North Scotland Supporters

manonabeach® is proud to have financial support from the following businesses in Sutherland, Caithness and the Orkney Mainland, North and South Ronaldsay, Hoy, Westray and Sanday Island, listed by supported beach page. Please use the send your answers menu or email info@manonabeach.com to find out more. Click on each Supporter’s banner, below here, to learn about their business. Also, see what the beach means to them, above their banner.

Benefits to new and renewing Supporters now include the following:

access to beach lovers in largely urban areas (24% London) who are looking forward to their return to your area and to enjoying your services and online products, with hundreds of thousands of hits to the site and being seen in 142 countries.
access to 2,000+ films from the archive, including over 1,000 narrative interviews, to use in your social media for customer retention and in your blog, like this example. Why not use the manonabeach® question to engage with your customers?
a complimentary manonabeach® Interview Highlights DVD, to use in your business at your discretion, either in-house or for your customers.

Oldshoremore and Ceannabeinne:

“What does the beach mean to you..?”

Oldshoremore:

Oldshoremore is reached from a path rising up from the carpark. As the brow of the hill is crested, a stunning panorama is revealed in the form of a wild, unspoilt and majestic bay. This is Oldshoremore, the second most Northerly beach on the mainland, and with over half a mile of pure, unpolluted sand!

A treasure of nature, windswept and wild on a winter’s day, with huge waves surfing in from the Atlantic. A haven of peace and calm on a summers day. Memories as a child of lunch on the rocks, swimming in the far, sheltered cove. More recently, long walks with my partner and throwing a ball into the sea for Ronnie the chocolate labrador. Look out for sightings of the sea otter making his way right across the beach from the dunes to the sea!

You may find someone else on the beach, but probably you will be alone to contemplate nature, its power and presence. The visitor, after the long journey north, cannot feel other that privileged to have found Oldshoremore. Their far north haven! Their secret!

Ceannabeinne:

Ceannabeinne beach holds many treasured memories for me. In 1963 we stayed locally with a crofter and visited the bay every day, walking down from the derelict cottage situated high above the beach. We swam, picnicked, and played on the perfect sand. Every year we returned and each time that we walked back to the car, my father looked lovingly at the old cottage, dreaming of perhaps one day owning it and renovating it. His dream came true when I bought the cottage in 1987!

Ceannabeinne beach is undoubtedly one of the finest beaches in Britain. Historic, proud and magnificent, a testament to the power of nature, and with no land between her shores and the North Pole!

A treasure for all to admire and enjoy, locals and tourists alike.

…Richard, at Norsehaven Cottages, below:

Sandwood Bay:

“What does the beach mean to you..?”

As a child of the 50’s I holidayed every year at the hamlet of Blairmore on the family croft.The croft house is situated at the beginning of the peat road which leads to Sandwood Bay.

The walk in the summer evenings with some of the neighbouring children to collect the cows for milking would be full of trepidation. Wwould we see the ghost of Sandwood Bay ,the Bearded Sailor purported to walk the beaches and surrounding area or a mermaid combing her hair and singing while sitting on the rocks looking out to sea? Such were some of the many tales told around the peat fire by the old folk. The smell of bog myrtle ,gorse and heather and the sound of the sea crashing and booming on a stormy day sighing and hissing on a calm are etched on my heart.

The walk itself is very uplifting and has the essence of a spiritual nature.4.1 miles of mood improving steps.

…Ellen, at Sandwoodway, below:

Dornoch:

“What does the beach mean to you..?”

Dornoch beach is a nostalgic place for me – where I spent many a happy day as a child with my brother, parents and grandmother. Now I love to walk here with my dogs and members of my family (or on my one) and take in the expanse of sky, the ever changing colours, the continuous movement of the tides and sheer beauty of it all. Different at sunrise and sunset…its therapeutic in a way that’s different to anything else – picking up shells, seeking out the rock pools, strolling, power walking…. Reaching or passing the Fisherman’s pole which has been set in the sand for hundreds of years gives a feeling of strength and stability. Dornoch beach is a fix I couldn’t bear to be without!

…Kirsty Pilcher, at Rosamunde Pilcher Bank House, Dornoch, below:

Scourie:

Brora:

Embo:

“What does the beach mean to you..?”

For me, Embo beach is the perfect antidote to all the trappings of modern life: tranquil and stress free. I love to walk north, away from the village, with the sea breeze in my face. No mobile phone, no chores or interruptions and very often absolutely no people! Although the beach is right next to the village, it’s not uncommon to walk a few hundred yards and be in complete isolation with only the sound of the waves and the seabirds for company. I never tire of the walk: a short way up the beach, there is an inlet where the water runs off the land into the sea – this inlet and the surrounding dunes are never quite the same each time you walk the beach – the shifting of the sands with the tide and the weather means the beach is always changing. I’m not a great naturalist, but from the beach I have seen dolphins, seals and even an otter playing in the deep current at the entrance to Loch Fleet. And of course, there is a constant company of a whole host of marine birds from oyster catchers to various gulls. The backdrop of the hills to the north, just complete the picture. It is a great escape. Great physical exercise whether you walk or run and so good for the mind: it is therapy – a mind healer for a busy head. I absolutely love it.

…Tereasa, at The Hideaway, below: