ITINERARY
This is a substantially circular tour. We leave Inverness and travel north and west by fertile Strathconon before entering the hills at Contin. Somewhere on the way west we have a coffee and toilet stop, usually at Strathcarron Hotel..
We enjoying fine views by the south side of Loch Carron, and then continue to Lochs Duich and Alsh.
We cross to Skye by the bridge from Kyle of Lochalsh to Kyleakin, then driving north, west and south to Sleat, the 'Garden of Skye'. We stop at the Clan Donald Centre for over an hour. Facilities here include a fine restaurant. Those with picnic food may lunch in the beautiful gardens - entrance fee applies to the gardens and Armadale Castle (ruined).
Leaving the Clan Donald Centre we take the winding road to Ord, Tokavaig, and Tarskavaig on the north side of the peninsula. The views to the Cuillin are breathtaking on a clear day - see picture above.

We also get views of Rum, Canna, and Eigg in the Small Isles and as we return to the south side of Sleat we get - again weather permitting! - magnificent views across the Sound of Sleat to the little railway terminus of Mallaig; Loch Nevis; Knoydart; and Sandaig, where Gavin Maxwell lived with his otters in the late 1950s.

We return from Skye to the mainland and turn east. Before long we come in view of Eilean Donan Castle (below) - click here for more photos and information.

Click on thumbnail above for a view of the castle by night - picture courtesy of Michael MacGregor Photography

The tidal island has been the site of castles for centuries, maybe millennia. Alexander II built a strong castle here in the 13th century to repel the Vikings. The present structure was much damaged in the 1719 rebellion (see Rob Roy) and restored last century. We stop here for 30-50 minutes. If you wish to visit the castle there is a reduced entrance fee of £ 4.

We continue east to Glen Shiel, passing the site of the Battle of Glenshiel (1719 Jacobite rebellion, aided by Spain).

We pass the small cairn commemorating Roderick Mackenzie who was slain in 1746 after the Battle of Culloden; according to the most dramatic accounts of this episode, Mackenzie - who bore some resemblance to 'Bonnie Prince Charlie' - deliberately drew government troops in his pursuit to give the Prince more chance to escape. We continue east to Loch Ness:

Discover hidden spots with us missed by most other tours!

The views on this trip - mountains, seascapes - are amongst the finest in the British Isles when it is clear. Alas, we cannot control the weather but we will make this trip as interesting for you as possible whatever the conditions - and they're often much better than many people imagine!

The itinerary as given above is our preferred route. A variety of factors may cause us to run the trip in the reverse direction, but time at each major stop is the same.

Other people with loose associations with this route include John Cobb - the 50th anniversary of whose death was commemorated in autumn 2002 - and the controversial astronomer Fred Hoyle.