43. Cuddyport Beach

I stay over at the Gigha Hotel (seriously impressive food) and sleep well. It’s rained overnight but it looks dry and clear this morning. I only have a few hours on the island before catching the ferry back to the mainland, so I’m out at 7.30 to walk the 40 minutes to Cuddyport Beach in the south of the island. A right turn at the popular Achamore Gardens and up a track (past nervous cows) lies this stunning little bay, almost too perfectly idyllic to be true. Actually, I take a wrong track and end up a few bays along, requiring a scramble round the headland, but it all adds to the delight when this wonderful beach comes into view. Time for a moment for reflection. Here I am, sitting on a rock, on a beautiful deserted beach, looking out at a perfectly calm ocean with blue skies overhead and the sound of gentle waves and the calls of the oyster catchers on the sand. I am so glad I decided to do this project! I return the way I should’ve arrived, via a clear path from the back of the beach, and past the confused calves to the main road.