Pottery House Loch Ness B&B

Marmalade Time

2012-01-26T01:21:00.000-08:00

It's that time of year again when the Seville oranges are in the shops.

We've made a batch of "Pottery House Orange Marmalade" this week all ready for the new season.

It's especially nice spread thickly on one of our home made poppy seed rolls.

Plum Jam

2011-09-25T14:19:00.000-07:00

Been a bit disappointed by the fruit on the plum tree this year. It could be down to a very windy day early in the year when a large branch broke off the tree. Didn't loose much fruit but it must have weakened the tree.

But there's still enough plums to make a few pies and crumbles, and of course plum jam for our guests.

Lemon & Lime Marmalade

2011-09-10T09:23:00.000-07:00

Lemon & Lime Marmalade

We serve our own home made jams and orange marmalade at breakfast, but wanted to try something new. So yesterday I made up a batch of Lemon & Lime Marmalade. I'm not a great fan of marmalade but this I really like, its's got the citrus zing of the lemons and limes without the intense aftertaste you get with oranges.

If you're visiting Pottery House soon and it's not out at breakfast be sure to ask Glen if you'd like to try some.

Red Squirrel In The Garden

2011-09-10T09:13:00.000-07:00

The red squirrels have been busy here recently, stocking up for winter. They collect the nuts from the feeders we have in the trees and bury them all over the place, out in the woods as well as in the lawn.

Do they know something we don't about the coming winter? :-)

Inverness Highland Games

2011-07-28T14:01:00.000-07:00

For the first time, we went to the Inverness Highland Games on Saturday. It was a beautiful day and we thoroughly enjoyed it.

Bats In The Pottery

2011-07-17T03:35:00.000-07:00

Yesterday evening Glen was watching TV when suddenly something flew over his head. It was a bat in the lounge, don't know how long it's been in the house, must have come in through the patio doors when we had them open one evening. It took us ages to catch it. When we put it outside it was pouring with rain, so we left it to roost under the patio door in the dry. It's still there this morning.

Beautiful Day Out at Burghead and Lossiemouth

2011-07-13T13:22:00.000-07:00

Was a beautiful day here today, so as we had the afternoon free we packed the car and headed off to the beach.

We stopped at Burghead first, the sea was so blue. Although the onshore breeze was a bit chilly it made for some great waves crashing in on the rocks.

Then we went on to Lossiemouth. Had a lovely lunch in the Harbour Lights Cafe, had a walk and a sleep on the beach, and then Glen went off to D&I Tropicals which he says is the best tropical fish shop in the whole of Scotland.

Red Squirrels Are Back, hurray!!

2011-07-04T01:34:00.000-07:00

We've not seen any red squirrels from Pottery House in months. So we were delighted this morning to look out of the kitchen window and see one on the feeder just outside the garden.

He was there for quite a while, logn enough for our guests at breakfast to see him.

He had his feed of nuts and then left, hopefully he'll be back again tomorrow.

Grim Discovery

2011-07-02T05:43:00.000-07:00

Glen was round the back of the wood shed yesterday trimming some of the shrubs when he noticed that one of the bird boxes on the trees was crooked. So he climbed up to straighted it out when he made a grim discovery.

It appears another animal, probably a woodpecker, has broken into the box to steal the babies inside. We've heard of woodpeckers getting in by enlarging the hole at the front but never through the side.

Sad to find this, this bird box will definately need to be re-built with thougher materials next year.

John o'Groats

2011-07-01T14:00:00.000-07:00

Had an afternoon free yesterday, so headed out to John o'Groats as we'd never been there.

It's a long old drive from Pottery House so probably not one we'd recommend for our guests, but the sea views and cliffs are spectacular once we reached there.

Firstly we visited Duncansby Head and saw the Stacks Of Duncansby. I loves the cliff views and the sea, Glen loved all the wildlife, especially all the sea birds. There were also loads of seals, as the tide was on it's way out they were all getting out of the water onto the rocks to sun themselves.

We then went along to the coast to Thurso and stopped at Dunnet Head, it's the most northerly point on the British mainland. It was a beautiful day and the views are amazing, but the best part again was all the seabirds on the cliffs. We've had several failed attempts to get to The Isle Of May to see the puffins, so we were delighted to see them on the cliffs and flying back and forth from the sea.

Amazing day.


Dunnet Head


Puffins

There are a few more photos on our Flickr Sets.

Dandelion

2011-06-21T07:05:00.000-07:00

Went for a walk along the Loch side the other afternoon, took this photo.

I'm rather pleased with it.

Chickens

2011-06-04T05:32:00.000-07:00

We have a couple of compost heaps on the outside of our fence. The chickens love to have a rummage through when we let them out in he afternoons.

Caught this one on top of the compost heap, eyeing up the vegetables in the garden and thinking about jumping the fence.

