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Big Sky Lodges |
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check availability, book and pay online
There are two types of
log cabins: contemporary or traditional, three of each. Contemporary design: Mountain, Wildcat & Rowan Lodge Traditional design: Piper's Wood, Red Kite & Eagle Lodge
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The price includes:
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Outside you can sit or dine on the veranda (there are no midges here) and enjoy watching the sunset late into the evening. The self catering log cabins overlook meadows where highland cattle graze, and have views towards the mountains. The log cabins are built with the highest quality Finnish pine from Lapland, with the most modern comforts of home. Each log cabin is special, having been beautifully, tastefully and newly decorated throughout, with excellent fixtures and fittings providing a luxurious home from home. |
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"What a fabulous Xmas - snow on Christmas morning. Superb log cabin. Many thanks for a wonderful time. Hope to see you again soon." Usher, Suffolk
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Big Sky Lodges
healthy, natural and restful
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If you're looking for a log cabin in Scotland for your holidays, then you've come to the right place for a base from which to explore the Scottish Highlands. The self catering log cabins at Big Sky Lodges are ideally situated for exploring this mountainous, peaty wilderness, surrounded by magnificent coastline. From the fertile 'Flow Country' of North Scotland near Thurso and Wick to the expansive beaches, sea lochs and cliffs around Ullapool, Gairloch and the gateway to Skye - Mallaig and Kyle of Lochalsh all over the Highlands, whether it's Inverness, Glen Coe or Fort William (overshadowed by Ben Nevis - Britain's highest peak) and Loch Ness, our log cabins are an easy drive away, from scenic valleys clothed with woods to chilled rivers rushing from the snow-capped peaks of the Mountains. |
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"Our honeymoon has been made
very special by your cosy, very attractive lodge. The attention to detail is
outstanding, the views are spectacular. Will definitely be back. Thank you." The Deans "Our stay in Scotland was made more pleasurable by the fantastic facilities provided in this gorgeous, cosy log cabin. Would highly recommend & look forward to returning in the future." The Taylors |
The flexibility and freedom-of-choice of
self-catering properties makes them an ideal choice of accommodation,
whether you're planning a romantic break with your partner, fun-filled
downtime with the kids or an adventure holiday with friends.
Exciting events, wonderful wildlife, amazing attractions and activities, fun for all the family, and of course, the greatest golf going: there's just so much to see and do in Scotland! click here for Article about Inverness in The Times, June 2009 Scotland Factfile
Scotland covers an area of just over
30,000 square miles, has a 2300-mile-long coastline and contains over
31,460 lochs. Of its 790 islands, 130 are inhabited. The
highest point is the summit of Ben Nevis (4406 ft), while the bottom of
Loch Morar is 1017 feet below sea level.
The capital is Edinburgh (population
nearly 450,000), and the largest city is Glasgow (over 600,000). While
the number of people worldwide who claim Scottish descent is estimated
at over 25 million, the population of the country is just 5
million 1.3 percent of whom (roughly 66,000 people) speak Gaelic.
Scotland is a constituent territory of the
United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland. The head of
state is Queen Elizabeth II. It is a parliamentary democracy
whose sovereign parliament sits at Westminster in London, with elements
of government business devolved to the separately elected Scottish
Parliament which sits in Edinburgh.
Whisky accounts for 13 percent of Scotland's
exports and is worth over £2 billion annually, but Scotland also
manufactures over 30 percent of Europe's personal computers and 65
percent of Europe's ATMs.
Stuck in the far northwest corner of Europe, Scotland
is remote, but it's not isolated. The inspiring emptiness of the wild
northwest coast lies barely a couple of hours from Edinburgh and
Glasgow, two of Britain's most dense and intriguing urban centres.
Ancient ties to Ireland, Scandinavia, France and the Netherlands mean
that compared with the English at least Scots are generally
enthusiastic about the European Union, which has poured money into
infrastructure and cultural projects, particularly in the Highlands and
Islands.
You don't have to travel far north of the Glasgow
Edinburgh axis to find the first hints of Highland landscape, a
divide marked by the Highland Boundary Fault which cuts across central
Scotland. The lochs, hills and wooded glens of the Trossachs and
Loch Lomond are most easily reached, and as a consequence busier
than other parts. Further north, Perthshire and the Grampian
hills of Angus and Deeside show the Scottish countryside
at its richest, with colourful woodlands and long glens rising up to
distinctive mountain peaks. South of Inverness the mighty Cairngorm
massif offers hints of the raw wilderness Scotland can still provide, an
aspect of the country which is at its finest in the lonely north and
western Highlands. To get to the far north you'll have to cross the
Great Glen, an ancient geological fissure which cuts right across
the country from Ben Nevis to Loch Ness, a moody stretch of water
rather choked with tourists hoping for a glimpse of its monster.
Scotland's most memorable scenery is to be found on the jagged west
coast, stretching from Argyll all the way north to Wester Ross
and the looming hills of Assynt. Not all of central and northern
Scotland is rugged Highlands, however, with the east coast in particular
mixing fertile farmland with pretty stone-built fishing villages and
golf courses, most notably at the prosperous university town of St
Andrews, the spiritual home of the game. Elsewhere the whisky trail
of Speyside and the castles and Pictish stones of the
northeast provide plenty of scope for exploration off the beaten
track, while in the southern part of the country, the rolling hills and
ruined abbeys of the Borders offer a refreshingly unaffected
vision of rural Scotland.
