Where it all began

How we became the custodians of Keeper's Cottage

Keeper’s Cottage, the weekend we moved in, August 2022.

Before I start my First Official Ramble From Keeper’s Cottage can I just take a moment to say HELLO! and a huge thank you to each of you for subscribing to my little corner of Substack. Since I ‘revealed myself to you on the internet’ yesterday - so to speak - I have woken up to over 500 of you lovely folks who’ve subscribed. I know numbers are only one part of it, but to have so many of you sign up voluntarily, well, that’s just incredibly humbling, and does give a wee chap with little confidence a nice boost. Of course, now the pressure is on to deliver.

I intend to approach this space in much the same way I approach Instagram. A rather chaotic and unplanned stream of consciousness - just another way of telling the stories of our new chapter in Bonnie Scotland. But, as I said yesterday, if you have any particular questions or topics you would like me to cover, just send me an Instagram message or leave a comment on any of these posts.

Right, I best get cracking. With so many of you signed up, I guess a sensible place to start is at the beginning and tell the story of how we ended up being the latest custodians of Keeper’s Cottage.

What happens when you drink some wine and go on Rightmove?

I am sure many of us (though not all, I appreciate) might have a number of stories in our repertoire that begin along the lines of ‘so, I’d had a glass of wine and…’. I’ve done it on a number of occasions, often finding a new cook book or item of homeware being delivered a few days later. There was even one morning when I woke to a voicemail from the chap at our local MINI garage to confirm whether we really wanted to purchase both MINIs we’d popped a little deposit down on. We didn’t. I did end up buying one to safe face.

Anyway, I digress. You can see how this is going to go, can’t you?

I had, for a number of years, holidayed on the West of Scotland as a young ‘un. I remember my first visit to Glencoe and being absolutely blown away by the rugged wildness of the landscape. We stayed in a cabin nestled amongst the Three Sisters and to this day that place remains as majestic as it did all those years ago. It was the only place I really remember feeling so calm and at peace. I wasn’t a huge reader as a child, but when we stayed in these cabins, I would sit outside, looking over the mountains (or rather the mountains looking over me) and just consume book after book.

In 2019, blissfully unaware that in 2020 everything would grind to a halt and overseas holidays would be put on the backburner for some time, I suggested to Paul that we take a holiday in the Highlands. We found a wee cottage just outside Loch Lomond on the banks of the beautiful Loch Long. We packed the car for our first UK-based holiday and it felt incredibly liberating to not have to worry about arrival times (no horrible airport check in) or the weight of a suitcase (meaning I could pack all my books… ever the optimist).

We had a lovely trip up. The sun was shining. We stopped off at the pretty village of Luss, where we enjoyed a spot of lunch outside. Instantly, I could feel the tension of everyday life dissipating. Our rental cottage in Succoth (it took all our effort not to refer to it as ‘Suck O…’ okay, you get the picture, and we agree, very, very childish) and it was everything we had hoped for and expected. We were at the foot of The Cobbler, and we saw deer wandering past the windows on a morning. I could fast feel that Scottish Highland loveliness seeping back into my body. The following day we learned of the sad passing of Paul’s grandma. It wasn’t unexpected, but still, these things are always poignant. We were told to stay on holiday, there was nothing we could do, it is what she would have wanted. So we did. And with the help of a friend to navigate us and provide the encouragement we needed, he took us up The Cobbler (I am so sorry, I just can’t help it).

Up The Cobbler, July 2019. I miss that T-shirt.

On a serious note, if I may, this was a moment where we felt like we were truly On Top of The World. And it was the most perfect place for us to take a moment and reflect on the news we’d just received. It’s so difficult to put into words how everything felt. We felt At Home. The sun was shining, and you could just see for miles. We saw a stag approach across the ridge. The whole thing was so majestic, that even to this day I can feel the sun and smell that distinctive Scottish air. It is fair to say this was the moment when our Highland Fantasies began.

Fast forward through a pandemic (where we did, each evening, trawl Rightmove for houses in Scotland, which at that time were significantly more affordable than when we joined the masses planning our exodus from England). We revisited Scotland in September 2021, stopping off in a couple of places in Ayrshire and Argyll. This confirmed everything we suspected. Scotland was going to be our home. The plan quickly went from a retirement plan, to a five year plan to well, six months’ later arriving at our very own crumbling cottage.

After our September 2021 trip, things started to get more serious. We knew we wanted to do it, and with various things going on in our lives - not to mention the global pandemic which really did make many of us realise quite how fragile this whole thing is - we started to question why we were waiting for retirement. I checked things out at work, and they were supportive of my working from home permanently, with the occassional visit to Sheffield when time permitted. And Paul started looking for other jobs, knowing it wouldn’t be so easy for him to work remotely. The wheels were in motion.

So, Keeper’s Cottage? Come on, get to the point…

Sorry. I told you this would be a ramble. After the 2021 holiday, I was hitting Rightmove hard. I had set up an account and was saving favourites. I was searching in particular areas, though when we came to do the move properly we actually viewed houses across the whole of Scotland. That’s a story for another day.

Keeper’s Cottage was one that made it into my favourites. Paul didn’t see it in quite the same way I did. But for some reason, this quaint little Scottish cottage got to me. In March 2022, when our house went on the market, I revisited Rightmove. Keeper’s Cottage, understandably had sold. The market was hot. Everything was selling. We were finding ourselves in bidding war after bidding war, mostly with cash buyers. We were not. So immediately we were on the back foot. We had a number of ‘the ones that got away.’ We nearly gave up. We were sat in a coffee shop in Selkirk completely deflated. We were getting outbid. Things were selling before we could even get to see them. The dream felt like it was slipping away. I then got an email. I had been getting lots of estate agent emails, and was starting to get quite blasé about them.

Then, I re-read it. ‘Paul,’ I said, nearly choking on my flat white, ‘look, this has come back on the market’. It was, you’ve guessed it, Keeper’s Cottage. The only house I’d emailed an agent about asking to be notified if it came back on the market. Unexpectedly, the sale fell through at the last minute.

We were in Scotland. We had a chance to view. It felt too good an opportunity to miss.

The viewing didn’t go great. It was a dreich day, the cottage had been empty for some time and alongside that damp, coldness that comes with a house that hasn’t been heated and in one of the wettest parts of the UK, it was also a doer-upper. Argh. Other than being in Scotland, it didn’t really tick many boxes. For Paul certainly. I’d fallen in love with the kerb appeal and the conservatory. All I’d ever wanted was a conservatory.

Viewing day. Paul captured me falling in love, April 2022.

Many (*many*) discussions later, and another offer refused, we decided to bite the bullet. It might not have been what we wanted per se, but it was close to Inveraray, which is a place we loved.

And that is where it all started.

Of course, the process then was hideous, and the emotional rollercoaster we rode was one I don’t ever wish to repeat. But we did it. Whether we liked it or not, there was no turning back.

Spoiler alert: it turned out pretty darn good.

I will leave it there for now, because frankly, you all deserve a rest. And another cuppa. But over the coming weeks, I’ll flit between projects we’re doing and days out, as well as stories of the move, and the work we’ve done to Keeper’s so far.

But once again, a huge thank you for following along, I hope you enjoyed this installment. If you did, I’d be ever so grateful for a wee comment, and if you '*really* liked it, perhaps tell a pal? Or give us a quick mention over on Instagram. It’s your word of mouth and support that makes these things happen!

Much love,

Gareth xx