Is This The Ugliest Flower In Our Garden

2011-06-02T10:13:00.000-07:00

We have loads of different flowers in our garden at Pottery House, many are grown for use in the house, on the breakfast tables, in the hall and in the guest bedrooms.

However, probably the strangest looking flower (and I think it can be classed as a flower) is that of the Gunnera, in the bog garden behind the pond.

It's about 2" high, spikey and dark red, and lasts for months.

I'm not so sure if visitors to our B&B would be quite so impressed to find this in a vase in their bedroom, though.

Lunch At The Dores Inn

2011-05-20T00:35:00.001-07:00

We had lunch with friends at the Dores Inn yesterday.

Had a great laugh with friends and the food was fabulous as always. We were surprised how busy they where for a Thursday, too.

Don't forget if you're coming to stayat Pottery House B&B we recommend you book a table at the Dores Inn as it fills up very quickly in the evenings, especially at weekends, holidays and during the summer months. There's a sample menu on the Pottery House web site and more information about booking a table in your confirmation.

Deeside and Balmoral

2011-05-18T10:31:00.000-07:00

Haven't been out to Deeside before, about a 2 hour drive from here.

Some beautiful scenery on the way through Boat Of Garten, Tomintoul and on to Braemar. We can see why the snow gates on the A939 Tomintoul road are closed so often during the winter (we hear it on the radio traffic reports). It's a really windy, steep and in places open and high road.

We stopped at the old Lecht Mine, you can find out about the mine on the Glenlivet Estate website.

We then went on to Balmoral, really interesting to find out the history of the place. Can see why Queen Victoria fell in love with it, it's a beautiful location.

It's a shame it's only open to the public between April and July as we get asked about it a great deal by visitors.

Chickens Roam Free

2011-05-17T13:34:00.000-07:00

We've had our new hens for about 6 weeks now, so it's time to let them out into the wild.

The first time we opened the door at the bottom of their run out into the forest they were very unsure. It was only when we threw a hand-full of grain outside their door that they went out to investigate their new found freedoms.

After a couple of days they are quick to go outside as soon as their door is opened and they love to forriage out in the grass.

Don't worry though, as soon as it starts to get dark they head home back to their coop.

Glen Finnan and the Glen Finnan Viaduct (Harry Pottery Viaduct)

2011-05-03T09:58:00.000-07:00

It was another beautiful day here in the Highlands yesterday so we took advantage and went out for a run to Arisaig. Our first stop was the Commando Memorial, it looked stunning in the bright Spring sunshine, and so did the surrounding mountains.

We also stopped off at Glenfinnan, never seen it looking so stunning.

Glen Finnan Viaduct, also known as the Harry Pottery Viaduct

Fires In The Highlands

2011-05-02T14:02:00.001-07:00

We went out for the day to Glen Finnan and Arisaig. On the way back along Loch Eil we noticed smoke rising up from the hills on the other side of the water. We stopped to see what it was and where sorry to see that the woods and heather where alight.

When we arrived home we discovered on the BBC News pages that several wildfires had been reported across Scotland.

It's very eerie to see for real.

Flower Pouches

2011-04-28T10:27:00.000-07:00

I'm not a great one for garden gizmos as most fail to live up to expectations, but one I would recommend is Flower Pouches.

You can pick them up on Ebay for a couple of pounds, buy a tray of bizzy lizzies in B&Q for a similar amount, plant them out, hang them up and they'll flower until the first frosts. Just rememebr to water them, daily in warm weather, and feed them once a week.

I've just planted mine and put them at the front of the house. At the moment they look like this.....

I know you can see lots of the plastic bag, but if you feed and water as above within a few weeks they'll look like this (photo from last summer).

Wood Anemone

2011-04-24T13:17:00.000-07:00

The wild flowers are always at their best at this time in the Spring, and this year is no different. At the present the wood anemone are particularly stunning, with their ice white flowers with yellow centres covering the verges, hill sides woodlands and even the Pottery House wild meadow.

New Hens At Pottery House

2011-04-14T12:45:00.000-07:00

We were away for 6 weeks in February and March, and as our existing 8 hens were coming to the end of their laying we decided to retire them off. We found a lady on the Black Isle that takes in ex-battery hens and she was more than happy to add our 8 to her flock.

It's been strange being without hens since December, but this week we went to collect 10 new hens. There are 4 blue bells, 3 Black Rocks and 3 white ones (which we're not sure of the breed).

We collected them on Tuesday, but today was the first day we let them out of their coop. 7 have been out most of the day, the other 3 are a little more shy.

We had two eggs yesterday, and 3 today, but the eggs are quite small at the moment. They are young hens after-all.

Litter Pick

2011-04-10T10:44:00.001-07:00

We helped today with the South Loch Ness litter pick. Although this event runs every year it's still amazes me how many bags of rubbish are collected. Must have been about 40-50 today.

