It wasn’t meant to be this way. I only set out to do some walking in Scotland, but things escalated. I have lived in the North West of England for 30 years and I cut my hiking teeth in the Lake District.
Having scaled the 214 Wainwright fells (peaks within the boundary of the Lake District National Park), I was looking for another long-term walking project.
I set my sights on Scotland and visiting some of the castles, lochs, coastlines and national parks of the Highlands and islands.
The plot twist arrived during my first trip to Wester Ross in the north-west Highlands in September 2019, when I walked to Red Point beach near the village of Gairloch. Alone, with views across to Uig and Skye, I felt a visceral sense of vitality and wonder.
After visiting four more deserted beaches on the same trip, I decided to create the Scottish Beach Project, an online record of my travels with a catalogue of my photographs.
Over the years since, walks to beaches on the Isles of Islay, Jura, Colonsay, Mull, Iona, Gigha, Tiree and the Outer Hebrides were to follow, as well as many on the west coast mainland.
To my surprise, the project has caught people’s imagination, with almost 10,000 people from around the world following it on X, formerly Twitter.
I estimate there are more than 500 named beaches in Scotland. I tend to plan four or five short visits a year, seeing 15 to 20 beaches each time. More than 150 of the 171 beaches I’ve been to were deserted – I love the solitude. I have seen cows on the beach, sheep in the dunes, otters in the rock pools, seals out to sea and eagles overhead, as well as fascinating rock formations.
It has been life-changing. I have wondered at the scenery, been inspired by the people I have met and humbled by the views.
Among the 171 beaches I have visited so far, these are my favourites.
For epic views
In the far north-west of the mainland, the wonderful Sandwood Bay, Achmelvich and Balnakeil can all be visited on a single trip from a base at Lochinver, Durness, or anywhere in between, such as the village of Kinlochbervie.
In the Outer Hebrides, the beaches of Luskentyre, Seilebost and Scarista deserve their reputation for beauty, as do the magnificent West Beach on Berneray and Sanna Bay on the Ardnamurchan peninsula.
But West Beach is the one to beat, with Traigh Mheilein on the Isle of Harris and Kiloran Bay on the Isle of Colonsay a close second and third for their visual impact. West Beach is a long sweeping white-sand beach with high dunes; Traigh Mheilein is remote, with lush green pasture and turquoise water; while Kiloran Bay is a golden arc best admired from the surrounding hills.
For island explorers
The islands of the Outer Hebrides offer Caribbean-like beaches, with peacock-blue water. Both the Isle of Harris and the neighbouring Isle of Lewis are idyllic, while the west coast of Barra has a string of white-sand beaches. Further south on Vatersay, you can watch the resident cows on the beach at Bagh A’deas. The flat, low isle of Tiree has golden beaches around its entire coastline, including the epic sweeps of the Maze and Gott Bay.
Islay has warm hospitality where everyone waves as you drive by. I stayed at Glenegedale House. Islay’s best beach is Saligo Bay, with white sand, volcanic rock pools, and dramatic waves.
Meanwhile, the Isle of Gigha, which is served year-round by a ferry from Tayinloan, Kintyre, has unspoilt beaches at its northern and southern tips.
Top billing, however, goes to the Isle of Mull’s entries, including Calgary Bay in the north and Knockvologan in the south. From Mull, it is a short ferry to Iona: try the island’s north-end beaches. The drive to the Iona ferry at Fionnphort must be one of the most spectacular in Scotland, with mountains, lochs and side roads leading to hidden beaches.
For hardened hikers
I enjoy the challenge of a hike to a remote beach, and Sandwood Bay requires a four-mile shift from the village of Blairmore. My anticipation built with every step as the brown gorse landscape gave way to green grazing pastures and slowly, the huge dunes appeared in the distance. I heard the waves before I saw them. The immense scale and power of the scenery was overwhelming.
Then there is the three-mile yomp from Knockvologan farm through a nature reserve to reach Traigh Ghael on the Isle of Mull, and the brutal, six-mile Evans’s Walk to Glenbatrick Bay across the Isle of Jura.
Smirisary and Camas nan Geall on the north-west Ardnamurchan peninsula require an hour’s walk from beach car parks off the main coast road, while beaches of the Udal peninsula in North Uist are best tackled with hiking boots and a packed lunch when arriving from the village of Grenitote.
For tiny coves
The Scottish coast is littered with small, perfectly formed coves and bays, often framed by rolling hills and imposing cliffs.
Some sit right by the road; others hide out of sight. I have soft spots for Coldbackie in Sutherland, Slaggan Bay in Wester Ross, Scoor Beach on Mull and Crabhadail on Harris. I visited Coldbackie beach on a cold, magical winter morning as the sun rose over tongue bay.
Slaggan Bay is a straight out and back walk from the fishing village of Aultbea, past a lily-filled loch to a jaw-dropping bay, which once served a crofting village.
Scoor is first encountered from high above the surrounding cliffs. Crabhadail is a remote bay often hiked to from Huisinish, which can be combined with a walk to Traigh Mheilein.
Follow the Scottish beach project on @scottishbeach or scottishbeachproject.com
