Luskentyre Beach, Isle of Harris
On the list of things to see on a visit to Harris, the white sandy bays of the west coast must come close to the top. They contrast with the narrow rocky bays on the east and on a warm sunny day can compete with beaches anywhere in the world. Days like that are not so unusual, and in the summer the sunlight continues until late in the evening when the sunsets can be spectacular.
On a chilly April day we knew we wouldn't be sunbathing on the beach. The wintry showers had been coming and going during the morning but we decided to brave the weather after lunch and set off on the short drive over to the west side of the island. It was bright when we left Crowlin, our holiday house at Lackalee, but as we drove on the A859 over the low hill to the other side the clouds were building up again ahead of us.
The main road comes down close to the shore at the south side of Luskentyre Bay, just after passing the end of the Coffin Path from Lackalee. There's a parking space overlooking the bay and we stopped there. As the girls put on their wellies and anoraks and took the fishnets out of the car boot the raindrops started falling quite heavily.
Undaunted, the girls clambered down over the loose rocks that separated the layby from the wide flat sands, and started exploring. They paddled through little streams of water and scraped away at the sand with their fishnet canes, hoods firmly over their heads. Maggie and I sat tight in the car, listening to the radio, but then the rain seemed to ease a little and I went out and walked over to the girls and have a bit of a wander on the sand. It wasn't exactly what we'd hoped for, but we might have 2 more days of rain and not have another chance! Away across the bay, the shoreline of Taransay seemed to be blessed with better weather and we could see patches of sunshine.
There wasn't any improvement where we were though, and after about 20 minutes the girls gave up and returned to the car. There was a minor road on the other side of Luskentyre Bay, leading halfway to Taransay, and we decided to go there and look for some better weather.
The junction was just about half a mile, or a kilometre, back towards Tarbert, and was signposted to "Luskentyre 2 miles". It was a narrow road with good views down to the sands on our left where a few other hardy souls were stretching their legs. This was the continuation of the Coffin Path, with a cemetery at Luskentyre and an overflow burial ground half a mile further on at the end of the road.
By the time we arrived, the skies overhead were much brighter, with the prospect of some sunshine!
There was a car park and public toilets, and gate with a sandy path leading beside a burn with high sand dunes on the left and the hillside on the right. The path wasn't complete and it was necessary to climb up the sand for the final stretch - an easier route might be to climb up to the dunes immediately after going through the gate.
It's only a couple of hundred metres from the car park to the beach, and what a beach! Coming over the dunes we were suddenly confronted by this vast expanse of smooth clean sand, the line of waves, and the view of the white-capped mountains framed by Taransay and the slopes of Beinn Dubh.
The girls went straight into the surf in their wellies, splashing about and jumping over the waves as they came in. Maggie had a long walk along the beach and I tried to capture the magnificence of the views on the camera. Then we all went for a wander along the beach below the steep slopes of the dunes, heading round the corner towards Luskentyre.
There were a few other people around in little groups, coming down to the beach then disappearing again, but no-one close enough to say "hello" to. It really was a splendid place to space out.
I looked up at the conical peak of Beinn Dhubh (506m) overlooking the beach at the north-eastern end, and idly thought that it would make a good short climb from the beach. Looking at the map afterwards this looks a real possibility, maybe going on to Ben Luskentyre (436m), but then returning west and south-west down again to Luskentyre to avoid the line of crags above the main road.
However, that wasn't on the agenda that afternoon, and we returned along the beach the way we'd come with the girls making patterns in the sand with the canes of their fishnets.
Then we drove on to visit Rodel at the southern end of the island, passing a succession of beaches at Horgabost, Borve, and the wide bay at Scarastavore.
After a drive past Rodel church and down to the harbour we continued round on the narrow winding road connecting the townships of the Bays on the east coast. We were just in time for tea and scones at Skoon art cafe at Geocrab where the walls display the dazzling paintings of Andrew John Craig, who moved there from Paisley with his wife Emma and young daughter Nina. We enjoyed chatting with Nina and then with her mum and dad - they told us about a path which goes over the hill at the back of the cafe to the shore on the other side (it's marked on the map - maybe try it next time we visit). Then we left and drove the short distance back to Lackalee.
Contributed by Andrew Llanwarne
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