We'd been hoping for a sighting all week. We knew they'd be about at this time of year. It was a dank day, not especially cold, but the keen drizzle was not inviting and we were glad not to have put afloat. We were standing on the jetty at Port Appin when we spotted the pair moving up the sound close to the Lismore shore. The distinguishing features were unmistakable. They were DCA boats, spotted on 28th August 2002 at 3:45 p.m. One I believe was Ian Page's and Paul Harrison's Suffolk Beach Punt Peregrine, and the other, some two-masted, green-hulled species. Apologies to the skippers for not having the presence of mind to snap them through a telephoto lens as they rounded the northern tip of Lismore in the mist under full sail, as it would have made a fine picture. But this was not our style of sailing; not this time at least. For us, a family of four, with two boys aged five and eight, in a Lark; we were after short, sunny-day trips in sheltered waters with gentle breezes.

Inspired by articles in previous bulletins, particularly one by Peter Filshie (125, p.19, autumn 1989), this year we'd chosen the splendid Argyll coast for our two week holiday. Peter had recommended the perfectly placed camp site at Arduaine (pronounced "Ardoony") as a base to give access to the varied and sheltered waters of Nether Lorn. Usually we shun designated campsites because, ideally, we like for a short time to feel that we are alone on the planet and enjoy natural vistas untainted as far as possible by human ingression. Part of the beauty of Scotland is that with its sparse population one can camp almost anywhere with a little discretion. On foot this is not difficult; in a car one is more restricted in having to find a convenient place to pull off the road; but add the extra constraint of towing a boat with a need to be launched into the water, and "wild" camping even in Scotland can become a considerable challenge. So this year we decided to relax some of our hardy ideals and make things a little easier on ourselves and settle on Arduaine; after all, it could do us no harm, and Roger Barnes (135, p.13, summer 1992 - HYPERLINK "135-13.doc" 135-13) made the place sound perfectly delightful: a soft grassy spot sheltered by trees, a beach from which to launch, and a dream-like view down the Sound of Jura, bespattered with islands.

Imagine our disappointment then when we rolled up on a Friday evening at dusk after a three hundred mile drive to find it closed. Notwithstanding, we camped there anyway. The next day we met the owner who explained his position. What forced him to close was the burden of the soaring cost of the third party liability insurance he was obliged to take out and, the final straw, the requirement to provide a costly new toilet-block with wheelchair access. Thus we ranted with him against the culture of the nanny state and its over-proliferated regulations that result in denying to us all a most beautiful and the only designated camp site on the Argyll coast between Crinan and Oban. He is selling up to a property developer and undoubtedly stands to benefit, but at cost of despoiling this superb spot. He was most sympathetic, but said he'd rather we moved on the next day.

We were not deprived of our sailing in the area, though. We pitched camp a little farther up the coast in Ardmaddy Bay in Seil Sound and sailed from there, and were blessed with a perfect week of seven consecutive days of fine, sunny weather, during which on one day from a nearby hill we could see all the way to Ben Nevis in one direction and to the coast of Ireland in the other. We'd been exploring the gardens of Ardmaddy Castle (open to the public) and had observed what a fine spot the bay would make as a base for sailing. Summoning courage, we knocked at the door of the castle and asked the laird personally if we could camp by the shore on his estate. He asked if we'd been round the gardens, obviously to know what sort of people we were, but then described a flat area by a small inlet on the eastern shore of the bay where we could camp (out of sight from the castle), reached by following a rough track past a jetty (with a good slipway) and through a gate (grid ref. NM 782 152). We could hardly believe our good fortune, and expressed our thanks.

I sailed the six miles across from Arduaine while Alix, my wife, drove the twenty or so miles round with the boys and the trailer; we set up a running mooring for the boat and marked it with a buoy I found cast up on the shore, and there we stayed for the remainder of the week. The only problem was the wild orchids, which were so thick on the ground that we had difficulty siting the tent without crushing them. We made excursions to the isles of Torsa and Shuna, sailed across to Balvicar on Seil Island for our groceries, and sailed up the sound to pass under the Clachan Bridge. The bridge, also known by the touristy tag of "The Bridge Across the Atlantic", is a splendid eighteenth century stone arch that carries the road over to Seil Island. We sailed under it and a few yards beyond, at which point the breeze died; then, because we had lazed a little too long in the sunshine over our lunch and allowed the tide to turn against us; we sailed under it again backwards. My burgee stands 22 ft above the water and we had easily three feet of clearance under the apex on the 3.5 m tide (and, incidentally, the low-slung telephone cables south of the bridge have now been removed).

