Perthshire completes Scotland's transition between its Lowlands to the south and its Highlands to the north and west.

Though it's perhaps best known for the lush rolling hills around it's namesake Perth and the more minor towns of Crieff and Dunkeld in the south, serious hills dominate northern Perthshire – around the major regional hub of Pitlochry.

The hiking here and at Killiecrankie is good, even though the mountains lack the scale of those further north in Cairngorms National Park.

But the smaller scale of the peaks also means that the network of minor roads can be much greater, offering lots of scope for both lovely back-road drives and some of the best road cycling in Scotland.

See the Perthshire Explorer itinerary for a suggestion of how you might explore the region.