We weren't sure what to expect visiting the Outer Hebrides for the first time. We found Lewis to be a barren desolate landscape, littered with rusting vehicles of all kinds. There were a few interesting places and some of the beaches are beautiful, but the ever blowing wind stopped us enjoying those to the full. The tourist board promotional literature makes a big play of the wildlife on offer, but all we saw was a pair of eagles, a load of rabbits and a feral cat! The negative feelings this generated probably enhanced the niggly things we felt were wrong with the property. It could be a first class facility, with a little more attention to detail.
Our biggest problem was with the draughts, which meant we had to keep the electric heaters on more than we were comfortable with, knowing the price of electricity. This was included in the rental, but we still felt guilty about using them so frequently. The kitchen door and porch need serious attention to block out the wind, as do some of the windows which have vents that, although shut, still allow the wind through.
The new TV fell out of signal very easily and we had to watch evening TV on our laptop. In fairness to Ann, she did try to rectify the problem but with only limited success.
One of the upstairs bedrooms had very squeaky floorboards, so that every time I turned over in bed, I was woken by the creaks.
My advice is to be prepared for the isolation, as there's no local pub to chat to locals and find out what's happening in the area. In fact, there appears to be very little interaction between the people of Shawbost. That's not to say they're not friendly when you're out and about. In fact we met some lovely people on our travels.
It's not all doom and gloom though. The kitchen diner is modern and relatively well appointed, apart from the lack of a coule of pint glasses! The en suite bed is comfy and the shower id great. The lounge fire is cosy and burns really well - that well, in fact, that logs are soon despatched up the chimney and new supplies are required.
I'll finish by saying we're not townies but live in a Yorkshire village, having previously lived in the Lake District, so we're used to not having all the amenities of city life. Thanks Ann, it was an experiece and with our other stops in Scotland wrapped round it, an overall enjoyable trip.
