Fishing:

There are an abundance of hill lochs on Coll; some close, others involving a long walk into the emptiness of the hill, some with small trout, some with bigger trout and others with no trout at all. Rob can point you in the right direction, or even take you out there himself. He usually jumps at any excuse to get out with the rod. He is also trying to establish migratory fish in a couple of loch systems. Fingers crossed there may be something silver to catch in future years.

The sea around Coll offers fishing as good as any you will find up the West Coast. From the shore, large pollack, as well as saithe and mackerel can be caught on spinning tackle, particularly off the inshore wreck marks. Boats can also be chartered, again focusing mainly on the above species, but the specialist could turn his attention to the likes of Tope, flatties, and maybe even the mammoth skate.
 

Falconry:

Hawks have been flown at rabbits and geese, and Peregrine tiercels at snipe, duck and pheasant at Cliad.

Unfortunately pressure of time means that Rob is not flying any birds at present. He is however hopeful for the future.

 

Shooting:

From September to January, shooting can be organised. There is exceptional sport to be had, shooting woodcock and the prolific snipe over pointers, flighting geese and duck, both of which are found in great numbers here, and hopefully before too long, walking up our growing populations of wild partridge and grouse.

Quality goose flighting still available in late summer. 2005 looking like a bumper year for Coll’s greylag population. Also still one slot available in Dec/Jan for woodcock shooting over pointers among the hill heather. Contact Rob on rob@isleofcoll.net for more details.

There is a demanding little 9-hole links course at Cliad, run by the Coll Golf Club. It is only maintained through the summer months, but is quite a challenging round nonetheless. Clubs are available at the house.

 

Cycling and Walking:

Bikes are available at Cliad, on which you can explore the island and its flat roads. You can also walk in any direction you like from the house, to the dunes, or the moors, the lochs, the beach, or maybe the pub. Take your pick.

Birdwatching: Exceptional, both on the RSPB reserve and off it. Cliad had 9 calling corncrakes around it last summer, elusive, but still frequently seen.

Flowers: The dunes, meadows and hill margins must be seen in June , July and August to appreciate the sheer volume and colour of the flora here.

Beaches, seascapes, larksong, drumming snipe, surfing, boat-trips, winkling, razoring, shrimp-netting, kite-flying, dune-skiing, etc, etc all available over here.

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