29. Uisken Beach

It’s only one o’clock and I’ve already been to wonderful Iona and back. I am now making my way back through the Ross of Mull, punctuated by visits to a series of mouthwatering south coast beaches. First up is Uisken beach, one of the finest and easily accessible of the many spectacular beaches on the Ross of Mull. I follow a short single-track road for three miles to a car park at one end of the beach. It’s a wide, sweeping bay, backed by dunes and flanked by hills, with scattered rocks and pools to make things interesting. Some locals are finishing a morning swim when I arrive, while another couple are heading onto the beach tooled up with an impressive set of bird watching gear. I’m sure I can hear the sound of seals from one of the small rocky islands offshore. I walk to the far end of the beach, sit on a perfectly sited bench and take in the view. Behind me, a cairn on the hill marks ‘The Last Look Back’ – a popular stopping point for funerals back in the day. I’ve had worse spots for lunch.