But enough of my holiday reminiscences. I write with a purpose. I appreciated so much being able to read other people's cruising accounts of this part of Scotland (not to mention Mike Williams' effort in copying articles for me) that I wanted to give something back; not necessarily to those seasoned cruisers for whom sleeping afloat obviously avoids the constraints of land-based camping, but for anyone like me (until I buy my next boat), perhaps with a young family, who is limited to sleep ashore near the car, but who seeks out quiet, unspoilt places from which to day-sail in beautiful locations. So, from my limited experience, here is a selection of sites on the west coast of Scotland that I have enjoyed.

Isle of Bute Bute is charming. Disembarking in Rothesay, one immediately feels that the pace of life is comfortable. There is mixed farmland, open moor, woods, sandy beaches, rocky shore with rugged cliffs, a wealth of important prehistoric and historic remains, and of course excellent sailing waters; in short a microcosm of Scotland. The west coast especially has more the quiet feel of the Hebrides than the Firth of Clyde, and the water is uncommonly clear. Mid-way down the west coast lies St. Ninian's Bay, facing directly across to the jagged skyline of Arran, yet partly sheltered by Inchmarnock, an island a mile offshore. It is quieter than the more popular Ettrick Bay to the north, but more beautiful. St. Ninian's Point, with the remains of an early chapel, has a special charm. From autumn on, the meadows behind are the over-wintering ground for thousands of geese. The shell beach offers easy launching at high water. At low water a trolley can be wheeled across several hundred yards of firm sand dotted with mussel beds, or a boat may be left safely to dry out at anchor. To get there, turn off the main road from Rothesay towards the farmstead of Strand, then turn first right at Strand and follow the rough road to the shore. A tent can be pitched nearby. Inchmarnock may be circumnavigated in an afternoon. It lies uninhabited and there are several sheltered bays on the east side that afford landing while the west is rocky and more exposed.

Loch Sween, Argyll The long, narrow fingers of the upper reaches of Loch Sween penetrate deep into the woods of the Knapdale forest. At the mouth of the loch, access to these hidden recesses is guarded, as it were, by numerous islets and skerries, like the stumps of old worn teeth. One of these, Eilean Mor, is one of Scotland's most ancient holy isles, site of the 7th century cell of St. Cormac. Standing sentinel at the entrance to the loch is Castle Sween, one of the earliest stone, Norman-style castles in Scotland, founded around 1140 by Somerled, King of Argyll, in defence against the Norse. Exploring all the little islands and inlets is completely absorbing and immensely satisfying. Both of the beaches north and south of the castle can be launched off, with access through the caravan park which, unfortunately, rather blights the spot. The attractive harbour of Tayvallich has good slipways (free of charge), good pub food, a campsite, I understand, and is convenient for the upper end of the loch. Apart from these, halfway down the eastern shore of the loch, a field interrupts the woodland between the road and the water's edge where a few small boats lie moored. A little farther, a steep road branches left up to Dunrostan farm.

The owner, educated in Australia and still speaking with an obvious accent, will allow camping on the level grassy sward immediately below the farm, between the road and the shore (NR 734 816), for ú3 per tent per night. There is parking space by the road under a large rowan tree for one car. The farmer or one of her two sons will launch a dinghy from the field and the dinghy can be brought around to anchor within a hundred yards of the camp site. The boat may be kept close in shore as the maximal tidal range in the loch is only 1.5 m, and abundant kelp has a protective effect. Beware of large jellyfish hidden in the kelp though - the stinging sort. Directly west of Dunrostan in the middle of the loch, a small, low, rocky islet supports a colony of seals. A smaller rocky shoal directly in a line from Dunrostan to the islet but about a fifth of the distance offshore is treacherously awash at low tide. Both are marked on the OS 1:50000 map. Linne Mhuirich, the lagoon hidden in the northwest shore behind Taynish Island, once supported an oyster fishery. We didn't explore this, but were warned of shallow rocks at the entrance and a tidal race which could be fun in a kayak.

