Eriska

Eriska is a flat tidal island at the entrance to Loch Creran on Scotland’s west coast. It lies in Argyll and Bute and is privately owned, first by the Buchanan-Smith family and now by Creation Gem from Hong Kong. The island serves as a hotel with wooded grounds and is inhabited, with 21 residents recorded in 2022. It is largely made of schist and slate, with a raised beach on its western side. A partly submerged Bronze Age crannog stands to the east of the bridge, dating from around 200 B.C. The estate includes about 20 hectares on the mainland and a Site of Special Scientific Interest. Eriska itself covers 145 hectares and is part of the Lynn of Lorn National Scenic Area, one of Scotland’s 40 such areas. Eriska House, built in 1884, was designed in the Scottish Baronial style by architect Hippolyte Blanc. The Blairs and Clark Hutchisons later built a bridge to connect the island to the mainland at all tides. The house became a hotel under Capt. A.D.S. Barr from 1948 until 1957. Visitors find the island’s shoreline lined with public sculptures, including a carved stone horse by Ronald Rae and an otter by Kenneth Robertson at Otter Point. The hotel occupies Eriska House, with surrounding buildings converted for guest use. The wooded grounds and tidal surroundings offer quiet walks and views over Loch Creran and Loch Linnhe. The island’s history is visible in its Bronze Age crannog and the well-preserved 19th-century house.