Highland scenery can sometimes be bleak – but this place is always a riot of colour. Inverewe Garden was first planted on the banks of Loch Ewe by Osgood McKenzie in the 1860s – he collected plants from all over the world for his Walled Garden which, by the time he died in 1922, was surrounded by a hundred acres of woodland. Today, it’s run by the National Trust for Scotland – and the walled garden is still the most spectacular part of it. Here are a few more images from our stroll round it:

Walled garden

Walled garden

Lochside Gates

Loch Ewe from walled garden

Walled garden

Walled garden

Walled garden

Walled garden

Walled garden

Sheltered Existence by James Parker

Heading out of the walled garden, Inverewe House comes into view. (This is not Mackenzie’s original house which was destroyed by fire in 1914.)

Inverewe House

Inverewe House

Behind the house, a multitude of paths criss-cross the headland. I don’t think we missed any! Here’s some of what we saw:

Woodland Walk

View of Loch Ewe

Inverewe Garden

Inverewe Garden

Pond Garden

Inverewe Garden

Inverewe Garden

Camas Glas

Finally, we checked out the Wollem Pine, one of the world’s rarest trees before heading to the on-site restaurant for lunch. This was the only part of Inverewe I could fault – the food was no better than ok and the staff couldn’t cope with queues. Next time, I’d walk down to the village of Poolewe which had some nice-looking pubs and cafés, thereby also avoiding the coach tours.

Wollemi Pine

Wollemi Pine

After lunch, we went for a walk through the pinewoods on the hill behind the gardens.

Loch Ewe view

Behind Inverewe

Finally, before leaving Inverewe we came across this monument to a Gaelic bard.

Monument to Alexander Cameron

Monument to Alexander Cameron

But was that us finished? Not at all! Two more walks to fit in before the afternoon was over. Driving up the other side of Loch Ewe we stopped at Firemore Sands. There’s a small crofting community here – the opposite of the clearance villages we visited further north. People evicted from further inland to make way for sheep were settled here. The name in Gaelic is Am Faithir Mòr – the big shore-land. This is an absolutely beautiful beach and we spent ages walking from one end to the other and back.

Firemore Sands

Firemore Sands

Firemore Sands

Firemore Sands

Firemore Sands

Firemore Sands

Firemore Sands

Firemore’s heavy anti-aircraft battery protected the entrance to Loch Ewe where the Arctic convoys gathered in the Second World War. Driving further on, to the end of the peninsula, we found a memorial to the convoys and remains of the wartime command post.

Climbing a small hill gave a good view of the site and its beautiful coastline.

WW2 ruins, Loch Ewe

Loch Ewe

Loch Ewe

WW2 ruins, Loch Ewe

So an action packed day, after which we returned to our hotel for dinner and the last night of our holiday. I hope those who have followed me throughout have enjoyed the tour of Shetland, Orkney and the North of Scotland – and maybe you’ll visit some day?

I’m linking this post to Jo’s Monday Walks. She has a bumper crop this week from all over the world, so please take a look.