Half of One

Half of One is an original whitewashed 19th-century crofter's cottage at Culnacnoc, 12 miles north of Portree on Skye's Trotternish coast. It is one of two houses on a working croft, with sheep on the hill, and it looks straight out over Brothers Point. Mark and Lois Gilbert bought it in 1994, and their children, Simon and Emma, look after it now.

The main house sleeps six, in a king room and two twins. There is a sitting room around an open fire, a long dining table for eight at a window on the sea with a telescope beside it, a kitchen with a range cooker, and three bathrooms: one with a bath and two shower rooms with walk-in showers. The studio, where Mark painted the view after he retired, sleeps two more: his easel and paints are still there, his paintings cover the wall, and a freestanding bath stands at the glass doors onto the sea.

Watch the sun come up over Brothers Point from the bench by the front door, and look out for seals, otters and sea eagles in the bay. A five-minute walk takes you down to a quiet beach and on to the point. The Old Man of Storr is ten minutes away by car, the Quiraing about twenty.

Good to know: the last stretch is an unsurfaced farm track, wet and soft in winter, where a 4x4 is best. Dogs are welcome on a lead around the sheep. Wi-Fi runs on 4G and barely reaches the studio, and electric cars cannot be charged at the house; there are public chargers in Portree, Staffin and Uig. Stays are from three nights.