Wine bottles, drinks cans and cigarette packets are the most frequently picked up items.

Burns Night

2011-01-24T03:27:00.001-08:00

I must confess that after 7 years of living in the Highlands I've never been to a Burns Supper. Guest went to the Dores Inn for theirs on Satruday night and loved it, shame it was sold out by the time we found out about it. It's bound to be good at The Lovat.

Lovat - Fort Augustus

Loch Ness Monster: New Sighting Of Nessie

2010-11-28T12:54:00.000-08:00

There's bit a new sighting of the Loch Ness Monster, at Aldourie Castle just down the road from Pottery House. Richard Preston saw strange humps in the water whilst working in the Castle gardens.

The full story is at STV Loch Ness Moster

Birds in The Garden

2010-11-28T03:17:00.000-08:00

The Gold Finch has returned to the garden this morning, visiting the Nijar seed feeder. Not seen one of these for months.

Snow Falls Around Loch Ness

2010-11-27T00:53:00.000-08:00

We've had lots of snow since yesterday. It snowed on and off for most of the day yesterday, but didn't settle much as it was too warm.

Last night about 10.20 we had a thunderstorm and this morning it looks like this. Beautiful (but I'm glad I don't have to go out to work).

First Snow of The Season.

2010-11-26T02:53:00.000-08:00

It's snowing big fluffy flakes here at the moment. First snow of the winter here, although it's not really settling at the moment as it's too warm. Around 1c.

Unexpected Snow Fall

2010-11-14T09:25:00.001-08:00

We were in Glen Moriston yesterday afternoon on the other side of Loch Ness when it unexpectedly started snowing. It hadn't been forecast and it snowed great big fluffy flakes until the ground was covered and there was almost an inch on top of the car.

"Together Let's Care" scheme

2010-11-11T02:07:00.000-08:00

At Pottery House we are proud to announce that today our donations from guests for the "Destination Loch Ness" voluntary payback scheme "Together Let's Care" have reached £100.

A big thank you to all our past guests who donated.

Pottery House "Together Let's Care" Donations.

Sunset Over Loch Ness

2010-09-30T08:45:00.000-07:00

There was an amazing sunset over Loch Ness last night.

It was a very wet day and the weather system finally cleared away to the east just as the sun went down behind the mountains and Abriachan. You can see the line of the end of the weather system moving across through these photos and the blue sky behind it.

It was so bright that for a while the light went very orange.

Dr. Geebes, the stone man

2010-09-29T02:27:00.000-07:00

Dr. Geebers, or George, has been on Dores Beach for a couple of weeks now, making the most amazing structures with simply the stones from the beach. His installation is popular with visitors and locals alike.

George is homeless and so he is walking the entire coastline of the UK to raise awareness of issues facing homelessness, making his stone designs as he goes.

There's more information about George and his intriguing journey in the Press And Journal article at Press And Journal

Chilly Clear Day At Loch Ness

2010-09-27T00:49:00.000-07:00

It was a beautiful clear day yesterday at Loch Ness, and the insects went mad for the pollen, preparing for the winter ahead.

The Michaelmas daisys were particularly popular, with every flower occupied by some sort of insect, bees, wasps, butterflies and wasps.

Rainbow Over Loch Ness

2010-09-26T03:53:00.000-07:00

There was an amazingly clear rainbow over Loch ness yesterday morning.

It was so clear that everyone at breakfast stood at the window looking out at it.

Half Pound Cake Recipe Added

2010-09-20T09:30:00.001-07:00

SInce the Spring we've been offering a Picnic basket service to guests. This means that for £25 we will prepare a basket of home made goodies for you to take out with you for the day to enjoy. One popular option in this is home made fruit cake.

Several people have asked for the recipe, so we've added it to the recipe book page of the Pottery House web site.

Pottery House is on the TV

2010-09-01T02:46:00.001-07:00

We're on BBC Scotland tonight at 7.30, on The Beechgrove Garden.

The folks from Beech Grove came here last week to help with a problem corner, our rose bed.

BBC Scotland

Figs In The Garden At Loch Ness

2010-08-31T12:27:00.000-07:00

We have a fig tree in the garden, in a pot, which is best becuase they grow better when their roots are restricted.

This year there is a great crop of fruits on it, the best we've ever had. Tonight we are having Caramel and Fig tart.

Beechgrove team film at Pottery House Loch Ness

2010-08-21T09:23:00.001-07:00

This week the team from the TV program Beechgrove Garden have been filming at Pottery House.

We wrote in last year with a problem with out rose border and they came this week to help with the problem, and record it for the program.

We should be appearing on the program on the 1st September.

Here are photo of us with two of the presenters, Carole and Mike, and below is Glen working (supposedly) with Mike whilst being filmed.

