Sandwood Bay

Sandwood Bay is widely regarded as one of the most beautiful and remote beaches in Britain — a vast sweep of pink sand backed by high dunes, with a dramatic sea stack, Am Buachaille, rising from the waves at its southern end, reached only on foot across genuinely wild moorland.

The route starts from a car park at Blairmore, north of Kinlochbervie. A well-maintained path — much improved in recent years by the John Muir Trust, who manage the surrounding land — heads out across open moorland, passing several small lochs including Loch a' Mhuilinn, with Sandwood Loch eventually coming into view ahead. The path continues alongside the loch before the final approach reveals the beach itself, a spectacular and often utterly deserted expanse of sand, framed by the towering sea stack at its southern end and backed by high, grass-topped dunes.

The beach has long been associated with local legend — said to be haunted by the ghost of a shipwrecked sailor, and by tales of mermaids sighted along the shore. There is a bothy at Strathchailleach, slightly off the direct route, offering basic shelter for those extending their visit into an overnight stay, though most day walkers simply spend time exploring the beach and dunes before retracing their steps back to Blairmore.

This is a long but straightforward out-and-back walk on generally good paths, though the surrounding moorland is exposed and can be boggy in places — full waterproofs and sturdy boots are recommended given the remote, unsheltered nature of this coastline, and there are no facilities of any kind at the bay itself.

Parking at Blairmore is free; there is no public transport to the start, with Kinlochbervie the nearest village with services.