A nice place but beware of the midges! (Faichemard Farm Camping Site (Invergarry))

Member Name: micksheff

Product:	Faichemard Farm Camping Site (Invergarry)
Date:	30/10/08 (145 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Lovely setting

Disadvantages: The midges

Faichemard Farm in Invergarry near Loch Ness was my first point of call on my summer trip around the Scottish Highlands. I had stayed here before, back in 1996 apparently - it's amazing how time flies. Twelve years later I was to discover it had changed very little.

This is a family run campsite tucked away in the hills above Invergarry. It has been in operation as a camp site by the same family since 1936 and has stunning views of the mountains and forests. It sits within 10 acres of private land and cannot be easily seen from public roads. The house itself was built in 1868 so the actual farm has been in the possession of the same family for much longer than the campsite has been around.

There are only 35 pitches and each of these are very well spaced out. It is also an adult only site so I knew that there would be no danger of screaming kids running around even in the middle of the main school holidays. Pre-booking is highly recommended and as I knew that we would be arriving quite late I made sure that we had booked in advance. In the event we arrived at about 6pm and if we hadn't pre-booked then we wouldn't have got a space.

We paid £12 per night which covered a tent, two adults and one car and were allocated a pitch towards the bottom of the site close to an ornamental pond and not too far from one of the toilet/shower blocks. The reception is at the house at the top of the drive but this is quite a distance from the entrance onto the site. There are actually two different houses, the reception being at the first house, but clearly sign posted to avoid confusion.

On first appearance the campsite looked lovely, just as I remembered it. Each pitch is very private with a wooden picnic bench and plenty of space to park a car and pitch at least two tents. The pitches are surrounded by long grass and bushes which when we arrived looked very nice but we would soon discover that long grass means lots of midges, and add this to the close proximity of still water (the ornamental pond) and a warm sunny period of weather and it all added up to a recipe for disaster.

As the sun set the midges came out in their millions, each hungry for human blood. The highland midges are a phenomena that cannot be explained to anyone that has not experienced them. They occur only in northern Scotland and their numbers peak around late July/early August.

The next morning as the early morning dew disappeared so did the midges but they had left their mark and although we had booked for another night we decided that we had to move on.

It's a shame that the midges drove us away because it is really is a nice campsite otherwise. When I visited here in 1996 it was early May and I don't recall the midges being a problem. I would therefore visit again but not in the late July/early August period.

Faichemard Farm campsite has two different toilet and shower blocks. Depending on which half of the site you are on will determine which one you use but they are both more or less the same. Each block has a male and female toilet block with two unisex shower rooms in between. They are cleaned every morning and the showers are free to use.

In comparison with other campsites the shower rooms are very good. They are huge, the water was hot and there is a dry area to change and shelves and coat hooks for clothes storage.

Attached to the toilet/shower blocks there is a pot washing area and this is also where the dustbins are located. In addition to the toilat and shower blocks, at the top of the campsite near to reception there is an old barn that has been converted into a laundry area. Here there is another area to wash pots as well as a washing machine, dryer and iron and iron board. The washing machine cost £2 for a full load (token has to be obtained from reception) and the dryer takes 20p coins. I did use it and the drying cost me £1 so a full wash and dry cost just £3 in total. The iron is free to use and there is also a fridge freezer in this room which is also free to use. It is recommended that campers but their food inside a carrier bag and write their pitch number on the bag, a black marker pen was provided for this.

So overall this is a good campsite in an enviable location but the midges can be a real nuisance.

Faichemard farm camping Site
Invergarry
Inverness0shire
PH35 4HG
Tel: 01809 501314
Email: dgrant@faichemard-caravancamping.co.uk

http://www.faichemard-caravancamping.co.uk

Summary: A campsite near Loch Ness