Beechgrove Garden

TV Crew at Pottery House today

2010-08-18T00:34:00.001-07:00

A crew from the TV program Beechgrove Garden are coming to record an article at Pottery House today. Should be fun and interesting.

South Loch Ness Heritage Tours

2010-07-26T13:31:00.002-07:00

There are now organised tours of South Loch Ness.

See The Dores Community Web Site for details.

Coigach & Achiltibuie

2010-07-03T14:04:00.000-07:00

We had a lovely day out today to Coigach & Achiltibuie, which is the peninsular just north of Ullapool.

Fantastic views, amazing mountains, and beautiful sandy beaches.

Finished the day off with fish & chips on the harbour front at Ullapool.

Perfect.

Wedding On Dores Beach

2010-07-03T13:29:00.000-07:00

In the 6 years we've had Pottery House we've had many honeymooners stay with us, had 2 couples get engaged whilst staying and even had 1 lady arrive in her wedding dress. But this week was the 1st time that people got married whilst staying. Linda & Terry (lady with the flowers and gentleman in the white shirt) got married on Dores beach on Wednesday morning.

2010-06-25T15:10:00.001-07:00

Went to Chanonry Point this afternoon to watch the dolphins. Took a packed lunch and sat on the beach. Was lovely. Saw the dolphins jumping out of the water but they were a long way away.

Red Squirrel Back In The Garden

2010-06-20T08:27:00.001-07:00

Red squirrel was back in the garden today, not seen him for a week or so.

Ceanothus Survives The Ice

2010-06-19T06:22:00.000-07:00

Back in January and February of this year the Ceanothus which grows outside our kitchen window was caked in ice for weeks on end. This photo really only shows the start of the ice, it gradually built up to be much thicker than shown here.

We really began to wonder if this bush would survive, especially as one the ice had gone many of the leaves where brown and dead.

We're delighted it seems to have come out of this bad winter completely unscathed and it is covered in stunning bright blue flowers again this week.

Woodpecker In The Garden

2010-06-04T03:01:00.000-07:00

The woodpecker is around a lot at the moment. In previous years they've nested in the trees near us, hopefully they're doing the same again this year.

Glen Etive

2010-05-13T10:58:00.001-07:00

We spent yesterday afternoon walking in Glen Etive with friends.

It's very remote and wild, but also very beautiful.

Afternoon at Lossiemouth

2010-05-11T08:02:00.000-07:00

We spent yesterday afternoon at Lossiemouth, it really is a lovely seaside town. We had a very enjoyable lunch at the Harbour Lights Cafe, which has undergone a complete revamp since we've been there and we love the new look and the extended menu.

We then had a nice walk on the beach until the hail stones had us running for the car.

Home Made Marmalade

2010-05-09T03:14:00.000-07:00

We've had several requests recently for the recipe of our home made marmalade, so we've added it to our web site.

Marmalade Recipe.

Which is Better - Silicon Or Metal Bakeware

2010-04-25T15:21:00.001-07:00

Someone bought me a silicon flan "tin" a couple of years ago, but I was really not very impressed as it didn't keep it's shape when the flan batter mix was poured in.

However when I decided to replace my metal "mini loaf tin" that I bought from John Lewis years ago I was disappointed to find that they don't sell it anymore. So it seemed like a good time to try silicon again, and I purchased a set of 4 from EBay.

I knew the silicon would be very good when it came to it's non-stick properties, but was concerned about how long lasting it would be.

I started using both the metal and the silicon at the start of April and they've been used nearly every day since. And so far I've been very impressed, the rolls that we bake each morning for our guests do come out of the silicon very easily and it seems much less necessary to oil them each time. My only issue with the silicon is that the sides of the rolls don't brown as well as they do in tin, you can see this on the Granary rolls in the photos to an extent, but it is more prominent on white rolls, like our Maple and Oatmeal rolls.

Overall though I'm very impressed with the silicon bakeware and will continue to use for the Pottery House morning bread rolls.

Chickens Think Hail Is Dinner

2010-04-18T11:25:00.001-07:00

It was really funny this afternoon, we had a light hail shower and the chickens thought it was dinner time, running around their pen gobbling up the pieces of ice. Never seen them do that before.

The Daffodils are out in force around Loch Ness.

2010-04-18T11:21:00.000-07:00

It's been a long time coming this year, but at last all the daffs are out. And when I had a walk round the Pottery House garden this afternoon I was surprised at how many varieties we have.

The full set of Daffodil photos are on the Pottery House Web Site Photo Gallery.

Eco Potmaker

2010-04-11T14:36:00.001-07:00

This time of year the greenhouse is full of plants waiting to go out into the garden. Now I'm not a great one for garden gadgets but someone bought me an "eco potmaker" for Christmas and I think it's great.

