The Legend of The Gille Dubh

Just south of Loch an Draing, a beautiful loch which lies in the middle of the Inverasdale headland, are the remains of a wood of ancient pine trees

the 18th century haunt of the Black Lad, or Gille Dubh. Seen regularly in those days, the black haired fairy wore clothing of leaves and moss. It is said that his mother was a fairy-woman but that his father was Mac an Air, an Assynt man.

Tales of the Gille Dubh are numerous but he is best remembered for his kindness to the wee lass, Jessie MacRae of the Loch an Draing crofting settlement, who became separated from her kinfolk one evening and was looked after by the Lad himself until the morning before being delivered home, safe and sound.

If the tales are to be believed, the Gille Dubh made quite a habit of looking after young girls who became lost in the Loch an Draing area, and this might well be why, in the early 19th century, five MacKenzie chieftains set out one day to shoot the poor, inoffensive creature. Fortunately for the Lad, they failed to track him down and, perhaps deciding that discretion was the better part of being a fairy, he was not seen again for many years.

There have been more recent sightings of the Gille Dubh, particularly by lone walkers in the area, who have described seeing a small, dark, boyish figure flitting between the trees, its silhouette broken up by twigs and leaves set in its unruly thatch of jet black hair.

We at the Gille Dubh Bookshop and Restaurant would be delighted to hear about all sightings of our namesake and offer free refreshment to anybody able to provide us with photographic evidence of his continuing presence.

Check out the Gille Dubh Website for recent info on the Gille Dubh