This is the story of my 700-mile cycle ride in May-June 2023, from Glasgow to Inverness via Oban, Mull, Coll, Tiree, and along the Caledonian way (R78) to Fort William and the Great Glen.

The plan was to look for the Chequered Skipper in its stronghold here, and to find the rare Belted Beauty and Tiree Twist moths. I also wanted to see the flower-rich machair grasslands that the islands are famous for - and to raise money for Butterfly Conservation.

In Glasgow, I renewed my acquaintance with Ruchill Park, which I had visited on my Land’s End to John o’Groats ride two years before. Here, my first butterfly of the trip was a female Orange Tip, which I took to be a good omen, despite the cool and overcast weather. I was to see many Orange Tips, all the way to Inverness and into mid June.

The ride along the Forth & Clyde Canal to Bowling was delightful, then an easy run to Balloch on Loch Lomond for the night. Damp weather accompanied me, all along the west coast of Loch Lomond and up to Tyndrum (250m asl). Here I heard my first cuckoo of the trip, and I was to hear a cuckoo every day for the next 19 days; such a treat.

I set off on day three in a mizzle, but this cleared as I sped down the A85 past the beautiful Loch Awe to Taynuilt. Mercifully, there was very little traffic as it was early on a Sunday morning. I was able to divert to visit Airds Park and see a few Green-veined Whites, Orange Tips and one very tatty Peacock from last year braving the weather. Despite riding 70km and taking in several walks, I was able to get to my B&B in Oban at a reasonable hour. The hills on Mull across the water looked awfully big to me!

The next day I explored around Oban. First, a visit to Glan Nant NNR - a wondrously atmospheric ancient coppiced oak wood, brimming with life. Here were some more Orange Tips, Green-veined Whites, Speckled Woods and lots of Brown Silver-line moths. 

Then a search for the Pearl-bordered Fritillary at Glenmarchie. My heart raced as I saw a brown fritillary, but it proved to be only a Small Pearl-bordered Fritillary, which is much commoner here, and is quite widespread in parts of Scotland.

On day five, I boarded the early ferry for the short crossing to Craignure on Mull. The water was flat calm, but there was no wildlife to be seen. The whole of the day was cool and damp, rarely above 10℃, so I only saw a solitary Green-veined White - in Glen More, under the brooding 966m Ben More. The scenery was stunning, despite the weather. 

It was 6 hours of near-continuous cycling, and I was exhausted when I finally got to Killiechronan campsite on the west coast of Mull. It’s an enchanting place, right by Loch Na Keal, though with almost no facilities. The only toilet was a 200m walk up the lane.   

Tonight was the first time in 45 years that I’d camped in a small tent like this:  something of a baptism of fire - or rather wind and rain. The last time was on Orkney in 1978 with college friends Kevin and Adrian - both of whom have sadly died from cancer.  This is in memory of them.

It was raining hard in the morning, but it cleared at 9.30, so I was able to pack and set off in the dry. 

First stop: the community-owned island of Ulva, and a delightful stroll for a couple of hours along the trails from the ferry jetty. I did see a lovely Green-veined White, but there were no Marsh Fritillaries to be seen in the known site - perhaps is was too early in the season - or maybe not enough sun?.

The ride along the coast to Treshnish wasn’t far, but it was a roller-coaster - and steep! On two sections I simply ran out of lower gears, and had to resort to pushing the bike, which is harder than it should be when fully laden (and I have learned that I always carry too much gear). 

Caroline and Somerset had offered to put me up at Treshnish Farm, and they were wonderfully hospitable. We walked through some of their fields after supper - carpets of cotton grass and squill, and fabulous views of the Treshnish Isles and glimpses of Coll.

On day seven it was an easy ride down to Calgary Bay - with a beautiful white sea-shell beach - and then a tough climb through Dervaig to Tobermory on the north-east of the island. It was midge city at the campsite when I woke next morning, so I was away early, despite the continued damp weather. 

My main focus was the Glengorm Estate, and a hunt for the Argent & Sable and rare burnet moths. I was hunkering down for a post-lunch cuppa when I ran into Jonathan (BC SCotland), who informed me that he’d seen Argent & Sable moths out past the standing stones (where I’d just been), but that it was too early for the burnets. I retraced my steps and found the site for the Argent & Sable, but the weather had closed in again, and none were to be seen.

Jonathan had offered to run a moth trap overnight at his house north of Salen, so I set off in the morning to be welcomed with coffee and cakes - and a couple of interesting moth traps. My main aim for the day, though - my last on Mull - was to join Chris and look for the Chequered Skipper. Chris had found the first ever Chequered Skipper on Mull the year before (2022), a couple of miles up a woodland path at Scallastle, near Craignure. 

Despite overcast conditions, Chris found a few fluttering and roosting on the bog myrtle, and I was able to complete my British list of butterflies - this was the last one to see. It was the icing on the cake to finish off an uplifting visit to Mull.

Back in Oban the next day, I set off to explore Balinore, south of Taynuilt, to track down Marsh Fritillaries, as well as Orange Tips, Green-veined Whites, Small Heaths, Common Carpets and Clouded Buffs. 

After lunch, I made a second trip to Airds Park. It was hard to get access to the inner parts of this large site, but I did find a glade where I saw my first self-found Chequered Skipper and some more Small Pearl-bordered Fritillaries.

On day 11, I was up early for the ferry to Coll - an idyllic crossing in calm seas, with great views of Mull and the Ardnamurchan peninsula (the westerly extremity of the British mainland). There’s only one shop on Coll, and it’s open for limited hours, so I stocked up before heading to the campsite 10km away. The RSPB has a big reserve here, which they manage as active farms for the ground-nesting Corncrakes. I went exploring the massive dunes to the south-west and met James from the RSPB, who showed me some Short-necked Oil Beetles, which are only known in a few places. 

