View of the house taken from the
south, showing the walled garden and the conservatory. The
garden is enclosed making it safe for children and dogs. |
Cutty, a solid tubed dinghy for
the use of guests. Almost indestructible and very stable,
it makes exploring the bays and islands nearby easy and safe. |
Looking east to the entrance of
Loch Melfort, seen from the south eastern end of Torsa. The
tip of Degnish Point can be seen on the left. |
View south west down onto Torsa
Beag (Little Torsa) with Luing in the background. Seen paddling
are Luing Cattle, the local breed of cow. |
 Looking
west from the high ground onto Cuan Sound. The Isle of Luing
is to the left, Seil to the right, and the Isle of Mull straight
ahead in the distance. The skerries in the middle distance
are home to seals. The tide runs very fast through the Sound,
and the roar of it can be heard. The longest of the skerries,
An Cleiteadh (Cleit Rock), divides the flow, and there is
often a step in sea level at this point. |
A misty morning at South Cuan, looking
across to the Torsa Tree. This northern tip of Torsa is almost
separated from the rest of the island by a small stream cutting
across it. It is known as Eilean na h-Eaglaise, meaning Church
Island. There was believed to be a chapel here, and some ruined
walls remain that are now used as a sheep fold but whether
these really are the remains of a chapel is not known. |
Looking north from the high ground
along the western side of Torsa. This shows well the topography
of the island, with the slope dividing the flat grazing area
along the top of the island from the damper shore areas where
the best of the wild flowers are to be found. In the distance
is the south east corner of the Isle of Seil, with Ballachuan
Hazel Woods visible, a Scottish Wildlife Trust reserve. |
The view south down to Ardnamir
Bay from the edge of the meadow behind the house. The bay
provides a very sheltered anchorage and is where Cutty is
moored. There is easy access down to the bay from the house
along a track. An electric buggy is provided to transport
luggage and shopping up the track. |
Looking down on to the remains of
the fort (Caisteal nan Con) with Dun Crutagain in the background.
From this angle all that can be seen is the rock escarpment
on which the castle was originally built. |
Looking up to the castle remains
from the north, the original stone work can be seen beneath
the ivy. You can scramble up on to the base of it quite easily. |
View north from the edge of the
high ground, with the Torsa Tree to the left. Ardmaddy Castle
can be seen to the right in the background. |
This lone sycamore at the northern
end of Torsa is a prominent landmark. |
Torsa is a part of Ardmaddy Estate.
Guests are wecome to use the facilities at the castle, including
tennis court, games room, fishing lochan and gardens. |
Path to the water gardens, and access
to the woodland walk. |
 One
of the ponds within the water garden. Fed by spring water
off the surrounding hills, the ponds provide an ideal setting
for a wide variety of aquatic and marginal plants. |
 Part
of the walled garden taken in september, showing how colourful
the gardens are even late in the season. |
 Central
raised bed within the walled garden. The garden combines a
number of different elements with ease, including vegetable
beds, herbaceous borders and water features. |
Alstroemeria flowers. There are
a wonderful selection of plants in the gardens, and a selection
of these are available for sale, along with homegrown produce. |
