The Laird (Lord in Scottish) of Kincavel

Kate, my Scottish wife, has bought me a plot of land in the Kincavel Estate. This entitles me to use the title of Laird (Owner of Land or Lord in Scottish) officially.

The Kincavel estate lies on the Ardnamurchan peninsular, which covers 50 square miles and is due west of Fort William.. There are around 2000 human inhabitants of the peninsular, but many more thousands of creatures and plants, some of which are very rare. The north coast of the peninsular faces the Islands of Muck, Eigg and Rhum, while the south coast runs alongside Loch Sunart and the Sound of Mull.

The Kincavel estate is within a large area of land belonging to the Sonachan Hotel – 1000 acres in total - 400 of which have been enclosed by fences to encourage the natural regeneration of the flora and fauna without damage by farm stock. Sonachan is located between the beautiful sandy beaches of Ardnamurchan’s north coast and Tobermory – the scene for children’s television show on BBC ‘Balamory’, which is a short ferry ride away on the Isle of Mull.

The Kincavel Estate itself is just a few hundred yards from a secluded golden sandy beach – visitors at some times of the year are likely to find they have it all to themselves! Your land is on a seaward facing hillock and looks out over the sea to the Isle of Mull. On a nice day it is the perfect place for a picnic as there are spectacular views in every direction; across the mountainous countryside inland and over the sea to the Isle of Mull.

Nearby attractions include the Ardnamurchan Natural History Centre and Ardnamurchan Point lighthouse. This lighthouse was one of many built by the Stevenson family, and is the only one in the world built in an Egyptian style. Ardnamurchan Point is the most westerly point in mainland Britain – a claim often wrongly thought to belong to Land’s End in Cornwall.

The nearest village to the Estate is Portuaik – the most westerly settlement on the mainland, overlooking Sanna Bay. From the village there are also views across to the Isle of Skye and the Small Isles.

Well, so now I am a Scottish Laird (Lord) :-).

Interesting stuff.