Seamill, Bute, Argyll and Kintyre peninsula (150 miles - 6 hours riding)

We shall departure Seamill immediately after an early breakfast at circa 8am and ride 15 miles north to Wemyss Bay where we make our first ferry crossing to Rothsay on the Isle of Bute. A little south of Rothsay is Mount Stuart, a magnificent Edwardian property and home of the Marquess of Bute, but rather than ride there directly we take a partially circuit towards the south of the island before visiting Mount Stuart after which we make our way to the north of Bute to take Rhubodach to Colintraive ferry crossing to Argyll.

We travel through a very picturesque part of Argyle with views across the Kyles of Bute passing through Tighnabruaich before reaching Portavadie where we break for lunch before taking the crossing to Tarbert on the Mull of Kintyre.

Next, we head south to Caradale and onwards to Campbeltown taking the east coast road of the peninsula with views over towards Arran. We return along the west coast road taking in views if the Isle of Gigha with Islay and Jura beyond. We end the day at Stonefield Castle.

Tarbert, Crinan, Inveraray, Dalmally, Seil, Oban (185 miles - 6 hours riding)

We head west towards Port Ban on the Kintyre peninsula before we begin our journey north. As we reach Lochgilphead we shall follow the course of the Crinan canal and then visit the ancient Dunadd Fort where the Kings of Dalriada lived (after the Romans left and before King David came to rule in 1124 Scotland comprised 4 kingdoms and Dalriada was one of those. It was an ancient Gaelic speaking land forming Ireland and the West of Scotland). We shall then make our way to Inveraray, a pretty model village and home to a prison and castle (both are tourist attractions).

We shall then head towards Dalmally and visit an interesting church, fairly modern but created to appear much older. We then join the shore road of Loch Awe riding along a narrow road with stunning views as we almost reach Dunadd Fort again. We make our way to Ardfern and then over to Crobh Haven Marina before crossing "the Bridge over the Atlantic" to Seil Island. We will also consider making the passenger ferry crossing to Easdale Island before continuing north to Oban and finishing our journey at the Falls of Lora hotel.

Oban, Mull, Ardnamurchan, Mallaig (150 miles - 5.5 hours riding)

We depart our hotel in Connel making our way to the ferry terminal in Oban where we take the crossing to Craignure on the Isle of Mull. All of the roads we ride on the Island will be single track, we first make our way to Loch Beg and circle around Ben More and Loch na Keal with views over to Ulva and other smaller islands. We shall take a brief stop at the bridge crossing Eas Fors Waterfall before climbing up and over a road with several tight bends that leads to Tobermorry where we shall break for lunch.

After our lunch break we take the Tobermory to Kilchoan ferry crossing to the Ardnamurchan peninsula, the most westerly mainland of the UK and an area of Scotland that is particularly unspoiled because it is remote, has poor access routes and narrow roads.

As our route continues we shall take a stop at the Sands of Morar which featured in the movies Local Hero and Breaking the Wave. The quartz sand looks almost white with silver speckles and on a sunny day the beach and sea look more like the Caribbean than Scotland. We shall end the day at the West Highland Hotel in Mallaig.

Mallaig, Skye, Glenelg, Eilean Donan Castle (175 miles - 5 hours riding)

An early departure from Mallaig crossing to the Isle of Skye where we take a circuit of the Island making our first visit of the day at Dunvegan Castle. Later we cross the Quirang, a dramatic pass formed from a landslip, before stopping to view Kilt Rock, a 90 meter tall basalt rock formation that resembles a pleated kilt. The nearby Mealt waterfalls the drop from Loch Mealt over the cliffs to the sea below is another popular photo opportunity.

After breaking for lunch near Portree we make our way to the last remaining operational turnstile ferry in the world to depart Skye.

On the mainland side we meander through Glenelg to Shiel Bridge then make our way back towards Skye stopping at Eilean Donan Castle for pictures. The castle is one of Scotlands most photographed and sits three sea lochs meet; Loch Duich, Loch Long and Loch Alsh. The castle was rebuilt in the 1920's and 30's and has been used in numerous films. We end the day just north of Kyle of Lochalsh with westerly views across the Inner Sound to Eilean Mor, Scalpay, Longay and Skye.

Plockton, Applecross, Torridon, Ullapool, Lochinver, Scourie (215 miles - 6.5 hours riding)

Today we make more progress because there are no ferry crossings. All our riding is on the mainland and in great remote areas along the North West coast.

We first head to Plockton, a picturesque village sitting in a sheltered east facing bay that is often referred to as "The Jewel of the Highlands". The town was used as the setting as the fictional Lochdubh in the TV series Hamish McBeth. We only take a brief stop for photographs and then carry on.

Our route circuits Loch's Carron and Kishorn before crossing the Bealach na ba a winding, single track road through the mountains leading to Applecross where we take a refreshment break.

From Applecross we hug the coast to Torridon before crossing to Kinlochewe then along the southern shore of Loch Maree to Poolewe. We progress onwards to Loch Ewe where some might want to visit the Russian Arctic Convoy Museum then onwards to Ullapool and Lochinver and end the day at Scourie.

Durness, Tongue, Kimbrace, Lairg, Beauly (200 miles 5.5 hours riding)

This route will take us into some of the most remote parts of the highlands. First we depart Scourie heading north to Durness where we meet to north coast of Scotland. A little along the coast we stop a Smoo cave and from here we follow the northern coast line past Tongue to Borgie Lodge where we take a refreshment break.

Our route continues past Bettyhill before turning south just after crossing the Halladale River where we deviate to the south towards Kinbrace (which is where you will find Britain's most remote hotel, The Garvault).

Our route continues south and we break for lunch at a remote Inn north of Lairg. After passing through Lairg we continue to Bonar Bridge then Dingwall before we end the day's ride at Beauly. In French beau lieu means beautiful place. The surrounding land is fertile with grain and fruit mainly being farmed. There is also a ruined Priory dating from 1260.

Beauly, Drumnadrochit, Ft Augustus, Dalwhinnie, Killin, Glasgow (210 miles - 5.5 hours riding)

Departing Beauly we head south to Drumnadrochit where we reach Loch Ness. We follow Loch Ness to Fort Augustus where we take a brief stop before continuing through the great glen to Spean Bridge where we alter course to the east along the banks of Loch Lagan and then to Dalwhinnie where we shall visit the distillery. We will take a tour and participate in chocolate tasting but save the whisky until the days riding is over.

Our route south continues through Tummel Bridge and Fortingall where we break for lunch. Fortingall has two main claims to fame; it has the oldest ewe tree in the world at least 2000 years old and some claim as much as 9000 years old, the other claim is that it was the birth place of Pontius Pilot famed for sending Jesus to the cross.

The story of Pontius Pilate's Scottish origins was raised an article published in the 15 January 1899 edition of the New York Times. The article claimed that between 55BC when the the Romans' first came to Britain and their subsequent invasion in AD43 that Ceasar Augustus dispatched envoys to establish diplomatic relations with some of the important British and Caledonian tribes. One of these was a Caledonian chieftain called Metellanus, whose stronghold was at the head of Glen Lyon. A member of the Roman delegation to Metellanus's tribe fathered a child circa 20BC with a Caledonian woman, and this child subsequently returned to Rome with his parents. The child was raised up as Pontius Pilate.

Our journey continues to join Loch Tay which we traverse to Killin. Next we pass Lochearnhead and at Killmahog we cross the Dukes Pass to Aberfoyle where we take another refreshment break. At Drymen we change course again to the west reaching the southern shores to Loch Lomond and from there we join major roads back to base near Glasgow.