Kerracher Gardens
I was in an unusual garden recently. It
is called Kerracher Gardens. There is
no road to it at all. I went there in a
boat. The garden is on the shore of
Loch a’ Chàirn Bhàin in Assynt. It’s
open to the public. But this is the last
year it will be open.
The garden is beautiful. It’s full
of plants of many types. The area
around it is also beautiful, but in a
different way. It’s rough, with
mountains and bogs. Peter and Trish
Kohn live in Kerracher now. But there
were other families there before them.
One of the ones who were there before
them wrote a book about it. The
book’s title is The Kerracher Man.
It’s Eric MacLeod that wrote the
book. Eric was born in Dingwall. He
went to work as an accountant. He
was living in other countries. He and
his wife were living in London,
Chester, Johannesburg and Reading.
Then they moved to Kerracher. They
had two daughters.
Eric’s father was brought up in
Kerracher. Eric visited it when he was
young. At that time, his grandfather,
his grandmother and his uncle
[father’s brother] were living there.
The house was now empty. It was in a
bad condition.
The family wasn’t living in the
house to begin with. The sitting room
was without a floor. There was a
sheep’s carcase in the room! To begin
with, they were living in a caravan.
But how were they going to move a
caravan to Kerracher?
They took the caravan down
Loch a’ Chàirn Bhàin from the road
in Kylesku. That was in 1976. The
bridge wasn’t there. There was a ferry
across the kyle. But the Council in
Inverness wasn’t willing to use the
ferry to take the caravan down the
loch.
Eric built a raft to take the
caravan there. He did that with wood
and old oil barrels. And he got help
from a Gaelic fisherman. I’ll tell you
more about that fisherman next week.
Leas Chearachair
Bha mi ann an leas àraidh o chionn
ghoirid. ’S e Leas Chearachair an t-ainm
air. Chan eil rathad a’ dol ann idir.
Chaidh mi ann ann am bàta. Tha an leas
air cladach Loch a’ Chàirn Bhàin ann an
Asainte. Tha e fosgailte don mhòr-shluagh. Ach seo a’ bhliadhna mu
dheireadh a bhios e fosgailte.
Tha an leas brèagha. Tha e làn
lusan de dh’iomadh seòrsa. Tha an sgìre
mu a thimcheall brèagha cuideachd, ach
ann an dòigh eadar-dhealaichte. Tha i
garbh le beanntan is boglaichean. Tha
Peter is Trish Kohn a’ fuireach ann an
Cearachar a-nise. Ach bha teaghlaichean
eile ann romhpa. Sgrìobh fear dhen
fheadhainn a bh’ ann romhpa leabhar mu
dheidhinn. ’S e ainm an leabhair The
Kerracher Man.
’S e Eric MacLeòid a sgrìobh an
leabhar. Rugadh Eric ann an Inbhir
Pheofharain. Bha e ag obair mar
chunntasair. Bha e a’ fuireach ann an
dùthchannan eile. Bha e fhèin is a bhean
a’ fuireach ann an Lunnainn, Chester,
Johannesburg agus Reading. An uair sin,
ghluais iad a Chearachar. Bha dithis
nighean aca.
Thogadh athair Eric ann an
Cearachar. Thadhail Eric air nuair a bha
e òg. Aig an àm sin, bha a sheanair, a
sheanmhair agus bràthair athar a’
fuireach ann. Bha an taigh a-nise falamh,
ge-tà. Bha e ann an droch staid.
Cha robh an teaghlach a’ fuireach
anns an taigh an toiseach. Bha an
seòmar-suidhe gun ùrlar. Bha closach
caorach anns an t-seòmar! An toiseach
bha iad a’ fuireach ann an carabhan. Ach
ciamar a bha iad a’ dol a ghluasad
carabhan gu ruige Cearachar?
Thug iad an carabhan sìos Loch
a’ Chàirn Bhàin bhon rathad anns a’
Chaolas Chumhang. Bha seo ann an naoi
ceud deug, seachdad ’s a sia (1976). Cha
robh an drochaid ann. Bha bàt’-aiseig
ann thar a’ chaolais. Ach cha robh a’
Chomhairle ann an Inbhir Nis deònach
am bàt’-aiseig a chleachdadh airson an
carabhan a thoirt sìos an loch.
Thog Eric ràth airson an carabhan
a thoirt ann. Rinn e sin le fiodh agus
seann bharaillean ola. Agus fhuair e taic
bho iasgair Gàidhealach. Innsidh mi
dhuibh mu dheidhinn an iasgair sin an
ath-sheachdain.
