Sandwood Bay
Sandwood Bay in the Sutherland district of the far northwest of Scotland is one of the most remote and most beautiful beaches in Britain, a kilometre-long strand of pink shell-sand backed by an extensive dune system and the freshwater Sandwood Loch that is accessible only by a walk of approximately four miles from the end of the nearest road at Blairmore near Kinlochbervie. The combination of the remoteness, the extraordinary quality of the beach, the sea stack of Am Buachaille rising from the Atlantic offshore and the vast Sutherland sky creates a landscape experience of extraordinary power that rewards the effort of the walk emphatically. The beach faces southwest into the Atlantic and receives the full force of the ocean swell, its sand constantly in motion and the waves capable of considerable size and power in the frequent Atlantic storms. In calm conditions the turquoise water over the pink sand creates a colour combination of striking beauty that is entirely unexpected in the latitude of northwest Scotland, and the combination of the beach colours, the sea stack and the dunes provides a photogenic composition that has made Sandwood one of the most published beach photographs in Scotland. The sea stack of Am Buachaille rises about sixty metres from the sea immediately south of the beach and provides a dramatic focal point for the view from the shore. The stack is separated from the mainland cliff by a deep channel and its ascent, accomplished by a handful of rock climbers, requires significant technical skill and commitment. The ghost of a bearded sailor, said to haunt the old shepherd's cottage above the beach, is one of the most reported of Highland apparitions, with numerous accounts from different periods. Whether or not this gives pause, Sandwood Bay's atmosphere of complete solitude and elemental natural power makes it an experience unlike any other on the Scottish coast.