SSDT visit Clachaig Gully

The annual Scottish Six Day Trial, and the accompanying Pre '65 Trial which is based in Kinlochleven is a great event and it's a shame that we always seem too busy to get out to more of the stages and enjoy some of the action.

The organising committee must have taken this on board for 2013, and added in a special stage for us, right on the doorstep! On the way back down the glen, the competitors took on a short stage on the screes at the bottom of Clachaig Gully yesterday. The car parks were full (unless you had a van or a motorbike you'd feel very much out of place!) and the weather behaved - at least for most of the day.

 Really enjoyed the action and hope that we'll see the riders again soon as they continue to battle through the wilds of Lochaber for the remainder of the week.

Here's some photos of the action.

Big Winter Raffle Prize Winners

Saturday night (2nd March 2013) saw not only the end of FebruaryFest, with the usual good craic to close the festival, but also the prize draw for the Big Winter Raffle. There were prizes galore handed out to our lucky prize winners, including our top prize of a Mammut Pulse Barryvox Avalanche Transceiver.  Some big smiley faces were noted at the handing out of the prizes, presumably attributable to the opportunity of a big kiss from keeper-of-the-prizes Stu.

First prize. A Pulse Barryvox Avalanche Transceiver.
Thanks to Mammut.

The Big Winter Raffle has been running throughout FebruaryFest, with all monies raised being handed over to Glencoe Mountain Rescue.

The Winter Mountain Safety Lectures are a key part of the winter programme here at Clachaig, and this year we were delighted to work with outdoor gear and clothing company Mammut as sponsors of the series. Close to 400 people attended the 4 lectures, which provide information, advice and guidance on preparing to venture into the Scottish winter hills.

As part of the sponsorship, Mammut provided a number of prizes which enabled us to run the Big Winter Raffle and raise funds for the voluntary rescue service. 

In addition, a number of our local partners were also quick to come forward with yet more attractive prizes. A huge thank you is due to everyone who embraced this fundraising effort.

And the total raised? A whopping £1821

 

 2nd Prize. A 3 night break at Quarry Cottages.
A prize from Clachaig Holidays.

Here's a selection of photographs from Saturday's finale featuring just some of the prizes and winners. Thanks to Karl at Glencoe Photography for the photos. 

 A bottle of Clachaig Malt. That'll do nicely!

Clachaig Inn

 A bottle of Benromach 10 Year Old.
Thanks to Benromach Distillery for this one.

 A Benromach Henri Lloyd holdall.
Thanks Benromach Distillery.

 A gaggle of Cairngorm Beers.

Thanks Cairngorm Brewery

A rafting / canyoning voucher.
Thanks Vertical Descents.

 Some more Cairngorm Beers. Nice!
Thanks Cairngorm Brewery again.

 A lovely hamper of goodies.
Thanks Glencoe Cafe

Some Loch Lomond Ales.

Thanks Loch Lomond Brewery

 A nice bottle of red. Thanks to Wallaces Express.

 Thank you very much to our main sponsor!

A big thank you to everyone who has provided prizes during the course of the Big Winter Raffle or who has helped out in kind, or simply given £1 to a worthy cause. We salute you!

Mammut
Paddle Lochaber
Vertical Descents
Glencoe Cafe

Crafts & Things

Benromach Distillery
Cairngorm Brewery
Loch Lomond Brewery
Wallaces Express

Glencoe Photography
The Mountaineering Council of Scotland
Mike, Andy, Heather and Davy - the lecturers

Clachaig Holidays
The staff at Clachaig

Everyone who bought a ticket!

Hopefully, we'll be back again with the Big Winter Raffle 2014!

Arivonie - Lochside Cottage

Arivonie - Lochside Cottage has always been one of the more popular properties in the portfolio of chalets, lodges and cottages offered by Clachaig Holidays.

Keen fans have been slightly disappointed recently to find that the property has been unavailable through these winter weeks. However, the extensive refurbishment is now nearing completion, and the cottage will be available for booking again from mid March.

New colours for the dining area.

The entire house, garage and gardens have been subjected to some degree of refurbishment. The lounge has a new, more contemporary colour scheme.

A familiar view but something's different?

