family-run business owned and managed by Lord Godfrey Macdonald of Sleat and his wife Claire who has carved a career as one of the nation’s best-known cooks. Nowadays, the day-to-day running of Kinloch is carried out mainly by their daughter Isabella and her husband Tom Eveling, assisted impeccably by one of the longest-serving employees at the hotel, reservations manager Rachel McKinnon, and a warm and friendly staff, ranging from local Gaelic speakers to New Zealanders, who exude the impression that they genuinely love their work.
Tom (42), a former London-based Sky Sports football reporter who humourously acknowledges his move “from Sky to Skye”, takes pride in giving all guests a personal welcome and tour of the premises. We are no exception, and we learn a lot about the efforts that go in to making residents’ stays as comfortable as possible.
Original portraits of Macdonald ancestors hang on the walls, while family photographs, fresh flowers and, come evening, flickering candles, make for an unforgettably romantic scene.
Taking time to relax in our room with its spectacular views out over Loch na Dal and the Cuillin, the dramatic beauty outside serves to maximise the cosiness within. But such is the warmth of the welcome we’ve experienced, my wife and I can’t help but feel that we’re staying in someone’s house rather than a hotel.
Invited to the bar for a pre-dinner drink, Tom explains that this “home from home” feel is exactly what they are trying to achieve at Kinloch. He explains how his mother-in-law Claire established the hotel business in 1972 and over the years she wrote articles and books that cemented her reputation as a self-taught cook. Today, she is famed not just for her cooking but also for her demonstrations, which she hosts from her very own kitchen.
Continued…