UNIQUE COTTAGES

North Uist (Uibhist a Tuath)

Compared to the mountainous scenery of Harris, North Uist - seventeen miles long and thirteen miles wide - is much flatter and for some comes as something of an anticlimax. Over half the surface area is covered by water, creating a distinctive peaty-brown lochan-studded "drowned landscape". Most visitors come here for the trout and salmon fishing and the deerstalking, both of which (along with poaching) are critical to the survival of the island's economy. Others come for the smattering of prehistoric sites and sheer peace of this windy isle, and the solitude of North Uist's vast sandy beaches, which extend - almost without interruption - along the north and west coast.

Despite being situated on the east coast, some distance away from any beach, the ferry port of LOCHMADDY (Loch nam Madadh, or "Loch of the Dogs") makes a good base for exploring the island. The village itself, occupying a narrow, bumpy promontory, is nothing special, though, one place that's well worth visiting is Taigh Chearsabhagh (Mon-Sat 10am-5pm), a converted eighteenth-century merchant's house, now home to an arts centre, airy café, shop and excellent museum (£1) which is a replica Norse house where children can dress up in costume and touch everything. There's a sculpture trail starting outside the arts centre on the shore; to see the highlight, Both nam Faileas (Hut of the Shadow), an ingenious drystone, turf-roofed camera obscura, take a walk out past the Uist Outdoor Centre and across the footbridge that leads to the derelict Sponish House. The tourist office (mid-April to mid-Oct Mon-Fri 9am-5pm, Sat 9.30am-5.30pm; also open to greet the evening ferry; tel 01876/500321), near the quayside, has local bus and ferry timetables, and can help with accommodation. There are a couple of nice Victorian B&Bs, north off the main road: try the Old tel Courthouse (tel 01876/500358, mjohnson@oldcourthouse.fsnet.co.uk; £40-50). A little further north lies the Uist Outdoor Centre (tel 01876/500480, www.uistoutdoorcentre.co.uk), which has hostel accommodation in four-person bunk rooms, and offers a wide range of outdoor activities, from canoeing round the indented coastline to "rubber tubing". The bar in the Lochmaddy Hotel is lively and serves the usual bar meals, but it's currently not a place to recommend staying in.

Several prehistoric sights lie within easy cycling distance of Lochmaddy (or even walking distance if you use the postbus for the outward journey). The most significant is the Barpa Langass, a large, mostly intact, chambered cairn seven barren miles to the southwest along the A867; a mile to the southeast is the small stone circle of Pobull Fhinn. Three miles northwest of Lochmaddy along the A865 is Na Fir Bhreige (The Three False Men), three standing stones which, depending on your legend, mark the graves of three spies buried alive, or three men who deserted their wives and were turned to stone by a proto-feminist witch.

North Uist's other main draw is the Balranald RSPB Reserve, one of the last breeding grounds of the corncrake, among Europe's most endangered birds. Sightings are rare, partly because the birds are very good at hiding in long grass, but the males' loud "craking" is relatively easy to hear from May to July. From the excellent new visitor centre, there's a two-hour walk along the headland, marked out by discreet white pegs, giving you ample opportunity for appreciating the wonderful carpet of flowers that covers the machair in summer, and for spotting corn buntings and arctic terns inland and gannets and Manx shearwaters out to sea - guided walks take place throughout the summer (May-Aug Tues & Thurs 2pm; tel 01878/602188). On a clear day you can see the unmistakable shape of St Kilda, seeming miraculously near. Another hostel worth noting is Taigh mo Sheanair (tel 01876/580246), a very welcoming, family-run place, where you can also camp; it's a clearly signposted fifteen-minute walk from the main road, south of the crossroads at Clachan.

List of cottages in this area:

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