Basically it's a set of wood blocks which allow you to make different sized pots out of old newspaper. You roll the paper round the block for the size you want and then twist it in it's base to make the bottom.

You can then fill with compost and put your plant in and water. The really clever bit is, when it's time to plant out you put the whole pot into the ground. The newspaper rots away and the plant is in the ground with the minimum of root disturbance. Wonderful!

Beautiful weekend at Loch Ness

2010-04-11T12:10:00.000-07:00

It's been a beautiful weekend in the Highlands with hardly a cloud in the sky.

New Pottery House Gallery photos

2010-04-03T07:43:00.000-07:00

We've added a new set of photos to our photo gallery page.

The Siskins Are Back From Their Winter Hols

2010-04-03T06:09:00.000-07:00

Despite the heavy snow in the Highlands this week the signs of Spring keep apearing.

Today it was the Siskins on the garden feeders, back from their winter migration.

Pottery House Appears In The Time

2010-03-28T09:15:00.001-07:00

We are delighted that Pottery House appeared in yesterdays Time as No.12 in the list of Top 30 Coolest B&Bs in Britian.

The Times Online

South Loch Ness Tourist Group Litter Pick

2010-03-28T00:59:00.000-07:00

It's the SLNTG litter pick today, where the local group of tourism businesses gets together to pick up any litter on the road from Dores/Pottery House to Foyers, along Loch Ness. Hopefully the sun will shine for us.

Signs of Spring at Last

2010-03-17T03:16:00.000-07:00

It's been a long cold winter here in the Highlands, but the first signs of Spring are beginning to appear.

The snow-drops are out at last, and so are the crocuses. In previous years the snowdrops are finished by the time the crocuses appear, but this year they are all out at once. Just goes to show how everything has been waiting for the warmer weather.

The frogs in the Pottery House pond have also been waiting for a thaw. The water is ice-free for the first time since min-December and the amphibian activity is frenetic.

New Pottery House Web site

2010-02-16T14:22:00.000-08:00

We are delighted to announce that our brand new web site has gone live this week.

With a more consistent layout and better naviagtion it should be far easier to move around and find the required information and make find availability and booking easier.

This is just the first phase, with a much simpler online booking system due soon.

See for yourself at www.potteryhouse.co.uk

If you have any problems or questions please do not hesitate to contact us at stay@potteryhouse.co.uk

It's marmalade making time

2010-02-12T04:55:00.000-08:00

We always serve home made jams and preserves at breakfast at Pottery House and this is the time of year when the best oranges are available for marmalade, Seville.

We've made 10 jars so far, but we've still have some oranges left over for some more.

Loch Ness Sunset

2010-02-11T09:47:00.000-08:00

There was the most amazing sunset over Loch Ness last night.

New Energy Efficient Lighting.

2010-01-30T05:37:00.000-08:00

We're always pleased to receive feedback as it helps us to make improvements to Pottery House that will benefit guests. One re-occurring comment recently has been the lighting, particularly in the twin room. So this winter we have had down-lights installed in all our guest bedrooms, they give a much better distribution of light across the room and in keeping with our Green Tourism policy we've had LED bulbs installed so they're energy efficient too.

And while the electrician from Greensparks was here we had him resolve another point frequently raised by guests, the lack of a socket in the twin room near the dressing table so that a hair dryer can be plugged in. And he's also put a switch above the bed in the double rooms so guests can switch of the main room lights without getting up.

Snow Watch - Animals Under Ground

2010-01-25T07:12:00.000-08:00

The BBC ran a special program a couple of weeks ago called "Snow Watch" which was all about how the animals survive the extended snowy weather we had this winter in the UK.

One of the questions asked was how do underground animals such as moles and voles manage when the ground is frozen. The answer given was that these animals get about by tunneling through the snow.

We were amazed today to see evidence of this whilst clearing up in the garden. There is a network of paths across the lawn leading to/from holes in the ground.

Chickens Get A Taste Of Freedom

2010-01-17T06:13:00.001-08:00

After 4 weeks of refusing to come out of their coop because of the snow, our chickens finally ventured out today. They seemed very happy with their freedom and spent the afternoon pecking around the garden.

Hare Today

2010-01-12T07:29:00.000-08:00

Whilst sitting watching TV last night we saw what we thought was a rabbit out in the garden, in the snow. However when we looked closed we realised it was a hare. Never seen one in this area before, and certainly not in the garden at Pottery House.

He sat and watched us for a while, but of course as soon as I got my camera out he ran off, shame because it would have made a great shot of his dark outline againsts the snow and the garden light.

CHickens in the snow

2010-01-06T15:34:00.000-08:00

Our chickens are now very keen on the snow.

