*Gifted stay
A 20 minute drive from Oban, lies the remote and beautiful Loch Nell, a sanctuary for flora and fauna including ancient oak, pine martens and white-tailed eagles. Glen Lonan is a valley where the River Lonan flows into Loch Nell and is surrounded by the hills Tom an Eirinnich, Tom na Caorach and Barr a’ Chlaiginn. Inverlonan is a collection of luxury off-grid bothies perched on the shores of Loch Nell nestled amongst ancient oak trees covered in moss and lichens. Recently, an impressive 190,000 trees were planted close to the bothies, with the hope to encourage wildlife to call this new broadleaf woodland their home.
Prior to arrival, the wonderful team at Inverlonan will send you all the information you will need including detailed directions and tips on how to make the most of stay. To reach the bothies you follow a winding single track road, past some standing stones and you will find a car park where you leave your vehicle for the duration of your stay. You will be met in the car park where you will be transported by an off-road buggy to your off-grid luxury bothy. Each bothy is within walking distance of the other and there are paths that take you to the shores of Loch Nell. In Scotland, the right to roam allows everyone the right to access land and water with some limitations in terms of private land and should be exercised responsibly as outlined in the Scottish Outdoor Access Code. The majority of the time staying at Inverlonan you might not come across anyone, but don’t be alarmed if you do as they are entitled to enjoy Loch Nell and its surroundings just as much as you are.
One useful tip is to make sure you only take essential items with you such as clothing, swimwear etc as most of what you will need is provided at the bothy. In the bothy you will find; bedding, kitchen utensils, pots and pans, crockery, porridge oats, muesli, teabags, coffee, eggs, bread, marmalade, butter, eco-friendly washing up liquid, shampoo, beautiful books, blankets, games, deck chairs and even a speaker. Delicious local produce can be ordered to your door, including meals such as the bbq box, pizza box or for an added sparkle to your stay you can book an outdoor fine dining experience with their resident chef, Darren. These provisions can be requested during your stay which reduces the amount you bring with you and we were very impressed by the pizza box we had on the first night. The pizza box included freshly made sourdough pizza bases, semolina, Scottish buffalo mozzarella, herbs, tomato sauce and venison salami. Once assembled, they were cooked in the Stadler pizza oven and tasted delicious!
The ethos at Inverlonan is to take it slow, ease into a sync with the rhythm of nature and immerse yourself into your surrounding environment whilst also respecting it. Your stay is guaranteed to reset your body clock to a slower way of experiencing life in harmony with rising and setting of the sun. The facilities are more than what you would expect in a typical Scottish bothy and Inverlonan has held onto some of the traditional bothy culture where all food and water is cooked by fire, the water tap is outside and you have to walk to your toilet. Everything that you will find in the bothy has been thoughtfully placed and tastefully curated using local suppliers such as sheepskins from the Isle of Skye and hand crafted crockery from the nearby Argyll pottery.
Each bothy has been designed with simplicity, elegance and mindful architecture in harmony with nature where the sun acts as a natural alarm clock, entering the bothy in the morning from the east and glows from the sun setting in the west. The scenic outdoor shower overlooks the loch and was one of our personal highlights, after heating the water over the fire, a warm outdoor shower to start or end your day will warm you from the outside in and bring a smile to your face. There is no wifi, giving you a chance to digitally detox, switch off and reconnect with yourself and nature. All power is sourced from the sun through solar panels and there are plugs for you to charge your electronics.
If you’re looking for relaxation, then make sure to book the newly added off-grid sauna overlooking the loch. The sauna is heated by lighting a fire and and once warm you can jump from the sauna into the loch to cool down and then warm back up in the sauna again as many times as you’d like! If you’re after some adventure then take to the lake on a paddle board, kayak or double kayak to explore Loch Nell. The loch is the perfect place for a wild swim and at night on a clear evening you will see hundreds of stars. Fishing rods are also provided at the bothy where you might be lucky enough to catch some salmon or trout but you must return them to the loch.
A peaceful oasis of calm surrounded by the relaxing sounds of nature, Inverlonan is an idyllic place to take a break from the grind of day to day life and will bring you back to your roots. Inverlonan is an experience you will remember for a lifetime, the perfect place for a special occasion or a weekend away. Book your stay to experience it for yourself and if you do stay please let us know what your highlight staying is in the comments! You can also watch our YouTube video to see what we got up to whilst we stayed at Inverlonan.
