Welcome to The Warren Forest Garden and Eco Cabins, Clive and Julie’s ecological household, garden and woodland on the beautiful Black Isle, 13km north of Inverness in the Highlands of Scotland. As well as being our home, we offer eco friendly accommodation and creative residencies. Our focus is Permaculture, gardening with nature, arts, crafts, creativity and living lightly on the planet..
The household and gardens here are being nurtured using design and techniques to create a balanced ecosystem for people, plants and animals while also adapting to the unfolding climate and ecological crisis. We have a mosaic of meadows, forest gardens, mixed woodland, wildlife ponds and bog garden, a kitchen garden growing vegetables, salads, herbs, fruit, polycultures of wild flowers for insects and pollinators, all on 2.5 acres (1 hectare). Organic and no dig methods create healthy soil and closed loop systems ensure nothing is wasted, for example composting, wormeries, mulching, reusing/upcycling materials, and wood processing for firewood and construction.
We’ve been a part of the network of Permaculture LAND (Learning Action Network Demonstration) Centre, under the name Black Isle Permaculture & Arts, since 2018. A LAND centre is a place where guests and visitors can see how the ethics, principles, nature connection and design processes which make up ‘Permaculture’ have been applied to the physical site and how we try to live more lightly on the planet here.
OUR ACCOMMODATION
We invite you to stay in one of our cosy and comfortable woodland eco cabins, which we self built as we wanted to make them unique, sustainable and somewhere that we would love to stay ourselves! Combining environmentally friendly features, artistic touches and rustic charm, the Green Tourism Gold rated cabins are ideal for eco conscious travellers who want to experience simple living! We have two self contained cabins sited in our small woodland, called Siskin and Coll Cabin. The names are derived from the place and nature around them. Siskin is a small bird which is common around the woods. Coll is Hazel in the Ogham ancient medieval tree alphabet, and in Celtic mythology Hazel is associated with wisdom, creativity and knowledge.
SISKIN CABIN
Siskin Cabin sleeps two in a double bed, and is a compact, cosy space with a woodburner, dining/seating area, cooking facilties in a small kitchenette, a bathroom with bucket shower and compost toilet, and a tranquil outdoor deck looking over the woods and fields. Siskin cabin opened in August 2020.
Coll Cabin is our slightly larger space, and was completed in March 2022. It also sleeps two in a comfortable double bed, with a bucket shower and compost toilet in the bathroom. This cabin has a larger living space and kitchen with fridge and cooker, a woodburner and also a desk/workspace area if you are looking for a relaxing and creative space.
We had such a great time at this beautiful lodge in the woods! We felt at home right at home in the cozy cabin! Clive was very friendly and helpful! Check in was easy. Would recommend the breakfast hamper for delicious meals to start of the day! If we had the time we would have loved to stay longer! We loved the environmentally friendly way of life that is being lived here! We‘d highly recommend and hope to be back at some point!
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Lina
10 May 2024
Thank you Clive and Julie for a lovely, peaceful stay. Very helpful hosts in a beautiful location. Clive went above and beyond to make sure everything was perfect for us. Definitely recommend!
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Lucy
28 Aug 2023
Me and my husband had an amazing stay over the New Year (4 nights) and it was exactly what we were looking for - cozy eco-friendly cabin in beautiful and peaceful surroundings. Clive was very accommodating, helpful and overall with friendly but professional approach. The place itself was clean, had everything we needed for our stay and it was in a location which was easy to find. The location is also good for people who want the peace and calm of nature but stay in a close vicinity of a town - as in this case Inverness was only about a 10-15 minute drive away and you will have shops/restaurants nearby. If you're looking for a short or even a long getaway in the Scottish Highlands I would highly recommend booking this cabin! And if you're into sustainability, you would find this place very inspiring. Loved our stay and sustainability chats with Clive 🙂 !
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Tori
02 Jan 2024
In dieser wunderschönen Unterkunft lässt sich mitten im Wald ein Stück Ruhe finden. Das Haus bietet alles, was man braucht und Clive und Julie sind wundervolle Gastgeber:innen!
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Aischa
29 Aug 2024
This is a beautiful design and incredibly comfortable. Clive and Julie were so informative and helpful. They are so genuine in their sustainability and love for the planet. We can't speak highly enough of our stay!
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Sophie
10 Jul 2022
I booked the cabin to propose to my girlfriend (she said yes!). Clive and July were super hosts, balancing both attentiveness and privacy. The surrounding woodland is beautiful and they even offered us some of their locally grown veg. This is for people who enjoy the outdoors, nature and simple living. A perfect location for those who want to explore the Black Isle or visit Loch Ness. Thank you both. It will always hold a special place in our hearts.
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Callum
16 Sep 2020
Wonderful little hut in the woods. Sustainable and easy, but still all you need is there. Great to relax. Very friendly and welcoming owners. We should have planned for a longer visit in this small and cosy house.
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Annika
09 Sep 2024
Nous avons été charmé par cette cabane et avons passé un séjour formidable. La cabane est vraiment confortable, très bien agencée, bien équipée. Chaque espace est bien pensé et charmant. Un vrai moment de plaisir dans cette cabane. Merci Clive
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Tâm
12 Aug 2024
We had a lovely stay in Coll cabin. Beautiful peaceful surroundings nestled in the woods. A perfect location to relax and turn off from the outside world. The cabin was beautifully presented with everything you'd need for a couple of nights away including a very well equipped kitchen. Clive was very helpful and gave clear instructions of how to use the features of the cabin. Would recommend a stay here.
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Alison
21 Jul 2024
Clive was so welcoming, friendly and approachable. We felt comfortable the minute we arrived and even though the handbook was packed full of useful information he was happy to give us helpful advice on the best places to eat and their favourite walks. We arranged to have a walk around the forest gardens with Clive and it was inspiring to hear all about their project. So many nice walks in the area, an evening walk down to Redcastle is a must, straight from the cabin down to some amazing views. A beautiful spot, we highly recommend it.
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Stephen
07 May 2024
Clive and Julie were fantastic hosts, you can tell this place has been a labour of love and is a passion. It is a great experience and very eye opening to what your consumption actually is. It’s super cosy and comfortable, and you feel instantly at home there. You’re surrounded by serene woods and a you’re a short walk from a beautiful bay.
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Lawrie
12 May 2024
If you are interested in learning more and getting some hands on experience, then get in touch about our occasional day volunteering opportunities. We also welcome visitors by appointment, drop us an email if you are interested in visiting or volunteering [email protected]