More snow, and more snow pictures

2010-01-06T15:31:00.000-08:00

Nessie Spotted In Dores

2010-01-06T15:29:00.000-08:00

This nessie has been built by the children in Dores.

Brilliant.

Snowing This Evening

2009-12-19T15:47:00.000-08:00

It's -2 deg here this evening and been snowing on and off. The tree in the front with the Christmas lights on is now covered in snow and looks great.

Snow On The Hills

2009-12-17T14:02:00.000-08:00

There's snow on the hills on the other side of Loch Ness today, most if which has fallen during the day.

This photo was taken out of the landing window this afternoon, here at Pottery House.

Striving For A Greener B&B

2009-12-17T00:40:00.001-08:00

We're always looking for ways to help make Pottery House a greener business, so when the Energy Saving Trust started offering free online home evaluations we of course took the test.

Generally we scored well, but after an inspection it transpired that our loft insulation, although correct when the house was built, is below the current recommended depth of 12".

We're delighted to say that this week the contractors for the Energy Saving Trust called and added an extra 5" of insulation. We're sure this will help reduce our fuel consumption (and bills) as this will help keep all our guest rooms warmer.

It's definitely worth checking out the Energy Saving Trust web site.

First Frost Of The Winter

2009-11-07T04:09:00.000-08:00

Although the temperature last night only went down as far as 1 deg C here in Dores the grass was still white this morning, for the first time this winter.

That's quite late, some of our fuschias are still in flower in the garden.

Snow On The Mountains

2009-10-09T13:55:00.001-07:00

Not particularly early or unusual this time of year, but a definite sign of autumn closing in and the oncoming winter.

Looks beautiful thought.

Green Tomato Jam

2009-10-06T10:36:00.000-07:00

We had a lovely lady called Jeanette stay with us during the summer and during our discussions about home made jam she told us of a recipe for green tomato jam. She very kindly emailed it to us after she arrived back home, as we currently have a glut of green tomatoes we couldn't resist giving it a try.

What does it taste like? We'll, next time you're visiting Pottery House be sure to ask to try some. :-)

New Menu At The Dores Inn

2009-10-03T06:34:00.000-07:00

Great News, there's a new menu at the Dores Inn, and it's even more extensive that beofre.

Check out the new menu on our web site at Pottery House: Evening Meals

Don't forget: If you are coming to stay at Pottery House we really do recommend that you book the Dores Inn in advance if you'd like to dine there, it is only a small country pub and it gets booked up quickly, especially at weekends.

And it is the only venue for even meals within walking distance of us, so if you want to eat and the Inn is full it means having to drive somewhere.

Home Made Plum Jam

2009-09-21T08:25:00.000-07:00

The plum jam is ready and it's delicious. You just can't beat home made, especially when it's with fruit from your own garden.

If you are staying at Pottery House in the coming months and would like to try the plum jam, mention that you've seen it on the blog and we'll make sure it's out for breakfast the next morning.

Pottery House Maintains Green Tourism GOLD

2009-09-18T03:32:00.002-07:00

Every two years we have an inspection by the Green Tourism Scheme. We had our inspection back in August and we're delighted to announce that we have maintained our GOLD standard.

We've made many changes since our last inspection, to help improve our rating, so we're delighted with our score. These changes include:-

completion of our water recycling system so we can use water from our washing machines to water the garden.
all showers in the house now have Mira Eco-shower heads, which use up to 75% less water (and therefore energy to heat the water) than standard shower heads.
the new lighting in the large double room is all compact fluorescent
we replaced the cooker and fridge as they were very old and the oven was next to the fridge/freezer.
we've replaced the bottled water in guest room fridges with jugs of filtered water, so no more plastic bottles
we've "disposed" of many items using www.freecycle.org so that rather than items becoming rubbish they can be used by others. Items include fridge/freezer, cooker hob and oven, kitchen table, old table, CDs and kitchen pots and pans.
We're recently joined WWF and the Micro lending site Kiva.
The Energy Saving Trust did an audit of Pottery House and recommended that the loft insulation be increased to at least 12", we're currently waiting for them to do this work.
we already use many "Fair Trade" products such as tea and coffee, but we're currently trialing "Fair Trade" bed linen.
We've taken part in many litter picks on the road between Dores and Foyers, in conjunction with the South Loch Ness Tourist Group, but in 2009 we organised this event.

Fruit Picking - Plums

2009-09-12T08:17:00.000-07:00

We've been away for a couple of days, and returned to find many of the plums from our tree laying on the ground, after some strong winds. So time to start off some plum wine.

If you look back in this blog you can find the plum tree photo, all covered in flowers. It's has turned out to be a bumper crop this year, plenty for jams and pies still left on the tree.

Falls Of Foyers After The Rain

2009-09-04T07:28:00.000-07:00

There's been a great deal of rain in the area for the past 48 hours, so today we went to see the Falls Of Foyers, a short drive from Dores.

