Best extreme point of Scotland

Published on Tuesday 26 February 2008 18:34

Living on the edge

1 ARDNAMURCHAN

Ardnamurchan Lighthouse, built in 1849, is one of only four in Scotland – out of a total of 204 lighthouses – open to the public. It is close to the most westerly point on the British mainland, 22 miles further west than Land's End. The lighthouse was designed by Alan Stevenson, uncle of Robert Louis, and it is claimed to be the only lighthouse built in the Egyptian style.

2 MUCKLE FLUGGA

At the end of Unst in Shetland, these rocks were the most northerly inhabited place in the UK before automation of Muckle Flugga Lighthouse in 1995. It was engineered by Thomas and David Stevenson, father and uncle of Robert Louis Stevenson. Nearby Out Stack is Britain's most northerly dot of land, with nothing but water and ice between it and the North Pole.

3 BUCHAN NESS

At the former fishing village of Boddam just south of Peterhead this is Scotland's most easterly point. Buchan Ness Lighthouse, 1827, was one of 18 designed by Robert Stevenson, grandfather of Robert Louis Stevenson. Keith Inch, part of Peterhead Harbour, also claims the easternmost point title.

4 DUNNET HEAD

This, not John o' Groats, is the northernmost point on the British mainland. On the sheer sandstone promontory the Dunnet Head Lighthouse, 1831, designed by Robert Stevenson, stands 300 feet above the Pentland Firth. Great coastal views and across to Orkney. Three-mile sandy beach of Dunnet Bay is popular with surfers.

5 MULL OF GALLOWAY

South of Stranraer, with views of the Antrim Hills and the Mountains of Mourne, and situated in the mildest part of Scotland, this is its most southerly point. The Royal Society for the Protection of Birds has a nature reserve here, which is home to guillemots, razorbills and many other seabirds. Mull of Galloway Lighthouse, 1830, which is open to the public, was designed by Robert Stevenson.

6 SOAY

Excluding Rockall, the most westerly point of Scotland, is the St Kildan isle of Soay, 110 miles west of the mainland. It is home to the small-bodied Soay sheep whose ancestors probably arrived in prehistoric times and now provide biologists with insights into evolution. No Stevenson was involved: there's no lighthouse.