Elgol

Elgol sits at the end of one of Skye's most spectacular roads, a narrow single-track route that winds through the Strathaird peninsula before revealing what many consider the finest view in Scotland. From the village's rocky shoreline, the entire Black Cuillin ridge erupts from the sea in a wall of dark, serrated peaks—a vista so dramatic that generations of artists and photographers have made the pilgrimage to capture it.

This small crofting and fishing community has changed little over the centuries, its whitewashed cottages scattered along the shore where fishing boats still land their catch. The beach is a tumble of dark stones and pale marble, with rockpools to explore and seals often visible in the bay. On clear days, the view extends beyond the Cuillins to the islands of Rum, Eigg, and Canna.

Elgol is also the departure point for boat trips to Loch Coruisk, a freshwater loch cradled in the heart of the Cuillin. This spectacular sea journey offers close-up views of the mountain ridge from the water before landing at one of Britain's most dramatic and inaccessible landscapes—a place that inspired Turner, Scott, and countless others who've sought out its wild grandeur.