It was spectacular, never seen so much water coming over the falls before.

New shower heads, same great showers, less water

2009-08-18T14:17:00.000-07:00

At Pottery House our Green Tourism Award and our ecologically safe practises are an important aspect of our business.

So recently we replaced all the shower heads in the house with Mira Eco Shower Heads. They work by aerating the water so you get the same volume and powerful water output, but they use up to 75% less water (and therefore the energy required to heat the water).

We trialed one of these is these in our own shower first and thought it was great, really didn't notice much difference, so now we've replaced all the shower heads in the guest en-suites too.

More details Daisy Green Magazine

Ness Express - New Boat Trip On Loch Ness

2009-08-14T10:26:00.000-07:00

There's a new boat service on Loch Ness and the word is it's proving very popular.

It's a RIB (Rigid Inflatable Boat) and runs every 2 hours from Fort Augustus to Urquhart Castle and back, about a 90 min trip.

More details on their web site Ness Express

Continual Imrprovement At Pottery House

2009-08-13T03:18:00.000-07:00

We're always looking to improve the service and quality at Pottery House, so this week we have had a credit card machine installed.

Although our online payments system has served us well we thought it time we took the extra step of accepting most major credit and debit cards at the house, making payment simpler for our guests.

Our online payments system will remain so guests can still view their bill online.

Raspberry and Gooseberry Jam

2009-07-25T08:47:00.000-07:00

We're been to our favourite fruit farm this week and picked lots of fruit for jam making. Sadly we missed the strawberries, the farm owners told us they were two weeks earlier this year due to the fabulous weather we've had in the late Sprint and early Summer.

But we did pick basket of raspberries and two of red gooseberries. The jam is all made and we even had enough gooseberries to make a gallon of wine too.

Guests often ask if they can buy some of our jam, sadly we don't make enough to sell on, and what we do make is served each morning for breakfast. However it's not difficult to make and we're now added the recipe we use to the Recipes page of the Pottery House web site.

The finished product.

More teapots addded to the colelction

2009-07-15T10:53:00.000-07:00

Our teapot collection is well known, however until recently all our pots were large so if you wanted tea for one you beverage was served in a boring old white pot.

Not any more, recently a guest told us of a company that make and sell unusual pots and when we saw their web site we just couldn't resist.

SO the following two pots have now been added to our collection, and we love em.

Their web site is The teaPottery

Breakfast Room Rearranged

2009-07-13T05:26:00.000-07:00

At Pottery House we're always pleased to receive guest feedback and as often as possible we implement changes as a consequence. Sometimes changes can be made very easily, others they take more time to organise.

Re-organising the dinning room has been a long term project, but at last we've made the changes some guests have asked for.

Until last Friday our dinning room had to tables, one for two people and one for four. This did mean that if we have 3 separate couples staying two couples had to share a table, not everyone was comfortable with this, and to be honest if we were staying somewhere we'd feel the same.

The problem with implementing a change has been obtaining square tables of a good size and quality that match the existing furniture. After a lot of searching on the Internet we finally found a supplier and the tables arrived early last week. On Friday when we had a day off we completely stripped the room down, put in the new tables and removed some items to give more space.

We now have 3 separate tables and more space to lay out items for breakfast. We think the room looks great. Hopefully you'll feel the same.

Rhubarb and ginger jam

2009-06-28T15:16:00.000-07:00

The jam making season is upon us again, and the first one of the season is rhubarb and ginger.

If you'd like to have a go the recipe we use is now on our web site.

Pottery House Web Site: Rhubarb & Ginger Jam

Climbing Dun Dearduil

2009-06-16T11:17:00.000-07:00

Went for a walk/climb with friends to the top of Dun Dearduil yesterday. A nice dry day here but some flashes of lightening in the distance.

Loch Ness across to Urquhart Castle

Down Loch Ness towards Fort Augustus

On top of Dun Dearduil

Down Loch Ness towards Fort Augustus

Dores Inn has lifejackets on the menu

2009-05-31T13:49:00.000-07:00

The Dores Inn hosted a sea safety day with Loch Ness RNLI this weekend.

Dores beach was filled with spectators as the volunteers from Loch Ness RNLI carried out a simulated rescue and delivered a Sea Safety and Lifejacket awareness message.

There's more details on the Loch Ness RNLI web site

Aqualega Success

2009-05-30T11:15:00.000-07:00

We have many aqualega in the garden that come up every year, but they are mostly purple and white varieties so I wanted to grow something a bit more exotic.

So I grew Aqualega from seed last year, kept them in pots over the winter and planted them out this year. They've just started to flower, they are amazingly colourful.

