A Nessie hunter who has devoted half his life to searching for the elusive monster has been honoured by tourism leaders for helping promote Loch Ness to the world.
Steve Feltham, who this year marks 25 years as a full-time monster seeker, was named Ambassador of the Year at the Highlands and Islands Tourism Awards (HITA)
He was one of 16 award winners announced – from cafes to cruises and birdwatchers to B&Bs – in a record-breaking year.
HITA chairman Craig Ewan said: “Congratulations to all our worthy winners and finalists in another outstanding year. A record number of 203 entries and nominations demonstrated the high standards that have been set in this area and made the job of judging even harder than before.”
Steve Feltham’s fascination for the loch started during a family holiday in 1970 which included a visit to the Loch Ness Investigation Bureau, a team of volunteers who each summer set up a makeshift camp near Urquhart Castle.
In 1991, while in his 20s, he gave up his house and job in the family burglar alarm company in Dorset and moved to the Highlands to follow his dream. He settled at a spectacular location on the foreshore at the loch-side village of Dores, from where he has maintained his vigil, sustaining himself by making model monsters.
He has been recognised by the Guinness Book of World Record for the longest continuous vigil hunting for the Loch Ness monster.
Steve’s name has become synonymous with the world-famous loch and he is a familiar figure with locals and visitors. Businesses around Loch Ness regard him as an asset to tourism and the awards organisers say he is a walking PR company for the promotion of Loch Ness as a tourist destination, having featured in countless media programmes and articles about Nessie and the area.
He said: “Winning this award makes me realise that what I’ve been doing for two and a half decades doesn’t just make my heart sing, it has a knock-on effect for the tourism industry in the Highlands of Scotland.”
The Ambassador title is a special award given by the HITA Board to an individual who ‘goes the extra mile’ in contributing to the success of tourism in the Highlands and Islands.
Craig Ewan said it was fitting to make the award in Steve’s 25th year at Loch Ness: “Our worthy winner has immersed himself in a narrative which has become as popular as the area, attracting over 1 million visitors annually and generating in excess of £30 million to the local economy.
“He has contributed to the legend and become part of one of the greatest unsolved mysteries of the world. He has promoted the area all these years through countless television and media appearances, entertaining tourists and celebrities alike who have come to see the loch and purchase one of his hand-crafted model Nessies.”
The glittering event, held at the Kingsmills Hotel, Inverness, was addressed by Fergus Ewing MSP, Cabinet Secretary for the Rural Economy and Connectivity, who launched the awards in March.
Mr Ewing said: “The Highlands and Islands boast some of Scotland’s most stunning scenery and exciting events. The commitment and excellence of tourism operators in the Highlands and Islands is to be commended. These are skilled, knowledgeable and passionate people.
“It is their expertise and passion that will help Scotland continue to secure a competitive advantage in a truly global marketplace.”
Café Canna, the only café on the small and remote Hebridean island, was named Best Informal Eating Experience. The venue, situated 30 miles from the Scottish mainland, has become a destination of choice for holidaymakers and sailors and was praised for focusing on produce from around and about the West coast.
The Etape Loch Ness, a 66-mile cycle event around the famous waterway, starting and finishing in Inverness, was named Best Sporting Event. The Inver Restaurant, on the shores of Loch Fyne in Argyll, secured the Best Restaurant Experience title.
Judges voted the Oban Winter Festival, which features 80 events over ten days and which generated £1.3 million for the local economy last year, as Best Cultural Event or Festival, while Best Accommodation Provider was the Majestic Line, which operates tours of the west coast and Hebrides on three mini cruise ships from Dunoon. (A judges’ commendation was also given to Ardgour Estate in this category).
Mull Eagle Watch, a partnership organisation offering guided visits to view Britain’s largest bird of prey, the white-tailed eagle, won the Innovation in Tourism Award and the island picked up another honour when MacGochans in Tobermory was named Friendliest Pub/Bar.
Two awards went to Skye, with the Most Hospitable Hotel category secured by Kinloch Lodge, a family-run hotel in Skye with a renowned restaurant that retained its Michelin Star for a sixth consecutive year. Go to St Kilda, which runs tourist trips from Uig to the UK’s only UNESCO Dual World Heritage Site and National Nature Reserve, won the Best Outdoor/Adventure Experience.
EcoVentures, which runs wildlife watching trips in the Moray Firth from Cromarty, was named as Best Visitor Attraction and The Grange, Fort William, was Most Hospitable B&B or Guest House.
Scotland’s Best B&Bs, a Nairn-based marketing group of four and five-star properties, won the Working Together for Tourism award, and Andrew Jones, from Highland Experience Tours, was named Tourism and Hospitality Hero.
Two outstanding emerging talents were chosen by the judges in the Highland Rising Star section. Jon Paul Saint, head chef at Links House at Royal Dornoch, was praised for being “tireless in his passion for excellence in fine dining”. Rachael Gavan, an adventure consultant with Aviemore-based adventure holiday company Wilderness Scotland, was said to have “a clear passion for helping people, loves Scotland and her enthusiasm is infectious”.
Both will undertake a week-long Hospitality Industry Scotland scholarship to the oldest hotel school in the world, the Ecole Hoteliere de Lausanne in Switzerland.
HITA winners, with the exception of the Highland Rising Star and Highland Ambassador categories, will go on to compete at the glittering Scottish Thistle Awards next year.
HITA, which is run in association with SSE, is recognised as one of the premier industry hospitality awards programmes in Scotland. The awards highlight and reward excellence throughout the sector which is worth more than £4.5 billion to the Scottish economy.