The Great Glen
The Great Glen, a major geological faultline
cutting diagonally across the Highlands from Fort William to
Inverness, is the defining geographic feature of the north of
Scotland. A huge rift valley was formed when the northwestern and
southeastern sides of the fault slid in opposite directions for more
than sixty miles, while the present landscape was shaped by glaciers
that retreated only around 8000 BC. The glen is impressive more for
its sheer scale than its beauty, but the imposing barrier of loch and
mountain means that no one can travel into the northern Highlands
without passing through it. With the two major service centres of the
Highlands at either end, it makes an obvious and rewarding route
between the west and east coasts.
Of the Great Glen's four elongated lochs, the most
famous is Loch Ness, home to the mythical monster; lochs
Oich, Lochy and Linnhe (the last of these a sea
loch) are less renowned though no less attractive. All four are linked
by the Caledonian Canal. The southwestern end of the Great Glen is
dominated by the town of Fort William, the self proclaimed
"Outdoor Capital of the UK". Situated at the heart of the Lochaber
area, it is a useful base with plenty of places to stay and an
excellent hub for accessing a host of adventure sports. While the town
itself is not one of the more charming places you'll encounter in
Scotland, the surrounding countryside is a magnificent blend of rugged
mountain terrain and tranquil sea loch. Dominating the scene to the
south is Ben Nevis, Britain's highest peak, best approached
from scenic Glen Nevis. The most famous glen of all, Glen Coe,
lies on the main A82 road half an hour's drive south of Fort William,
the two separated by the coastal inlet of Loch Leven. Nowadays
the whole area is unashamedly given over to tourism, with Fort William
swamped by bus tours throughout the summer, but, as ever in the
Highlands, within a thirty-minute drive you can be totally alone.
At the northeastern end of the Great Glen is the
capital of the Highlands, Inverness, a pleasant, ever expanding
city with some excellent places to eat but used most often as a
springboard to remoter areas further north. Inevitably, most transport
links to the northern Highlands, including Ullapool, Thurso and the
Orkney and Shetland islands, pass through Inverness.
The region has a turbulent and bloody history.
Founded in 1655 and named in honour of William III, Fort William was
successfully held by government troops during both of the Jacobite
risings; the country to the southwest is inextricably associated with
Bonnie Prince Charlie's flight after Culloden. Glen Coe is
another historic site with a violent past, renowned as much for the
infamous massacre of 1692 as for its magnificent scenery.
The weather "There's no such thing as bad weather, only inadequate clothing", the poet laureate Ted Hughes is alleged to have said when asked why he liked holidaying in Scotland. For those who don't share Hughes' cavalier attitude to the elements, the weather is probably the single biggest factor to put you off visiting Scotland. It's not so much that the weather's always bad, it's just that it is unpredictable: you could enjoy the most fabulous week of sunshine in early April and suffer a week of low-lying fog and drizzle in August. The saving grace is that even if the weather's not necessarily good, it's generally interesting, exhilarating, dramatic and certainly photogenic. Then, the sun finally coming out is truly worth the wait. A week spent in a landscape swathed in thick mist can be transformed when the clouds lift to reveal a majestic mountain range or a hidden group of islands far offshore. When to go
The summer months of June, July and August are
regarded as high season, with local school holidays making July and
early August the busiest period. Days are generally mild or warm and, most
importantly, long, with daylight lingering until 9pm or later. August in
Edinburgh is Festival time, which dominates everything in the city and
means accommodation is hard to come by. Elsewhere, events such as
Highland Games, folk festivals or sporting events most of which take
place in the summer months can tie up accommodation, though normally
only in a fairly concentrated local area.
Commonly, May and September throw up
weather every bit as good as, if not better than, the months of high
summer. You're less likely to encounter crowds or struggle to find
somewhere to stay, and the mild temperatures combined with the changing
colours of nature mean both are great for outdoor activities,
particularly hiking. Note, however, that September is prime stalking
season for deer, which can disrupt access over parts of the Highlands if
you're hiking, fishing or riding a mountain bike.
The spring and autumn months of April
and October bracket the season for many parts of rural Scotland. A large
number of attractions, tourist offices and guesthouses often open for
business on Easter weekend and shut up shop after the school half-term
in mid-October. If places do stay open through the winter it's normally
with reduced opening hours; this is the best time to pick up special
offers at Big Sky Lodges. Note too that in
more remote spots public transport will often operate on a reduced
winter timetable.
Winter days, from November through to March,
occasionally crisp and bright, are more often cold, gloomy and all too
brief, although Hogmanay and New Year has traditionally been a time to
visit Scotland for partying and warm hospitality something which
improves as the weather gets colder. While even tourist hotspots such as
Edinburgh are notably quieter during winter, a fall of snow in the
Highlands will prompt plenty of activity around the ski resorts.
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