Tour Description:
Privately guided tour of Lochaber, the Great Glen and Skye.
The Sea-loch, Loch Linnhe cuts deep up the fault of the Great Glen all the way to Fort William right in the heart of the West Highlands and the ridge of mountains known since early times as Druim-alban (the ridge of Scotland), including Ben Nevis, Britain’s highest peak at 4409ft, and forms the great apex of the west. From Loch Linnhe the water opens out to the south and the Firth of Lorn and the Campbell lands of Argyll, to the north the Great Glen strikes a path to Loch Ness and Inverness, West of Loch Linnhe the land is one of mountain and valley, winding toward the islands of the Inner Hebrides including Skye, with names that roll of the tongue: Moidart, Ardgour, Sunart, Morar, Ardnarmurchan and Morvern. This area is known as Lochaber, and as such an important junction of the west it has had a long and bloody history as clans and kings have vied for control. The Great Glen is a long faultline running from Wick in Caithness in the north, past the Black Isle, through Lochaber and out into the Atlantic. This was the most natural throughroute from the old kingdoms of Argyll to the power base at Inverness. The Isle of Skye, dominated as it is by the high Cuillin Mountains is one of the most important places in the Highlands with much history turning on control of the island and the actions of its chiefs.
Day by Day Itinerary:
Day 1: Edinburgh - Callander - Breadalbane - Glencoe - Fort William
From Edinburgh the tour heads west past Stirling to Callander where you get a chance to visit the Rob Roy centre, which will bring you up to speed with the Highland rogue. Rob Roy was a blackmailer who fell out with the great landlord in this area, the Graham Marquis of Montrose, right as the Jacobite crisis was gathering speed, 
it wasn’t only a clash of culture and class, it was a class between the old world of the clans and the new mercantile world of the British Empire. In 1688 James VII and II was forced into exile by the English Parliament and replaced by his nephew/son-in-law and daughter William of Orange and Queen Mary. A year later the Scottish Parliament ratified this move north of the border. Supporters of the exiled king called themselves the Jacobites and led a rebellion against the new authority led by John Graham of Claverhouse. Although the rebellion stalled, it would rumble on for nearly 60 years, with the Scottish Highlands providing a ready supply of armed men for the cause, including Rob Roy. A little further on from Callander we will stop to visit Rob Roy’s Grave, before making our way through the Campbell country of Breadalbane (Breadalbane was instrumental in cracking down on the Jacobites, although in a very underhand way, and he would swap sides in 1715) to Tyndrum and over Rannoch Moor to Glencoe. This was the scene of the infamous massacre of 1692 when the MacDonalds of Glencoe were killed for not signing an oath to William of Orange, but nature of the way they were killed is what made it so bad. It was murder under trust by the redcoats of the Argyll regiment with orders signed by the king. The visitor centre brings this day of infamy to life. Nearby is Appin and Ballachuilish where we test your ability to solve the most famous Jacobite murder, the Appin murder of 1752. From here it is a short hop to Fort William for some great walking.
Overnight - Fort William
Day 2: Fort William - Lochaber - Castle Tioram - Moidart - Glenfinnan - Fort William
The day begins with a visit to the Ben Nevis distillery, producing a bittersweet malty whisky, with a pleasant finish. Then we head south again to the Corran Ferry across to Nether Lochaber and Ardgour. Then the tour heads west through the stunning scenery of Sunart, Ardnamurchan and Moidart. 
These are the lands of the Clan Ranald and MacLeans, and we will make a stop at Castle Tioram, now ruined seat of the Clan Ranald MacDonald, inheritors of the once powerful Lordship of the Isles. Moidart is where Bonnie Prince Charlie landed in 1745 to make an attempt to put his father back on the British Throne. According to legend he arrived with only seven men, known as the ‘Seven Men of Moidart’. The tour then heads north to Glenfinnan on the stunning Loch Shiel. It was here in 1745 that Prince Charles Edward Stuart raised his father’s standard and start the abortive Jacobite rising that would take his army to within 100 miles of London before being annihilated at Culloden on the 16th of April 1746, bringing the cause to an end. From Glenfinnan the tour makes its way back to the Great Glen, and Fort William. Fort William was built originally by Cromwell to subdue the Highlands, it is named after William of Orange.
Overnight - Fort William
Day 3: Fort William - Inverlochy Castle - Loch Ness - Glenshiel - Glenelg - Portree
The tour begins with a visit to old Inverlochy Castle, seat of Royal power in the area, until Cromwell built his fort at nearby Fort William. Then it is on up to Loch Ness and west to Glenshiel and the Five Sisters of Kintail. It was here that the redcoats defeated a small Jacobite force in 1719. To control the area the Government built a redcoat barrack at nearby Glenelg, and we will head there via the Mam Ratagan with its jaw-dropping views across Kintail. From Glenelg we catch the ferry to the Isle of Skye and make our way through the high Cuillin Mountain to the Island Capital, Portree.
Overnight - Portree
Day 4: Day exploring the Isle of Skye
This a day spent exploring the Isle of Skye. We can arrange a boat trip on Loch Coruisk deep in the heart of the mountains which is an amazing way to enjoy these wild mountains. The trip will head to the north of the island to 
visit Dunvegan castle, seat of the Chief of the Clan MacLeod, and south to Armadale Castle museum. This is a great museum giving a background to the Island’s role in the Jacobite risings and the disasters that would befall the island in the aftermath. We will also visit Talisker distillery, with its strong peaty and smoky whisky and the museums of island life
Overnight - Portree
Day 5: Potree - Culloden Moor - Edinburgh
From Skye we will make our way back to the mainland and the Highland Capital Inverness, where we can visit bleak Culloden Moor, and feel the death of the old Highlands. From Inverness it is pretty much a straight run down to Edinburgh, via the lands of Clan Chattan and Blair Castle, the last castle in Britain to be sieged during the Jacobite wars.
For more details go to the "Prices, Dates, and What's Included" section...
Lochaber, the Great Glen and Skye Tour!!
Day by Day Itinerary:
Prices, Dates & What's Included:
This tour is available with a private local driver guide specializing in Scottish culture, landscape and whisky. For more details and prices for private tour options please fill out the Enquire/Book It form which you can access from the button below.
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