Loch Chaorainn Beag

The water here is properly still on a calm day - black as slate and ringed by low hills that rise without fuss from the shoreline. Loch Chaorainn Beag sits a short drive inland from Tarbert, tucked into Argyll's quieter corners where most holiday folk never bother to venture.

It's a modest loch, nothing dramatic, but that's rather the point. You can walk the perimeter in under an hour if you're not lingering, or spend twice that picking your way round the rough edges. The banks are rough - bracken and heather mostly - so proper boots matter. There's a decent spot on the southern shore where the water opens up and you get a real sense of the place without fighting through vegetation.

Walkers get the most from it. This isn't a playground for kids, though older ones keen on a genuine Scottish walk will find it worthwhile. The fishing types sometimes come, though I'd check locally what's allowed before turning up with a rod. It's free to visit, obviously - there's no gatehouse or visitor centre, just you and the loch.

If you're staying at Tarbert Holiday Park or The Gather nearby, both solid bases by all accounts, Loch Chaorainn Beag makes a proper change of pace from the busier lochs around the region. It won't take a morning - allow a couple of hours if you're walking the whole thing - but it's the sort of place that sticks with you more than the headline attractions do. Quiet works sometimes.