After the success of their first Explore Your Boundaries film, round the world cyclists Mark Beaumont and Markus Stitz have teamed up with Jenny Graham to explore the boundary of Scotland’s Adventure Coast, Argyll and the Isles, in the coming months.
Their 560-mile (900km) journey is a key feature of Wild About Argyll’s Pedaddling campaign, with funding from VisitScotland and sponsorship from Schwalbe Tyres UK, which is showcasing the wealth of people-powered adventures available to the novice and the enthusiast across the breadth of Argyll and the Isles, easily accessible by public transport. The adventurers will use their gravel bikes as well as ferries, boats, kayaks and packrafts to travel along the boundary of Argyll and explore its rugged coasts and beautiful scenery in May, June and July, producing short films along the way and a longer documentary at the end of the project.
Mark Beaumont and Markus Stitz will kick off their adventures on Friday 6 May in Crinan by taking a Venture West boat to the Isle of Jura. They’ll cross the island from north to south and continue by ferry to Islay. On Saturday they will travel on the CalMac ferry from Port Askaig over Colonsay to Oban, and continue on to Tobermory on Mull. From Tobermory they’ll travel with the IsleGo sea taxi to Coll. After cycling on the island they’ll continue on to Tiree and back to Mull, and finish their journey in Oban.
The second part of the adventure in June will see Jenny Graham and Markus Stitz travelling from Dunoon to Balloch by bike, crossing Loch Lomond by packraft, then cycling around the eastern and northern boundary across to Taynuilt and using Scotrail’s Highland Explorer for the last section to Oban. In July, all three will be joined by photographer and filmmaker Maciek Tomiczek to travel from Crinan around Argyll’s southern boundary and round to Dunoon, using kayaks for the final part of the journey.