We spent seven nights at this wonderfully peaceful cottage in Bridge of Orchy, Argyll and Bute.
Our cottage in Bridge of Orchy
Throughout the week, we had much better weather than the forecast said.
Nasty storm Barbara was nearby, but fortunately we never got it.
The cottage, next to the tracks
We arrived on Friday, 17 February and left on Friday, 24 February. After seven days of hiking, climbing, cycling and treading in the snow, we were exhausted.
We were also looking forward to coming back next year.
We took the train at Waverley sometime after 10am and arrived at Glasgow Central. There, the station staff were expecting us. They came to the waiting room to confirm we had arrived with our bikes.
It was a great experience.
Train tracks with Beinn Dorain in the background
We took the 12.21pm train to Oban/Mallaig from Glasgow Central. The train splits at Crianlarich, so you have to make sure you’re traveling in the right coach – and your bikes too.
It was a smooth journey. We chatted with a guy who was going hillwalking for a couple of nights and was planning to build himself a shelter.
After talking to him, our cottage felt like a real luxury.
After 24 hours of snow
We arrived at Bridge of Orchy at around 3pm.
The garden after the snowfall
It’s a lovely 3-bedroom 2-shower room one floor detached house next to the train station, and just a few yards away from the rail tracks.
Looking towards the Bridge of Orchy train station
There are four trains a day each way, plus a cargo train. You can hear them approaching slowly, and go to the kitchen window to wave at them.
At night, there are no trains, so nothing wakes you up.
After the snowfall
The cottage has a well stocked kitchen/dinning room, a log and coal fireplace, one en-suite master bedroom, a double bedroom with a superking size bed, a twin bedroom, and a second full shower room.
It also has a sitting room, a porch with space for the bikes, and a garden at the back.
Simon’s log & coal fire
The cottage is warm, comfortable, cosy, and great for those wanting to tramp in the mud and snow, and get seriously wet, like us.
It dries clothes well with the electric radiators and the pulley.
The old school next to the cottage
The only thing we missed was a bath. If it had had one, I’m sure we’d have missed the train back.
Panoramic view of the cottage & Beinn Dorain
A couple of hours after we got to the cottage, Tesco arrived with our food for the week. It was a perfect start to the week.
Bridge of Orchy, the village
I made porridge for several days, and a pasta dish for a couple of evenings. Simon put things away, and played with the fire.
We were ready to explore.
I took all the photos with the Panasonic, except for the panoramic, which I took on the iPhone.