Forest bathing at Ariundle Oakwood

Ariundle Oakwood is a National Nature Reserve in the glen above Strontian, in Sunart. It is a sheltered western oakwood, the kind of woodland that makes the west coast of Scotland the UK stronghold of the rare chequered skipper butterfly, and it has many rare plants and insects. In the damp air mosses and liverworts grow thickly on boulders, tree trunks and in the burn gullies, and in winter they are at their greenest.

The car park is about three and a half kilometres up the glen road from Strontian. A track leads from it to the reserve, and woodland and nature trails branch off; together they make a loop of about five kilometres. It is a quiet place at any time, and you can stop almost anywhere along the trails to sit among the oaks. The nearest public toilets are in Strontian, so plan for that.