Kames Bay, Loch Melfort, Argyll. A bay on the south shore of the loch, mid-way between Arduaine and Kilmelford. A gate off the main road leads 100 yd down a rough track on the east side of the bay (NM 826 120) where a light dinghy could be launched and a tent pitched, although the ground is a bit boggy. Alternatively, the boat yard at Kilmelford at the head of the loch will allow a dinghy to be launched free of charge, from where it could be sailed round. The bistro bar in the Loch Melfort Hotel at Arduaine is to be recommended not only for its good beers and superb bar menu, which includes succulent Seil oysters, but also the superb view from its panoramic picture window.

Ardmucknish Bay, Lorn, Argyll. A mile-long beach on the southwest shore of Benderloch, facing the mouth of Loch Etive and Dunstaffnage to the south. The beach is relatively popular, and there are developed camp and caravan sites on the heath behind, but launching here gives convenient access to the southern end of the Lynn of Lorn. For vehicular access, turn NE off the main Oban to Fort William highway (the A828) near the north end of Benderloch village on to the Kiel Crofts road at the sign to the holiday park; about half a mile down this straight road, look for a rough lane on the left leading straight through woods, and then a gate, to the sea. Divers launch from here to visit a nearby submerged wreck. The beach is firm sand and shingle, and a tent can be pitched on the turf amidst the gorse behind (NM 897 388). A good restaurant within walking distance is The Hawthorne (open in summer only): take the same turning off the highway and look for the sign on the right.

Loch Kishorn, Wester Ross There is a sunny meadow in the eastern corner of Loch Kishorn from where, reclining on the grass without moving your head, you can contemplate the mists swirling around the majestic corries and buttresses of Applecross and gaze out on the serrated ridge of the Cuillin of Skye. The meadow is owned by the Ministry of Defence and preserved as open space in case the need for amphibious deployment should arise, for which quite large vessels could enter the loch. Kishorn is known for its deep water and was briefly home for an oil rig construction industry, a few remains of which still stand on the Applecross shore. Neither of the above are easy to envisage though, as it is hard to imagine a less spoilt place. Access to the beach is across the northern edge of the meadow, but try not to crush the grass, which is cropped (NG 840 394). Shingle at the top of the beach makes a couple of planks and a winch useful; below this are a few hundred yards of firm, drying sand. Camping is possible in the corner of the meadow. Nearby, the village of Achintraid is but a few cottages strung out along the shore but, perhaps surprisingly, has what must be the nicest restaurant for tens of miles around: walk down through the village and look out for the sign at a track on the left leading up to a farm, where you may sit in the glass conservatory by candlelight watching the glorious view of the fading evening glow on the Applecross hills.

Upper Loch Torridon, Wester Ross Torridon is rugged country - one of the last places in Britain to have glaciers, as late as 9000 B.C. The peaks rise from the water's edge to over 3000 ft and are composed of thousand million year old sandstone; in the larger corries, this takes the form of shear, dark grey precipices of giant masonry blocks, and on the tops, precariously placed boulders like part-melted stacks of huge dinner plates. Many of the peaks are capped with silver-grey quartzite which, when wet, glints in the sun. The whole is founded on much older bed rock, half the age of the earth, exposed in places along the Torridon shore as contorted swirls of intermingled shades of pink, orange and fiery red streaked with white - take a close look at the rocks around the harbour of Diabaig in the lower loch. The region also has remnants of the original Caledonian pine forest still undisturbed after eight thousand years. But the principal charm, I think, is the ever changing quality of the play of cloud and light on the hills and the sea. If you sail here, chances are yours will be the only boat to be seen. There is a rough stone slip accessible from the north shore road just beyond Torridon village, but we launched from the beach by the boat house on the Torridon Estate, on the edge of the woods at the foot of Liathach (NG 874 571). We rented a cottage there, so didn't actually camp, but there was space and I'm sure an arrangement could be made with the factor.