This 10-day, 200-mile trans-Scotland journey, which runs clear across the Grampian and Cairngorm ranges to the Atlantic Ocean, is no pony trek. If you want to do the whole thing, you'll have to ride at least at an intermediate level and be used to very long hours in the saddle in rough weather. You gallop along the wide floors of the glens, pick your way over 3,000-foot passes, and ford fast flowing, icy streams that come over the horses' bellies. This is one of the toughest trail rides in the world, but you'll be rewarded with sightings of herds of red deer so big it can seem as if the whole hillside gets up and walks away. Some days there will be sheets of rain, but when the sun breaks through you'll see the whole Western Highlands framed between your horse's ears.

The rugged countryside of bonny Scotland.

Trip Facts
Difficulty rating: Difficult
When to go: May–October

England Adventures Explore Scotland - Highlands hiking and countryside bike rides Top Europe Trips - Walk through Tuscan hilltowns or bike through Provence