My favourite Islands

When I tell people that I collect islands, invariably one of the first questions they ask is 'which is your favourite?'  I usually tell them that it is difficult to compare very different islands.  However I have now devised my own personal scoring system.  A total of 10 marks are available, one for each of the following things:

1.  A lighthouse or daymark
2.  Seabirds other than gulls
3.  A sandy beach of yellow, white/cream or silver sand
4.  A hill
5.  Something particularly interesting in the natural landscape or geology
6.  A geocache
7.  Something unique to that island
8.  Interesting ruins e.g. chapel, castle, factory
9.  Information point or refreshments
10.  An extra point for having an additional lighthouse/daymark or sandy beach

However my experience of an island is also affected by the weather on the day I visited and sometimes by a feeling that I can't put into words.

Here are my top 20 favourite islands and their scores:

1.   Lundy - 10
2.   Rum - 9
3.   Llanddwyn -8
4.   Bardsey - 8
5.   Valentia - 8
6.   Barra - 8
7.   Tresco - 8
8.   Iona - 8
9.   Portland - 8
10.   St Agnes - 8
11.   Sark -8
12.   Great Cumbrae - 7
13.   Flat Holm -7
14.   Stronsay - 7
15.   Coll -6
16.   Looe/St George's - 6
17.   Steep Holm - 6
18.   Herm - 5
19.   St Martins - 5
20.   Ilnacullin/Garinish, Inchcolm and Skomer - 4

I realise that this scoring system favours larger islands, as they are more likely to have the necessary elements somewhere on them.