Poolewe: the 'Highland Gateway' which almost was

Poolewe occupies a curious position on the west coast of the North Highlands. It lies between Gairloch and Ullapool, where the short River Ewe completes its journey from Loch Maree into the sea, yet the village is overwhelmed by the presence of Inverewe Garden. Tens of thousands of people arrive specifically to visit the garden, but relatively few stop to discover the community carrying its name. Poolewe is not a place of grand attractions or an obvious list of things that must be seen. Its pleasures are quieter, and they begin beside the river.

The River Ewe is only about three kilometres, or two miles, long, but it drains Loch Maree and an upland catchment covering more than 440 square kilometres. It can pass beneath Poolewe Bridge with barely a disturbance, then become a surging mass of water after heavy rain across the surrounding mountains. A track follows the river inland from the village, allowing visitors to walk for a few hundred metres, stop beside the water or continue towards Loch Kernsary and the wild country beyond. Poolewe feels enclosed within its rocky surroundings, yet those tracks lead towards some of the grandest mountain scenery in Wester Ross.

The village was once far more important to Highland travel. A sailing boat carried official mail and passengers between Poolewe and Stornoway, while cattle from Lewis and Harris were landed here before beginning their long overland journey towards southern markets. Steam briefly replaced sail during the middle of the 19th century, but improvements in roads and shipping allowed Ullapool to inherit the principal connection with Stornoway. Had that traffic remained, Poolewe might now be welcoming ferries, vehicles and travellers from across the Outer Hebrides. Instead, the village sits quietly beside a river that once carried people towards one of the principal gateways to the islands.

Poolewe’s smaller discoveries include the remains of a 17th-century iron furnace and a weathered Pictish stone lying within an old circular burial ground. Neither announces itself with much drama, which seems entirely appropriate for a village that almost became something much larger. Inverewe Garden will continue to receive the visitors, but Poolewe deserves at least a walk beside the river and a moment to consider how narrowly it missed the traffic, prosperity and fame that eventually transformed Ullapool.

To learn more, book one of our North Coast Explorer private tours.