Port Charlotte – A Shore Walk and a Dram by the Fire
A few hours.
The route
Port Charlotte is a row of white cottages on the west shore of Loch Indaal, with a little sandy beach right behind its hotel.
Walk the shore to the lighthouse and back as the evening comes in, then settle by the fire in the Port Charlotte Hotel's bar with an Islay malt and supper. It's a lovely evening for a couple: agree on a driver or book a taxi before you go.
Before you go
Book a table for supper in the Port Charlotte Hotel's bar on 01496 850360, served every day from 6pm to 9pm; if nobody wants to drive, book an island taxi both ways well ahead too, as Islay's taxis must be booked and its buses stop running by 6pm.
The day
Port Charlotte
A short walk along Port Charlotte's shore to the lighthouse, then a long evening by the fire in the hotel bar.
About two and a half hoursAbout 1 mile on foot
Port Charlotte beach
Park on the village street. The beach lies just behind the Port Charlotte Hotel, about 200 metres of sand and rock between the pier and the youth hostel. From its north end the shore runs to the lighthouse, a little under half a mile, with Bowmore across the water. Come back the same way. Seals and otters are sometimes seen along here. In mid-October the sun sets at about half past six, and from the end of the month it's dark soon after 5pm, so take a torch for the walk back.
Port Charlotte Hotel
A drink
Back at the Port Charlotte Hotel, the bar has a carved wooden counter, low beams, a woodburning fire and a long run of Islay malts, with Islay Ales on tap. Bar suppers are served from 6pm to 9pm every day, and it's wise to book a table on 01496 850360. There's a single step between the bar's two levels, and dogs aren't allowed in the public rooms. Music nights, with fiddles, pipes and Gaelic song, are on Wednesdays and Sundays in the busier months. If it's full, the Lochindaal Hotel on Main Street has two bars with log burners.
If it rains
In rain, cut the shore walk to the beach behind the hotel and go in early to the fire.