How I spent a night sleeping on a radioactive beach in the Scottish Highlands - and it was stunning

I was told about all sorts of things to watch out for before setting off on this walk around Scotland - being mauled by a giant cat, or being shot at when accidently walking into a live military practice session - which did nearly happen. But no one told me about the risk of radioactive particles on a Scottish beach.

One evening, walking from Thurso along the north coastline of mainland Scotland, I noticed several police cars driving past me. I had set off from the town late and the plan to get to Melvich, some 17 miles west, was becoming less likely as the sun was setting.

The sun setting on the walk between Thurso and Reay | Katharine Hay

I thought it was a bit unusual to see three marked cars drive past me in a short space of time. Were they looking for someone? Was it me?

But walking past Dounreay, Scotland's largest nuclear clean-up and demolition project, I assumed they were just monitoring the area for security reasons.

Dounreay was Britain's centre of fast reactor research and development from 1955 until 1994 and is now Scotland's largest nuclear clean-up and demolition project. | Katharine Hay

Noticing it was after 8pm, I shifted my focus to finding a spot to sleep. Arriving late into the village of Reay, about two miles from Dounreay, I didn’t want to camp in view of the residents, so I walked out towards the sea. I came across a sign that warned me I was entering a golf course “at your own risk” and the shout “Fore” is the warning sign of a golf ball coming towards you.

I had visions of emerging from my tent the next day and getting hit in the head by a flying orb, so decided to get to the other side of the course. Wading through tall vegetation smothering undulating dunes, I tripped and rolled down one, falling flat onto the quiet beach that I later found out was Sandside Bay.

Sandside Bay at sunset, near Reay in Caithness in the Scottish Highlands | Katharine Hay

The deep amber colour of the setting sun that night was disappearing slowly below the skyline, leaving a stunning glow on the outline of the sea and land.

The light, which started to resemble red embers on the horizon, helped me see myself down to the waves to rinse my mug for the next day’s coffee. The setting was something to really make the most of, so off came the socks and shoes and I paddled, feeling the icy salt water between my toes while transfixed by the red-hot glow ahead.

Waking up to blue sky the next morning, I saw the beach in a different light - its almost-white sand like a giant mattress for a flock of seabirds sunbathing on it. It was just me and them.

Seabirds sunbathing on Sandside Bay | Katharine Hay

I left feeling a bit smug I’d stumbled across what felt like a hidden gem. I spoke about my experience to a local resident on my way through Strathy, about ten miles west, asking him if he knew why the police cars were out.

“Probably just making sure people aren’t swimming or fishing too near the beaches where they found radioactive particles,” the resident said.

I stared at him blankly for a while, having flashbacks to sloshing out my mug and splashing about the water, until I was able to mutter the word: “Right.”

I did wonder why the beach was so quiet during holiday time on the North Coast 500. I remembered someone telling me a while back about “radioactive beaches where the sand glows in the dark”. But I didn’t take it seriously and I didn’t think I would come across them.

Having gathered a bit more insight from locals since, and doing a bit more research, some five radioactive particles were found at the bay last year, according to reports, and about 15 the year before.

The UK government said expert advice, which is kept under review, is the risk to the public on the beach is very low.

As a precaution, fishing is prohibited within a 2km radius of a point near Dounreay, where the most hazardous fragments have been detected, and the Dounreay foreshore and Sandside Bay are monitored “on a regular basis”.

The status of the beach doesn’t seem to phase those living nearby too much, and the fact that patrol officers didn’t warn me, and the only warning sign I could see was for a potential flying golf ball, I don’t feel all that concerned either.

I do wonder though if the beach does glow in the dark a bit, or if it just happened to the night I was there with the dramatic sunset.