Badrallach Near Ullapool

[largewayround]

Badrallach
A small friendly and very quiet lochshore site for a maximum of 12 tents only but usually fewer (and 3 caravans with prior booking essential). All facilities are spotless and of very high quality using local materials and are shared with the bothy which is used as a social / eating area and games room when not booked on a sole use basis, allowing a welcome retreat from the sun or rain. Parking is next to your pitch which is surrounded by meadow, orchids and often visited by deer.

Please note although we now have electricity in the buildings and plenty of hot water we have no hard standings or a septic tank emptying point - as we believe this would spoil the atmosphere on the site, but we now have hook-ups if required. We may be able to help if required however in quiet times if you ask. Advance booking recommended in July and August.

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Nice small campsite

The bothy is available to campers for when its wet, if the bothy is not rented. Nice kitchen/ dish wash area at the rear of bothy.

Toilets . Rustic but cleaned every day , large supplies of toilet paper.

Showers are rustic , but clean enough .. the shower *doors* are homemade and tricky to get into.. but lashing of hot water . (turn water on full , then adjust for temperature)

Midges .. during the midge season they can be quite bad. But this goes for most sites around this area .

The hosts were very welcoming..

Not a child friendly campsite, as there is little for them to do.. be warned..

Nice walks along the footpath west of the campsite.

Single track road for about 4 miles from main road, not suitable for caravans.

This site is very small , so please book at busy times.

Some pictures.

Gruinard Bay , 7 miles from campsite.


The pitches. quite close together, across from the numbered pitches there is wild camping in a Field / Gorse .. midge hell , but ground fires are allowed.


Pitched Ok, Bothy in background . All pitched are slightly sloping


A bird of Prey , not sure which type, bird spotters out there?


10 Minutes after setting up, the tents a mess.
Note the laptop, USB Dongle GPRS Service *Just* .. Vodafone tested.
Powered from Landy..
Electric hookups are available but you need to book. as limited points.

Note the Coleman Coolbox... Very good... big yes but excellent.
After Measuring the back of the defender, we opted for the :
Coleman 70 QT Xtreme Cooler (Blue)



Tent Security System


We were quite lucky , in 2 weeks we only had 2 days rain..

I was think in this picture, must get fire going for................

Breakfast..........

Note the firebox / BBQ.. cast Iron .. very good for BBq's then loose the grill and get some peat on the fire to discourage the midges.
Ask Hosts for some peat (they cut there own)


Tam showing the Highland cows how to play ball..

If you are walking to the beach, remember to shut the gates .. And the cows sometimes will come running up to you when you are in the far field..



From the Stoney beach which is 5 minute walk through the campsite..

From Badrallach Website:
Water
No mains water exists here but a tasty and pure, sometimes peaty coloured, filtered and treated hill supply is piped into the buildings for your enjoyment and tested regularly. It may freeze occasionally in hard winters or be in short supply in hot summers but that's life here.

Electricity
Electricity too only arrived here in 2002 and is optional for those preferring gas lights and peat fires which are still used predominantly in all our accommodation. Many crofts on the peninsular still use wind and water to generate power. TV signals are poor although satellite TV is provided in our Croft House and radio signals can be received.

Telephone
A public telephone is located by the Bothy (01854 633210) and a private phone installed in the cottage (01854 633302) for guests use programmed for incoming and 999 calls only but an outgoing service can be supplied on request. Mobile phones have reached us however and we have 3 transmitters in the valley providing an essential safety service for hill walkers and motorists in winter.

Essential Serivces
Advance delivery of groceries can be arranged at cost and free range eggs, bread and long life milk can be obtained on site subject to availability. Dundonnell Stores and PO is 14 miles away and Petrol station and hotel 7 miles away, Otherwise its Ullapool, 25 miles away where there is a chemist, supermarket and doctor. A foot ferry 3 miles away runs there in summer. Maggies Tea Room is just across the loch for those lazy days. The road is gritted daily in winter (except Sundays) and has good passing bays for vans.
Badrallach

[Ian Porter]

Nice review,

I know Gruinard bay well, my outlaws lived just down the road at Laide for a while.

you're not kidding it's midge hell, we Wild Camped (OK parked the motorhome in the Gruinard bay carpark) for a few nights and got eaten alive if we dared to step outside.

[Boris]

Nice review. I'm not sure about the security system though. Someone has stolen your book

[largewayround]

Thanks

Yip, Tam was off .. *Guarding his Mummy*