Highlands Hotter Than Rhodes Today

2009-05-30T11:11:00.000-07:00

Just seen the BBC weather forecast and it said that the Highlands was the warmest place in the UK today. In fact it was warmer than places like Rhodes and The Canaries. It has been a beautiful day.|

Splash The Goldfish Joins the Pottery House Team

2009-05-14T12:57:00.000-07:00

If you've stayed at Pottery House, especially if you are a tea drinker you're probably aware of our unusual teapot collection.

There are buses, post boxes, telephone boxes, teddy bears, snowmen, teapots with legs, a millenium teapot and even a house brick.

The latest addition to the Pottery House collection is "Splash The Goldfish"!!!!

Plum Jam 2009

2009-04-17T05:55:00.000-07:00

Ok, it's not ready just yet.

However if you stayed at Pottery House between now and last October you've probably enjoyed some of our home made plum jam, but did you realise the plums came from the garden.

We have one tree, but last year we had so much fruit from it that we made pies, crumbles, jam and even two gallons of wine.

At the moment the tree is covered in beautiful white blossoms, so here's hoping for a bumper crop again this year.

New Chicken Coop Roof

2009-04-12T11:29:00.000-07:00

For some time now we've been aware that the roof of the chicken coop was getting old and leaking a bit. Then over recent weeks it has started to colapse.

So we've been waiting for some good weather so we could get out there and replace it. Over the Easter weekend the sun has been shining, so yesterday we stripped the old roof away, reinforced the frame and put a new roof on.

Today we felted the roof to make sure it's water-proof.

And it looks great. Hope the chickens appreciate all the hard work.

Kitchen Changes At Pottery House

2009-04-07T05:49:00.000-07:00

Not wanting to rest on our laurels, one area of Pottery House that we've wanted to improve for some time now is breakfast.

We get many positive comments about breakfast, and that's great, but we want to increase the choice and offer some more sophisticated options. However we are strongly against the idea used in many B&Bs of asking guests for breakfast choices the night before and intend sticking by that. As it says on our web site.......

"We don't know what we'll fancy for breakfast tomorrow, so we don't expect you to".

That brings with it a problem, although Pottery House was built for B&B the kitchen only had a standard 4 ring hob. Just cooking a full Scottish breakfast on this was challenging, especially when all 6 guests come down to breakfast at the same time, offering more complicated options was almost impossible.

There were other design issues with the kitchen, the oven was next to the fridge so the oven was trying to warm the fridge up and the fridge was trying to cool the oven down. Also the fridge was quite small limiting the amount of fresh produce we could store. And the electric Hob was very slow, making it take longer to prepare breakfasts.

However last week all changed. We now have a large American style fridge/freezer so we can store more produce and have a ready supply of filtered water and ice, for us and guests. And we have a large 7 ring gas range cooker (there was previously no gas at Pottery House).

It's proving a challenge getting used to the new set-up, not least because nothing is where you expect it to be. And the gas hob is very fast and far more responsive, I have managed to set the smoke detector off every morning this week so far (no burnt breakfasts I hasten to add).

Once things have settled down and we're used to the new set-up we will extend and improve our current breakfast menu.

Red Squirrels Are Now regular Visitors

2009-04-05T14:11:00.000-07:00

We are delighted that the red squirrels are now regular visitors to the two feeders we have at Pottery House.

Most mornings they appear at breakfast time, much to the delight of many of our guests.

First Signs Of Spring

2009-02-25T09:39:00.000-08:00

After we had almost 10 days of snow laying on the ground the Spring bulbs were very much on hold. But over the past week the temperatures have been up to 10 degrees C and the garden is making up for lost time.

First as always to burst into flower signalling the end of winter is the snowdrops. And this year they seem particularly prolific, even groups that we've dug up, split and spread out in other places seem to have grown well and are covered in white bell like flowers.

And it's not just us, they are flowering well in other peoples gardens too, and even appearing on grass verges and the Loch side where I've never noticed them before.

Such a welcome sight.

Dead wood bounty on bird reserve

2009-02-15T11:02:00.000-08:00

We are "Friends Of Abernethy" donating to help preserve and expand this Scottish woodland.

It's good to see that the recent cold weather is having a positive effect in places.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/scotland/highlands_and_islands/7888898.stm

Marmalade Time - The Finished Product

2009-02-14T08:48:00.001-08:00

You can't beat the tang and intense orange flavour of home made marmalade.

Marmalade Time

2009-02-13T13:52:00.000-08:00

It's that time of year again, when the seville oranges are in season so it's time to make marmalade for the coming season.

Land Of Narnia Found at Pottery House

2009-02-05T13:47:00.000-08:00

After several days of various reports of a snow struck UK and not a flake in the Highlands, finally the snow reached us.....and what a beautiful day.

Here are a couple of photos, click to see full sized.

The full set of photos are on the Pottery House Photo Gallery at Pottery House Photo Gallery Snow Pictures 2009