From Blackwaterfoot in the south to beautiful Lochranza in the north, reaching the attractions on the west coast requires that little bit more effort. One of the highlights has to be King’s Cave, the centre-piece of a three-mile trail from the Forestry Commission car park at Torr Righ (don’t forget to take a torch). This sandstone ‘cave’ is actually a series of caves created by the power of the ocean, but now left high and dry on a raised beach some metres above the present-day sea level. So-called because Robert The Bruce is thought to have taken refuge here in the early part of the fourteenth century, the walls of King’s Cave are covered in carvings, including Ogham inscriptions, a deer and a large cross. Some are thought to date back to early Christian times, but the meanings mostly remain a mystery.
Less than a mile north along the A841 are the even more enigmatic prehistoric monuments of Machrie Moor. A waymarked path across the moody moorland leads past hut circles, field systems and, most impressive of all, a set of six stone circles. Estimated to be about 4,000 years old, they are thought to have been used for religious and ceremonial activities, as well as for later burials. Standing beside the towering red sandstone uprights and looking out across the sea to the misty hills of the Kintyre peninsula, it’s easy to imagine Bronze Age people being entranced by this magnificent landscape.

For much of our time on Arran we stayed in Lochranza, a small village on the island’s northern tip. With the slopes of the surrounding hills coming almost right down to the water’s edge, the few buildings here are

 squeezed onto narrow strips of land on either side of a calm harbour. It’s an atmospheric, peaceful place, given added character by the castle ruins at the back of the bay.
Day visitors come for tours of Arran’s only distillery or simply to enjoy the scenery. The tiny ferry across the Kilbrannan