having recently cycled up through the outer hebrides to callanish, i'd recommend this method to anyone who has the audacity not to own a car, or whoever is put off by the cost of getting vehicles on the island.

just get you and your bike to glasgow by train and take the glasgow queen street to oban train (£15) - there's space for at least six bikes on each of the trains on this line, instead of the usual two bikes per train allowance. always best to book ahead for the bike space - its free anyway.

at oban get yourself an island hopper ticket for £35 - this lasts a month and takes care of your three ferry connections, bike included. from oban, onto the calmac ferry over to lochboisdale on south uist - and start pedalling. you can camp just about anywhere on route. if you put in a leisurely 35 miles a day, going by the scenic westerly routes, you'll travel up through south uist, benbecula, north uist, berneray, harris, north harris, lewis and arrive at callanish at the end of day four. probably a day less if you take route one. a proper pilgrimage all under your own steam, and a hugely satisfying journey and arrival.

to return you can back track down to tarbet and get the ferry over to skye, and return by the kyle train, or head for stornoway and ferry over to ullapool. from here you'll need to get over to garve, near inverness for a train south - i cycled it on the sometimes-busy A road, but there's also a mini bus operator in ullapool who'll put your bikes on board and take you there, if you've ran out of puff by this point.

the total cost of my trip was something like £90 (start and end in edinburgh) - but even from south east england you could certainly do it for under £130 on an apex train deal.

there's only one serious hill on the whole trip, and by then you'll be waltzing up it, locked into the groove, and too fit too care.

so dig that bike out of the shed and just get going!

u know it makes sense

t