The sun shimmers across the water outside the sauna – it looks inviting, though it’s clearly going to be freezing. But it’s only a quick dip, and then the bikini-clad bathers will be back in the enveloping warmth of the caramel-scented wooden cabin a few metres away on the shore, its giant picture windows giving exquisite views on to the distant hillsides.
This is Scandinavian winter living par excellence: but it’s not a Norwegian fjord or Swedish forest – it’s the banks of Loch Fyne on the west coast of Scotland. This is one of a growing number of Scandi-style outdoor saunas across the coastline where locals and visitors gather through the long, dark northern winter days in search of company and warmth, and to boost their physical and mental health.
