WALKING AND CYCLING The network of forest roads in the area provides miles of cycling and walking routes directly from Seafield. Bike Hire is available from Crinan Cycles in Lochgilphead or you can borrow two of our bikes. The Forestry Commission have produced a range of leaflets to guide you along routes which are graded according to ease or difficulty. There is also a programme of activities throughout the year including bat watches, fungi forays and guided walks. There are several nature reserves in the area including Taynish near Tayvallich and The Mhoine Mhor (Great Moss) near Bellanoch.

WILDLIFE WATCHING Argyll has a richly varied wildlife habitat with plenty of opportunity for watching wild birds and animals. In and around Seafield there are otters, badgers, wild cats, fox, deer and red squirrels and pine martens. Osprey are regularly seen feeding over Loch Sween and the River Add. This year we saw a young Sea Eagle several times around Seafield and on the loch. Buzzards and heron are common sights. Hen Harriers can be seen hunting across the Moine Mhor. The loch has a resident population of seals. Everyone wants to see otters, and there are plenty of them in the area but they are shy creatures who avoid contact with humans. Early risers are most likely to have sightings. As well as wildlife, there is an astonishing range of wildflowers, mosses and lichens. 

BEAVERS European Beavers will be introduced to Knapdale in Spring 2009. The release site is 2 miles from Seafield. We don’t think this is a particularly good idea but no doubt it will be interesting to view them in the wild.

BEACHES Argyll is probably not the first choice for a sun worshipping holiday but contrary to popular opinion and weather forecasts, we do get good weather sometimes and there are two lovely sandy beaches at Kilmory Knap and Stronefield at the end of the peninsula. Crinan Ferry is another favourite beach for families.

BOAT TRIPS Gemini Cruises at Crinan provide a variety of boat trips for fishing, watching wildlife, visiting Jura and travelling through the famous Gulf of Corrievreckan with it's whirlpools and standing waves. Many of our visitors have enjoyed these trips and have reported sightings of Golden and Sea Eagles, dolphins, porpoises and whales.

KAYAK HIRE We have two sit on top Ocean Kayaks for hire by the day, a double and a single. (Monday to Friday only). Loch Sween is very sheltered and you get a completely different view of the area from the water. Last year a pair of Ospreys raised two young in the area and we had frequent sightings from the kayaks. You can get close up to seals basking on rocks in the Fairy Isles and enjoy a well earned lunch at Tayvallich after paddling across the loch.

PONY TREKKING Daltote Farm, 3 miles from Seafield offers pony trekking and riding lessons for all ages and experience. Travelling up into the hills on horseback gives an astonishing view of the surrounding hills and lochs.

HISTORY AND ARCHAEOLOGY We are close to Kilmartin Glen which has a wealth of ancient archaeological sites with burial cairns and standing stones. The ancient kings of Scotland were crowned on Dunadd Hill and which, as well as giving magnificent views over the Add estuary, is a site of great historical importance. The award winning Kilmartin House Museum has displays, a bookshop and cafe. The building has been converted using traditional methods and materials and is well worth a visit. Chapels at Keills and Kilmory Knap house ancient carved stones. The MacMillan Cross at Kilmory attracts MacMillans from all over the world. Castle Sween, further down the peninsula from Achnamara is one of the oldest castles in Scotland.



TOURING The roads are very quiet and the views stunning which makes touring in the area a pleasure. You can visit many of the islands of the Inner Hebrides from mainland Argyll. Ferries run from Oban to Mull and Iona and from Tarbert and Tayinloan to Islay and Gigha. Inveraray Jail and Castle are popular visitor attractions. Oban and Campbeltown both have distilleries which are open to visitors.

EATING OUT There are a number of restaurants, bars and cafes in the area. Tayvallich (8 miles) has a Coffee Shop providing snacks and light meals and an Inn which has a restaurant and provides bar meals. The Rafters at Castle Sween (7 miles) has a bar and restaurant. The Cairnbaan Inn (6 miles) overlooking the Crinan Canal has a bar and restaurant. The Crinan Hotel (5 miles) has a coffee shop, bar and restaurant. . Kilmartin Museum has a cafe and restaurant in an oakwood conservatory overlooking Kilmartin Valley (10 miles) and there is alsoKilmartin Hotel. At Ardfern (15 miles) you can visit The Crafty Kitchen which serves food and has a craft shop and exhibitions of the work of local artists or The Galley of Lorne Inn. 

FISHING Permits for fly fishing on local hill lochs for brown trout are available from Loch Fyne Tackle shop in Lochgilphead. 

Permits and Boat Hire for fly fishing on Lochs Linnhe, Coillebharr and Barnluasgan are available from us. In the summer months you can fish for mackerel on Loch Sween and Loch Fyne.

BASKET MAKING & HOME PRODUCE Jane makes and sells willow baskets and runs courses from her workshop on basket making. 

She also makes a range of home baked scones, cakes, jam and bread. Eggs are usually available from our hens and in good summers, there may be surplus produce from the garden. See the blackboard for details.

FUNGI FORAYS James can advise on good places to find edible fungi and will be able to identify what you collect before you cook it.

GOLF Lochgilphead, Tarbert and Inveraray all have nine hole golf courses.

GARDENS Crarae and Arduaine Gardens both have excellent plant and tree collections. The rhododendrons and azaleas are spectacular in the spring and early summer.

MIDGES Not many people mention the M word. They are an unfortunate fact of life on the West Coast of Scotland but unless you are particularly sensitive to insect bites, they are more of a nuisance than a disaster (although I wouldn't recommend camping). The midge season lasts from Mid May until the end of September. They are not usually a problem during the daytime unless it is particularly dull, damp and still. They do not like breezy, dry, bright, hot or wet and windy weather, any of which can occur here during the summer months. Calm evenings are the worst time for midge attack. Unless they are particularly bad, you can walk or cycle in the evenings as long as you keep moving - stop to admire the view and they will pounce. The only solution at peak midge times, which are unpredictable, is to retire indoors to your cottage or a local hostelry. Repellents are available but we have yet to find anything that is really effective apart from a midge helmet - a net worn over the head. The cottage bedrooms have insect screens fitted to the Velux windows.

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Eco Tourism We recognise that there is an irony in promoting sustainable tourism when the lack of public transport means the only way you can get here is by car but we try to operate the cottages in a way which has the minimum detrimental impact on the environment. Measures in place at Seafield include encouraging our visitors to separate their waste for recycling and composting, using low energy lights and appliances where possible, encouraging non-wasteful use of energy and water and using environmentally friendly and recycled products where appropriate. The log boiler and woodburner provide heat from locally sourced logs. We encourage visitors to use local shops and producers as much as possible. None of the measures in place will compromise your comfort in any way but will help us to keep costs down and enable us to invest the savings in continual improvement of the facilities and service we provide. You can borrow bikes or hire kayaks to explore the area.

LOCHGILPHEAD Nine miles from Seafield, 15 minutes by car, Lochgilphead has Banks, a Co-op Supermarket, Tesco Express, Filling Stations, Hotels and Cafes and many small shops supplying a wide range of goods, foods and crafts, many of them locally produced. There are regular farmers markets where you can buy the best of local produce.

DISABLED ACCESS Byre and Stable Cottage entrances are level and the main door is wider than normal. Interior doors are standard width. For visitors with limited mobility, the bathroom is on the ground floor and the living room has a bed settee. 
Kirkland is all on one level but there is a step up to each entrance. Space is limited in Kirkland so is not suitable for people with severely restricted mobility.