Salen (Sunart)

Well, you certainly get a friendly welcome here; man comes out in a boat, guides you and ties you up to a mooring, gives you local information, removes your rubbish, provides the weather forecast - and charges you whopping £15 for a 32ft boat. However, the pier, house and business were up for sale in 2008, so all this may change. And in 2010 it did and the situation has improved a lot by all accounts. Salen is a slightly unsatisfactory place, however. You are put off anchoring by warnings of horrible things on the sea bed ready to trap your anchor (an advantage to the owner of the visitors moorings), all around the inlet appears to be private so there is nowhere to go ashore except at the pier (mind you a Thomas Telford construction in 1820 so stop to admire), there seems little to do except walk along the main (by Ardnamurchan standards) road, and the Salen Hotel was not a good experience when we turned up hoping politely for coffee 45 minutes before it opened at midday - in high summer too (ph 01967 431661). They have a restaurant but I am not that keen to try it. Not even a shop as far as I can see. Dull, dull. So give Salen a miss unless you are desperate for a mooring in a northerly gale. Mind you if you are prepared to leg it for three miles along the road to Strontian you could visit the Resipole Studios - a very nice sounding gallery which I have not been to, showing contemporary Scottish art, but check the opening times before you start walking (ph 01967 431506). Maybe you can anchor off Resipole bay, at least temporarily, I am not sure.