 The main difference here however, is the old croft stone wall has been exposed completely and a new solid fuel stove has been added. It generates a lovely amount of heat and along with the stone and beams makes for a fantastic cosy atmosphere on cold winter nights.

The TV has also been replaced, with a new 32" flat screen. Freeview comes as standard, but we can't provide FreeSat or Sky until some moves either a mountain or a satellite!

Lounge / dining room.

 Broadband wi-fi is available throughout the cottage. 

The new solid fuel stove. Cosy!

There's a completely new bathroom suite in the main bathroom, along with new shower and floor coverings and a colour scheme.

New bathroom suite, new colours.

The old garage was finally condemned and is now replaced by a lovely shiny new one. At the front end there's secure storage for such as bikes and other larger bits of equipment.

New garage with bike store and laundry.

 A door to the side provides access to the rear of the garage where we've created a large laundry space.  The washing machine has been relocated, and additional storage space provided. A great place for drying off kit - on the off chance that it rains and you get a little damp during your time in the glen!

The laundry - nearing completion.

The garden has had the most extensive works, with new terraces built. There's still a little bit of final finishing to do up here but with a small lawned area and good hard standing we expect that it will be a great place to relax and take in the view across Loch Leven to the Callart Hills when the summer sun returns.

The garden has had a makeover too. New terraces.

 Bookings are now being taken for the remainder of 2013. With the new look and some excellent facilities we expect that Arivonie Lochside Cottage will be more popular than ever. Don't delay with your booking if you're thinking of heading to Glencoe this year.

For more information about the cottage see the Clachaig Holidays web site. Or for booking enquiries send us an email.

Tragic Events In Glencoe

Glencoe in the headlines again. News of this weekend's avalanche in Glencoe and the tragic loss of life spread far and wide, and in these days of social media, very quickly too. Thanks to everyone who has been in touch over the last couple of days offering their thoughts and condolences. We need to add our own offers of condolence to these and pass them all on to families and friends, and everyone affected by the tragedy.

I have to confess to finding this the hardest blog to write. But with so many taking an interest, and Clachaig being almost within view of Bidean, I feel there should be something to acknowledge the weekend's events.

I wrote this on my own Facebook profile last night, and I think it strikes the right tone. Apologies if it's a little personal. 

Saturday's rescue was as professional and as slick as you could ever hope for. Some great sustained flying from the navy, plenty of support from Lochaber and the well greased machine that is Glencoe MRT, all brought together with some excellent leadership. Proud to be still part of it after all these years but still gutted that it couldn't change the outcomes on the day. But it all comes at a cost. Keeping the team on the hill and me in this year's colours requires donations to fund it. Anyone riding the Strathpuffer deserves a medal regardless, but it would be great if you could give these guys some added incentive for this weekend with a little donation to the cause. Chris wooped me and the rest of the field at Barcaldine last Sunday and joined us for our Wednesday night tree dodging at Inchree. Being a true gent, he even helped with Gregor's puncture while the rest of us looked on. A tragic loss. 

And here's the link that went with it. 

http://www.justgiving.com/Luke-Bradley

Chris Bell.
Victorious at the WHW/NACC Winter League last Sunday in Sutherland's Grove.
Photo credit & copyright Fiona Gunn

I know we regularly ask for your contributions in our raffles at Clachaig, but at risk of sounding like a second rate Hollywood script, it's personal.

Now is probably a good time to remind you of the Winter Mountain Safety Lectures which are due to start in a couple of weeks time. Education has to be the key to trying to minimise the number of accidents in the hills, and these lectures are just part of that processs of acquiring and refreshing the type of knowledge that might just one day help to save another life.

We're passionate about them. They've been a feature of winters in Glencoe for over 20 years. They're FREE to attend. They're informative. And, usually, they're quite entertaining too.

As with just about everything these days, funding constraints at the Mountaineering Council of Scotland put the full series under threat. However, we're very pleased to have Mammut on board as sponsors, supporting the series.  In addition to funding the basic costs, Mammut have also provided a few goodies, not least of which is a Pulse Barryvox Transceiver, which we'll be raffling during the course of FebruaryFest, with funds raised being given to Glencoe Mountain Rescue Team.

