I had double luck earlier this year – my parents came to stay and looked after our son while we had a rare night away at a secret location (my wife is much better at keeping surprises than I am).

The secret location turned out to be the Turnberry hotel on the Ayrshire coast. Apparently well known if you are a golfer, it’s a wonderful 1920’s style hotel, with the best breakfast buffet I have ever had – whisky and cream on your porridge or a Buck’s Fizz with your cooked breakfast of local specialities? As I was due to drive home I avoided the alcohol, but the view out towards the golf course and beach was fantastic, and we decided to go for a good walk before we left.

I was drawn towards the lighthouse. They are functional, but often beautiful structures, and seem to symbolise mankind’s battle against the elements.

The beach was deserted, apart from a lone horse rider, and we enjoyed just listening to the waves break.

There was a lot of gorse just behind the sand. Not only was it an incredibly bright hue of yellow, but it gave of a strong scent of coconut. Wonderful!