Islay

Scotland’s fifth-largest island may be heralded for its distilleries, but its wild beaches, spectacular sunsets and rugged interior are intoxicating with or without the famous whisky.

- By Sarah Barrell. Photographs by Alamy, AWL Images, Ardnahoe Distillery

A wild, rural treat, Islay is well worth the work it takes me to get here — a winding journey on board the Caledonian Sleeper for a dawn arrival in Glasgow. From there, it’s a final 100 miles of road, ferry or air travel to where Scotland frays gradually into the open Atlantic.

But what rewards await. The peat that perfumes Islay’s legendary whiskies dominates the landscape on this rugged Southern Hebridean isle, and while the island is synonymous with whisky, you need no real interest in the local spirit to wind up here. Its distilleries are found all over, draped along craggy bays in beautiful old farm estates — all whitewash warehouses, gabled roofs and regal smokestacks — and merit exploration even if you don’t give a damn about a dram.

There’s plenty of action for outdoors lovers, too. Even reluctant drivers will revel in navigating quiet rural lanes down to bays where sheep roam free and locals collect cockles and crab for beach picnics. But beyond the grassy dunes that back the empty, white-sand beaches, adventure beckons: skilled surfers ride fearsome Atlantic swells; birders flock to the vast, wildlife-rich tidal lochs; and hikers and bikers venture into the rural northeast for epic views of the peaks of the Paps of Jura across the water. Come for the whisky, stay for the wilderness.

DAY ONE SHELLFISH & SUNSETS

MORNING