Everyone returns to Point Sands. A favourite summer spot for discerning seals and dolphins, it has recently seen little terns, one of the UK’s rarest sea birds, come back to nest in the sandbanks after 23 years. And peace-loving campers who discover this sanctuary never stay away for long.
The campsite is now feeling particularly welcoming after returning to the day-to-day care of a resident family. They are giving the site a deserved dose of love (and investment): modernising the facilities, adding homely touches and generally just being on hand to cheerfully dispense local knowledge and barbecue grub.
Most of the camp ground is no more than a kick of a beach ball from the private beach. This is clean and, thanks to the shelter of the nearby islands, safe. There is also a section known as the ‘old camping field’, which offers an inland pitch close to a wildlife-stuffed wetland. The site has plenty of room for kids to run free and make new friends, while adults can find their own corner to kick back with a cool drink and watch the sun go down.
And what a view that is. The island of Gigha floats tantalisingly close (and is easy to explore thanks to the nearby ferry), while further north are the rounded Paps of Jura and glimpses of the whisky-paradise that is Islay. An amber-fringed twilight, with the dunegrass whispering and the waves sighing on the shore has an energy that is nothing short of magical. Youngsters may find it’s the place they look back on in years to come and realise that’s where they fell in love with camping. And which they will then return to with their own family…
