Rural idyll yours for £200,000 (just don’t expect to nip out to the shops)

FOR people looking for the ultimate escape, this house could be just the ticket. It can be reached only on foot or by boat and, with the nearest neighbours more than four miles away and an eight-hour round trip to the “local” supermarket, it is thought to be one of the most remote addresses in Scotland.

However, despite its lack of facilities, the 181-year-old stone cottage has been put on the market for offers over £200,000.

The house sits in three acres on the shore of a sea loch on the Knoydart peninsula in the West Highlands, and boasts breathtaking views across the Sound of Sleat, the Cuillins on Skye, with whales, dolphins, porpoises and otters often seen from the kitchen window. Getting there is no easy task – there is no road to the house. Even reaching the only village of Inverie nine miles away is a 90-minute journey that involves a two-mile walk to the beginnings of a track, followed by a two-mile ride on a quad bike, to meet a Land Rover to cover the remaining seven-mile journey on a bumpy dirt track.

The alternative is a three-hour walk – just to reach a village that itself can only be reached by boat or by walking from the nearest road, 18 miles away over the hills.

After living in the house they restored from a ruin 30 years ago, owners Mick 62, and Joyce Simpson have decided to sell up.

The pair survived by growing their own vegetables as well as catching fish, lobsters and prawns, combined with long journeys to the supermarket to “stock up”. They also raised their two children, Romi, 33, and Amber, 27, there.

Knoydart boasts the Old Forge, officially the remotest pub in Britain. Not that Mr Simpson is a regular. “Because it is a bit of journey I have not been for a while. You cannot pop out to the pub for a quick pint here,” he said.

Mr Simpson, who cites ill-health combined with a desire to spend more time with his grandchildren, as the reasons for selling up, said although it was a stunning home, it was not for the faint-hearted.

“This place is not for everybody. It is not all romance – you cannot live off a view. Life can be very hard at times here. There are days – some times days on end – when the weather will determine what you can and cannot do.

“The biggest problem is seeing your dinghy picked up by the wind and being blown three miles across the loch.”

He added: “When we first came here we had just candles and paraffin lamps. We have improved things progressively. We even have a microwave now.

“Life has changed a lot for us over the years. We have got everything you need in a stunning location. There is a uniqueness to this place and that has a value.”