The lecture dates are as follows (with links for each one)

Tuesday 5th February
Tuesday 12th February
Tuesday 19th February
Tuesday 26th February

So, I guess we're trying to grab onto something positive out of all of this. We know that people will always continue to head into the hills. If you are heading to Glencoe this winter, try and catch one of the lectures while you're here. Oh, and buy a raffle ticket.

MRT Avalanche Training Weekend at Nevis Range

Glencoe MRT Just Giving

Thanks for reading.

Ed

One man went to Mo'

Movember has been and gone, thirty days down of facial fuzzinees all in the aid of Men’s health. During the month we put together a collection of different events to try and raise our target of £1000. There were a few quizzes going on, teamed with raffles and collections on the bar.

 Blakey.

 

 Stu, Clachaig Team Captain.

We are very honoured to receive your help and support and are overwhelmed to announce that we made it! Just 5 days before the close of Movember we were flagging two hundred and twenty pounds behind but with that added push we managed to break the £1,000 barrier, taking the amount earned right up to £1,094! Our collection, with your help, made our team rise to 2,562nd out of all the teams in Scotland participating.

We wouldn’t have been able to do it if it wasn’t for the very big helping hand from Willie Stewart, who brought in a whooping £224 to our team which saw him claim the Movember prize, which was a very nice Benromach stow bag as advertised in our November eNews.

 Willie. Star Performer. One man went to Mo'.

All that's left to do now is remove the facial hair and feel that little bit colder during what's looking like a very cold December but I'm sure across the country there's more than a few happier wives and girlfriends!#

 My moustache brings all the girls to the yard.
And they're like, it's better than yours
Damn right it's better than yours

 So for them thank you for your patience and support, and to you the loyal Clachaig base of supporters; thank you very much for your generosity during Movember, and we hope you're all set for a wonderful Christmas.

One mo' week

This is it folks, the finishing line is a mere five days away when our wives, girlfriends and children can stop mocking our epic growth of facial hair! So far we have managed to rake in a whooping £780, which is ever so close to our target of the big £1,000.

 The next five days are when it really comes together; even the slow growers among us will have something fashionable to show off! But can we reach the target we set all those days ago when our top lips were as smooth as babies bottoms?

With the right amount of hard work, determination and luck; Yes we can!

Friday 30^th Movember will be the last official night so we’re working on a fun little quiz to aid to our collection, and we’ll also be selling tickets for our big, ‘End of Movember’ weekend raffle. There’s also collection boxes situated on the bar as a wee helping hand, which will be totalled up after the weekend.

If you’re planning to be with us this weekend, we thank you for your commitment to our cause. If you’re not going to be here, you could still help us out over at http://mobro.clachaig.co with an online donation.

This has been a really fun month, or at least it seems to have been judging from the giggles coming from the female members of staff! As it comes to a close, all eyes are centring on our Christmas Party, the one you’re all invited to, on 14th December… You have heard about this one, yes?

Clachaig - a license to thrill

So who's been to see Skyfall? The latest offering from James Bond seems to have pulled in a few good reviews and has rekindled the affection for 007 blockbusters. A long way from Goldfinger and his hat flinging sidekick Oddjob perhaps? But the apparent success of Skyfall should come as no surprise, as it does take James Bond back to his roots. Yes, left at the top of Glencoe and down the road into Glen Etive - the location of the former Fleming family estate.

Surprise Yourself TV ad  - looks familiar?

Last week I found myself in Glasgow. I'd already been in to Xscape and the newly refurbished Snow Factor, the slightly larger relation of Kinlochleven's Ice Factor. After fulfilling the commitments for the day, we popped back to Xscape and the late evening showing of Skyfall.

The preamble to the movie contains loads of adverts featuring Bond related products. Buy the watch, drive the car, smell like a tart in a boudoir,... all that sort of stuff. But as if to enforce Glencoe's credentials as a homeland for Bond, there amongst all the 007 marketing was Clachaig's (albeit fleeting) appearance. Ok, so it was part of VisitScotland's Surprise Yourself campaign, but it was definitely Clachaig!

Check it out for yourself on YouTube - and pay particular attention at about 47 seconds in.