Escape the festival: Make an active choice in the hills and glens

Cyclists near Feshiebridge as part of the Merida Outsider mountain bike event

If you are inspired to get out and create your own personal active adventure, there is no better setting than Perthshire.

If you want thrilling watersports, picturesque walking trails and adrenaline-pumping cycling routes then head up the A9.

From an afternoon amble on a leafy forest path to bagging a Munro, Perthshire is made for walkers.

Climbing all Scotland’s 282 peaks over 3,000ft – or the Munros – is a popular hobby and there is one corner of Perthshire where you can bag a good few.

Ben Lawers is at the centre of a chain of seven Munros which fit people can walk in one day.

For beginners, Ben Chonzie, near Crieff, offers a decent path to follow and relatively few technical difficulties, while Schiehallion is a good test and provides awe-inspiring views across Perthshire and Rannoch Moor to the peaks of Glen Coe.

If you prefer wheels rather than your own feet, Perthshire is a cyclist’s heaven. One set of mountain bike trails is on an estate in the Strathearn valley near Crieff.

There’s lots of variety in Comrie Croft’s hand-crafted tracks, including some for expert bikers who will relish a technical challenge, as well as fun areas to test your skills.

The wider area offers many more two-wheeled possibilities, with off-road, gravel and road routes.

A horseback adventure is another way to enjoy the scenery of Strathearn. There are stables attached to Crieff Hydro, with hacks across its 900-acre estate.

Trekking is the speciality of Mains of Taymouth, which is just over the bridge from the picturesque village of Kenmore.

Its riding centre is close to the shores of Loch Tay and makes full use of stunning forest tracks for horseback sightseeing of spectacular mountain, loch and river views.

If water is more your thing, again Perthshire has it in abundance, and you can explore beautiful and remote loch and river wildernesses from a canoe.

Or for drama take a kayak down Scotland’s longest and most famous river, the Tay – the views are spectacular.

But if it is thrills you are after, then take on the Garry in a whitewater rafting trip in the company of experienced experts.

For some people, no trip  to Perthshire would be complete without a round of golf.

Almost 30 of Scotland’s 550 golf courses are in the area so there is something to suit every level of player.

You can follow in the footsteps of the Ryder Cup 2014 legends and head to glamorous Gleneagles, near Auchterarder, or seek out a nine-hole course in one of the glens.