In a quiet and remote corner of the northwest Highlands of Scotland, twelve miles south of Cape Wrath, there is a sheltered sea loch. A thousand years ago Viking longships took refuge here from the mighty Atlantic. Three crofts now cling to the shore at Ardmore and less than a mile across the water, at the head of Loch A Chadh-Fi, is the Adventure School.
From high ground above the Adventure School, there are sweeping views across to the mountains a few miles to our east and the ocean to our west. Between the mountains and the coast are a mosaic of tiny hill lochs and rocky outcrops formed by ice over 12,000 years ago.
Our courses make the very most of this wild and primitive landscape. This is our home, we know it like the backs of our hands.
We’re just two hours’ drive from Inverness with simple flight connections from major domestic airports, direct flights from Amsterdam, and direct rail travel from London.
Many of our school teams travel to us from the south of England and our summer camp participants come from all over the world.
Our summers are a throng of activity, with boats zipping across the sea loch, early morning swims and long mountain days.
The wildlife has adapted well to the buzz of life during the summer. Even to the music and singing coming from the kitchen after mealtimes with our school courses. The seals and otters brave the hustle and bustle on the water.
We are lucky to be able to share this time with so many keen adventurers, making the very most of their time here. It is a quieter but no less beautiful place out-of-season.
When the season finishes in mid-September we have already seen changes come and go. The late-August purple flush of the heather has passed and the bracken on the hillsides has died away to burnt orange.
Many of the seabirds have departed except for a few herring gulls that remain. Curlews and wimbrels return and the loch is far quieter.
The mountains begin their routine dusting of snow from late October. Snow at sea level is less common now but with a cold calm night Loch A Chadh-Fi will freeze from the Adventure School to Ardmore.
We continue with maintenance work at the school, attend to the next seasons clients and start to fill any gaps in the following years staff team. This is also time for our own adventures.
There are beautiful, calm, high pressure winter days and plenty of wild days too as the procession of Atlantic storms roll in and batter our house on the seashore.
Many of the seasonal birds return in March, with oyster catchers on the shoreline and greylag geese keeping the grass trim on the croft.
The countdown to the season starting can be a little frenetic. Jobs that can’t be done in the cold dark days of winter left until the first warm sunshine and dry spells.
Our instructors join us at the end of April.
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