Gannochy Estate ANGUS

Mention Gannochy in shooting circles and one of the possible responses is to talk about the Gannochy Loader - one of several devices devised in the days when well-connected Guns were looking for faster loading and bigger bags.

Gannochys such as this can actually date to 1905, when McArthur & Prain from nearby Montrose launched its patented Gannochy Rapid Load dispenser, whose name came from the Gannochy Estate in Glen Esk, where Mr McArthur was the headkeeper.

The estate itself was around much earlier than that though; records show that it existed in the 12th century when it was owned by the Stirling family. By the 18th century it was part of the expansive Dalhousie estates, where, legend claims the Laird could ride from the Invermark border to Edinburgh without leaving his own land. In the 1930s, when Gannochy’s grouse moors reached their zenith,