Gairloch Trekking Centre

Gairloch Trekking Centre runs guided pony rides from a working croft at Red Point, the road end at the south-west tip of the peninsula between Loch Gairloch and Loch Torridon. The position is the operation’s main draw: Red Point is at the end of a long single-track road from Badachro, with the Atlantic on one side and the rough hillside falling toward Loch Torridon on the other, and the routes from the croft work through forestry tracks, hill paths and coastal grazing into some of the most open ground in Wester Ross.

Trips are graded for ability. Beginners and children take short rides along the forestry track behind the croft; intermediates work down to the Red Point sands (one of the more remote beaches on the west coast, with views across the Loch Torridon mouth to the Applecross peninsula); experienced riders take longer half-day trips into the higher ground behind the bay. Helmets and saddlery are provided; sensible footwear and waterproofs are the visitor responsibility.

The ponies are Highland Garron and the more compact Eriskay-cross types, sure-footed working ponies bred for the kind of broken ground the routes cover. Bookings are essential and the season runs spring through autumn.

Current trip times, prices and the booking form at the Gairloch Trekking Centre website.