Back at camp, I was greeted by cuckoos and the krex-krex of the corncrakes nearby. Apparently, cuckoos thrive here because there are still lots of woolly bear caterpillars for the chicks, and lots of ground-nesting meadow pipits as hosts.

My reward for waking early the next morning was a jubilant dawn chorus - song thrush, sparrow, robin, starling, wren, willow warbler - as well as the cuckoos and corncrakes. 

The second reward was a stunning sunrise, which I was able to observe from 5am (photos below).

Ben from the RSPB had offered to run a moth trap at their Totronald office, so I pottered over at 9am with fellow-camper Sarah. The very first moth that we saw was a Belted Beauty - a striking specimen of this very localised species (photo below). This was a bonus beyond expectation. We also had Flame Shoulder, Spectacle, Poplar Hawk Moth, Small Square Spot, Heart & Dart and White Ermine - among others.

For the rest of the day, I cycled to the north tip of Coll - Sorisdale. It’s a craggy and hilly island, low-lying but with lots of ups and downs - so it was good to stop and rest to take in the scenery from time to time.

It was an early start on day 13 to get the ferry across to Tiree - a similarly sized island, but with 650 inhabitants instead of 150. It was sad to say farewell to Coll, which had given me so much in just a couple of days. But I was excited to be going to Tiree, where Hayley the Tiree Ranger met me from the ferry and chatted over a cup of coffee. Tiree is almost entirely flat - below 40m asl - apart from two hills in the west, Ben Hough (119m) and Carnan Mor (141m). It’s also extremely windy, but I was blessed with good weather. 

The machair grasslands, white beaches, and azure blue bays are stunning. At this time of year the machair is mainly daisies, buttercups and bird’s-foot trefoil. Other flowers appear later in the season - clover, knapweed etc - so the colour changes from white to yellow, to pink and blue. 

Apart from the machair, the other main reason for visiting was to look for the Tiree Twist moth, which is now only known from a couple of sites on the island. With John from the RSPB, we searched the habitat at the rocky outcrop at Balephetrish - there was lots of bird’s-foot trefoil (the assumed food-plant), but no sign of the moth - too early again, I suspect. 

My time on Tiree was spent exploring the machair grasslands and sandy beaches, looking for signs of Belted Beauty and Great Yellow Bumblebees (too early again). There were plenty of Moss Carder bees, Buff-tails and Red-tails, though. 

Back in Oban, there was some sorting out to be done, including sending a couple of kilos of unneeded luggage back home. I still pack too much stuff! The next day, I set off northwards from Oban following the National Cycle Network R78 “Caledonian Way” that goes all the way to Inverness. First stop was at The Birch, Garavan where I tracked down some Marsh Fritillaries. Then a side trip to the Shian Peninsula and onto the little island of Eriska. In the blisteringly hot afternoon, I cycled to Glasdrum Wood NNR, one of the most noted sites for Chequered Skippers. True to form, there they were fluttering along the wayleave - it was almost too easy! There were also plenty of Small Pearl-bordered Fritillaries, Orange Tips, Green-veined Whites, Small Heath, and - I think a Large White and a Marsh Fritillary.

I camped to the south and made a second visit to Glasdrum on day 17. 

Then I made a trip to Cuil Bay, to see one of the most northerly colonies of the Marsh Fritillary. 

The next morning, I cycled a loop around Loch Leven, which is beautiful, before continuing north over the Corran Ferry and along the west side of Loch Linnhe to Camusnagaul. Here there’s a tiny ferry over to Fort William - a town spoiled by tourism, I fear. 

On day 20, I visited Inverlochy Castle which is possibly where the first Chequered Skipper in Scotland was recorded around 80 years ago. Then I rode all the way up Glen Loy, a delightful valley just south of Loch Lochy, before going east to Spean Bridge where I would be based for three nights.

First was a trip to the Butterfly Conservation Reserve at Loch Arkaig (Allt Mhuic) - managed for the Chequered Skipper, and near its northerly limit. This is a remote spot, and a good hour-and-a-half cycle each way from my camp. There were thousands of midges at the car park and I’d forgotten my midge net and Smidge repellent. Fortunately, they disappeared as I started to walk around the reserve. 

I saw the rare Azure Hawker dragonfly, a high-speed Northern Eggar moth at head-height and some more Small Pearl-bordered Fritillaries, but no Skippers. That is until I’d completed my circumnavigation and got back to the gate. Here there were four or five Chequered Skippers roosting on grasses and flying occasionally. 

The views were stunning and it’s a place to remember. A visit is highly recommended. 

View from the top of the Loch Arkaig reserve.

Next day, I took a trip to Neptune’s Staircase, an impressive sequence of eight locks and the longest staircase in Britain. It’s just north of Fort William, at the start of the Caledonian Canal, which goes all the way to Inverness. On the way back, I explored the woods at Spean Bridge, a site with records of Chequered Skippers. It was a sweltering afternoon, but there were several flitting along the woodland rides.

Then it was a ride along the Canal to Fort Augustus, at the south end of Loch Ness, where I rewarded myself with an ice cream.

The 24th and final day of the started with the toughest climb yet - 400m in 9km along General Wade’s Military Road to the east of Loch Ness. 

There were stunning views from the top, though - and mostly a downhill run to the Loch again.

So, I eventually arrived in Inverness, at the end of the Caledonian Way on - 700 miles (1,100km) of riding and 10.6km of climbing. 

Tired, but happy - and having raised about £5,000 for Butterfly Conservation. 

Mission accomplished!