A botanical beauty in an unlikely location

When Osgood Mackenzie’s mother bought him a fair-sized parcel of land in 1860, it was rather barren and unpromising, although the setting was admittedly “bonnie” (beautiful), overlooking Loch Ewe, an inlet of the Atlantic Ocean on Scotland’s north-west coast.

Then aged only 20, Mackenzie set to work, building a mansion above the loch with views inland towards the Torridon Hills — a chain that crinkles through the Highlands and is sometimes flecked with snow in winter.

But it was what Mackenzie did next that really changed things, got people talking and has led to our arrival, as tourists, over 160 years later. After planting a shelter blanket of trees, including Scots and Scandinavian pines, to defy the strong winds and saltwater spray affecting this promontory, Mackenzie spent the following decades experimenting with plants he would import from across the globe.

And it dawned on him that, assisted by the warming currents of the Atlantic gulf stream, species that would usually struggle at such a northerly latitude (similar to Alaska and Russia’s Kamchatka Peninsula) could thrive as they do at more southerly climes, including at British horticultural havens such as Devon, Cornwall and Kew in west London.

Later expanded by Mairi, his daughter, Mackenzie’s masterpiece has been a jewel in the crown of the National Trust for Scotland since the 1950s. Road trippers will find Inverewe Garden a great pit stop on the North Coast 500, which loops from Inverness, about a 90-minute drive from here.

We’ve come by sea, a Zodiac carrying us from our cruise ship to the garden’s jetty, where a kilted bagpiper is welcoming passengers.

Loch Ewe, where we’ve dropped anchor, was an assembly point for the Allied Arctic convoys in World War II, but it’s ever so sedate today. A few seals are enjoying an early morning swim. Others are laid out on a slab of rock jutting from the loch. I can’t say I blame them.

The weather is famously changeable in these parts, but we’ve struck gold, with a brilliant sky and a glowing sun that makes the garden’s spring blooms gleam. Butterflies float by us as we pass azaleas and rhododendrons, about 400 varieties of which grow at Inverewe, some originally from China, India and Nepal, with different ones blossoming every month.

Walking the snaking, undulating trails of this 21ha garden, other sights will jostle for your attention, from Chilean monkey puzzles to Himalayan blue poppies and Mediterranean rock roses, plus the remains of trees hammered by Storm Corrie, which struck the garden with 145km/h winds in January 2022.

If you’re lucky, you may see a golden eagle flying above towering Californian redwoods or red Scottish squirrels darting by Tasmanian ferns and eucalypts. Among the garden’s most prized species are Wollemi pines that were cultivated from those discovered not far from Sydney in 1994 (scientists had previously thought this Jurassic tree had gone extinct about two million years earlier).

Tumbling by the loch, Inverewe’s terraced walled garden is planted with fruits, vegetables and flowers, including violets and camellias. It’s a nice place to pause and reflect.

You can head out on the loch with local fisherman and scallop diver, Jamie Elder, who runs cruises aboard his boat, Striker, seeking out the wildlife on the surface, underwater and in the skies above. It would be easy to spend most of the day at Inverewe.

There’s an exhibition at Inverewe House, where you can discover more about the Mackenzies. Artworks, some inspired by the garden, are hung in the adjacent Sawyer Gallery. And when you’re in the mood for refreshments, you could have lunch or tea and scones at Osgood’s Cafe. Alas, there’s not enough time for us on this outing, but coffee and croissants await us back on our ship.

+ Steve McKenna was a guest of Ponant. They have not influenced or seen this story. fact file + Inverewe Gardens is a brief but memorable highlight on Ponant’s 10-day cruise beginning in Glasgow on May 21, 2025. Calling in at ports in Scotland and the Faroe Islands, before returning to Glasgow, it’s priced from $10,420 per person, with the fare including excursions and more. See au.ponant.com

+ The wider 809ha Inverewe estate is accessible for hikers throughout the year, but the garden opens from late March to mid-November. Admission is £15 ($29) for adults. See nts.org.uk/visit/places/inverewe + For more information on visiting Scotland and Britain, see visitscotland.com and visitbritain.com