St Kilda has been high on my list of Scottish islands to visit for a few years now and I was fortunate not only to get a commission to the islands but also to reach them – over 50% of summer boat trips are cancelled due to the weather. I camped for 4 nights on Hirta, the main island, an extra day due to the gale force winds and choppy seas.

With the highest sea cliffs and sea stacks in the UK, St Kilda and its surrounding islands are among the most beautiful and sheltered islands in the whole of Great Britain. My aim of the trip was to hike all the hills on Hirta and find some puffins – St Kilda has the largest puffin colony in the UK with nearly 300,000 of them.