Your heart is sure to be in the highlands after viewing all that Challenger Estate has to offer, says Penny Churchill.
If ‘the good life’ appeals, you can find it in Sutherland, where Rod Christie of Galbraith in Inverness proposes the pristine, 937-acre Challenger estate, two miles from the Highland village of Lairg and 49 miles from Inverness.
It’s a place full of potential, as Rod explains: ‘Although the main focus in recent years has been on conservation, there is significant potential to further develop the forestry, upland livestock farming, natural capital and, indeed, the residential properties on the estate’. The estate is for sale as a whole for £1.7 million.
The estate comes with superb trout fishing on Lochs Craggie and Dola, together with permanent pasture and more than 700 acres of hill grazing. The land rises to about 1,000ft above sea level at the summit of Meall Dola, with dramatic views towards the peaks of Ben Klibreck, Ben Hope and Ben More Assynt.
Some 42 acres of native woodland, primarily birch, have been managed to encourage regeneration over the past 20 years and the rest of the land offers significant woodland planting potential, the agents suggest.
The residential element of the estate is equally uncomplicated, comprising the 2,549sq ft, three-bedroom main lodge, a neat, timber-frame, 1990s building with harled block walls under a pitched slate roof.
Close by is The Bothy, a single-storey, tin-clad structure with two reception rooms, two bedrooms, a kitchen and a bathroom.
Both houses are powered by a wind turbine located behind Challenger Lodge. At the westernmost point of the estate stands a modern, two-bedroom farmhouse built in 2004, which could be bought with a farm building and 9½ acres of land for £300,000, with the estate as a whole on offer at £1.7m.
Challenger Estate is currently on the market via Galbraith for £1.7 million for the whole — see more pictures, or enquire with the agent for further details.
Lairg: What you need to know
Location: Lairg is a village in Sutherland, Scotland, also known as the ‘crossroads to the north.’ It is 49 miles from Inverness and lies on the southern shores of Loch Shin. There is a railway station within the village.
Atmosphere: The village is home to a post office, hotel, primary school and village shop, with nearby Golspie and Dornoch home to further amenities and facilities.
Things to do: As with many of these large Scottish estates, the fishing, country sports, walking and general ‘outdoors’ lifestyle on offer is unparalleled. On the outskirts of Loch Shin, salmon leap upstream from June- September, and is said to be one of the best places to witness their migration.
Schools: Lairg Primary School is the local primary School, with Rosehall Primary School and Achfary Primary School also nearby. Golspie High is a local secondary option, as is Kinlochbervie High School.
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