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Camp overnight on an uninhabited island

A place: Scotland

The shingle landing has no jetty to tie up to, so the boatman noses the bow onto stones and you jump ashore. He'll be back Thursday, he says, and not before. Water and the last hot meal arrive by the same boat, then leave on it too. You pitch the tent on grass cropped by nothing bigger than a rabbit, on one of the Summer Isles, with no other tent in sight. Then the engine note shrinks to nothing, and what's left is silence so complete you can hear your own pulse in your ears.

Practical

Cost
$150–400 for a group boat charter
Best time
Late spring to early autumn, when seas are calmer and days are long
Difficulty
Moderate
Time it takes
One to two nights, plus a buffer day for weather
What people get wrong
People underestimate how much water and fuel they need to carry, and don't build in a spare day for the boat to be weathered off — a cancelled pick-up can turn one night into three.
With
A group

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