Spectacularly beautiful, the Coigach peninsula lies on the northwest coast of Scotland, facing the Summer Isles archipelago across a turbulent stretch of the North Atlantic known as the Minch.

Up until the nineteenth century, Coigach was home to thousands of people, but clearances to make way for more profitable sheep and game, along with the draw of industrialisation, led to drastic depopulation. Nowadays there are under 300 living here.

Tackling depopulation is at the heart of what we do but it’s a difficult task: house and land prices are high, making it hard for young people to be able to afford to live here. We hope to change this by providing attainable housing and attracting people with different skills to live here. With peninsula-wide improving broadband the possibility of living away from the cities in this beautiful corner of the world and working from home is becoming a reality.

Those of us fortunate enough to call Coigach home have a wonderful playground on our doorsteps: Stac Pollaidh, Ben Mor Coigach, The Fiddler and Cona Mheall are there to climb, and kayakers and swimmers can explore the cathedral-like caves and sparkling coral beaches of the Summer Isles. In 2010 our first community coastal rowing boat, the Coigach Lass, was launched and has been winning medals at regattas in Scotland and beyond ever since.

Crofting and fishing are the traditional ways of life here: the people are inextricably tied to the land and the sea and have long expressed this in their music and stories. The oral tradition is strong here: Gaelic songs have been passed down through the generations; pipes, fiddles and accordions have all been played into the wee small hours at house ceilidhs and for dances for as long as anyone cares to remember. The community has its own heritage group, Coigach Heritage, a newly registered charity with its home in the Old Drill Hall.

In short, there’s a lot going on! Coigach is a fantastic place with a rich history and huge potential.