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| Arrival Eriskay |
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| Beach on Barra |
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| Robbo at morning tea |
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| Barra before Eriskay Ferry |
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| Ferry to Eriskay |
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| Causeway from Eriskay to Sth Uist |
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| The Thommo's |
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| The beautiful Outer Hebrides |
Wednesday, June 19, 2019
En route to Orasay - 63 kms / 400 metres climbing
Tuesday, June 18, 2019
When Julia goes MOD !
It seemed all too familiar looking out the window this morning, rain, dark clouds, a barren rocky landscape and one hell of a Hebridean breeze.
This area in the UK (the Outer Hebrides) is one of the few places in the world where they call 100km hour winds a breeze making essential that any planned tour takes into account the prevailing wind direction (something I didn't do in 2015 for Monika and selves Scottish end to end cycle !)
With Pommie Kev and Julia on the road early Aussie Kev and I quickly visited the Castlebay Co-op for some emergency food supplies (jam donuts) before making our way with a magic tailwind to our 11a.m. Eriskay ferry. En route we had ample time to take in this wild and bleak geological landscape with its rocky peat laden fields, small glacial lochs and beautiful white sand beaches dominating the landscape.
Our 40 minute ferry trip was uneventful other than when the ferry ticket collector had a wry dig at us by telling us we were sitting (on bench seats) in first class and needed to pay a supplement !
Disembarking at Eriskay on South Uist we hit a cruel 20% pinch (where Pommie Kev got a royal serve from a following female cyclist for baulking) before battling a powerful head wind for teh short ride to a local cafe to meet up with with Robbo our Tibetan cycle mate who'd ferried across with his camper van earlier this morning.
From the cafe it was a cyclists dream ! Despite the cold foreboding landscape a power fuelled tailwind was right up our freckles (another Henleyism !) helping us to fly along the Hebridean Cycle Way.
Mid afternoon we finally bade a fond farewell to Robbo who then turned around to cycle back to his campground on his unique Inspector Gadget styled bike - what a delight it was to catch up with him !
From here it was plain sailing North other than for one incident where we stopped at the junction of what we thought was the turnoff to our accommodation . While Pommie Kev and I studied the maps to check our location and Henley looked skywards to study the migratory habits of the Hebridean Albatross, Julia at Pommie Kev's silent prodding kept proceeding along the turn off - no problem except the road went straight up a 15% hill into signposted Ministry of Defence property !!
By the time we'd realised where we were on the map Julia had now summited the hill and was in real danger of being conscripted into the Hebridean cavalry (the UK military budget is a bit tight) or even being locked up !
After a quick phone call Julia descended surprisingly with a smile on her face no doubt thinking what she could cash her hard earned 5,000 brownie points in for at Pommie Kev's expense.
Finally we found our correct turn off and made our way to our overnight accommodation the Orosay Inn for a well earned Hebridean rest with ongoing prayers for a continued Southerly top of our agenda!
This area in the UK (the Outer Hebrides) is one of the few places in the world where they call 100km hour winds a breeze making essential that any planned tour takes into account the prevailing wind direction (something I didn't do in 2015 for Monika and selves Scottish end to end cycle !)
With Pommie Kev and Julia on the road early Aussie Kev and I quickly visited the Castlebay Co-op for some emergency food supplies (jam donuts) before making our way with a magic tailwind to our 11a.m. Eriskay ferry. En route we had ample time to take in this wild and bleak geological landscape with its rocky peat laden fields, small glacial lochs and beautiful white sand beaches dominating the landscape.
Our 40 minute ferry trip was uneventful other than when the ferry ticket collector had a wry dig at us by telling us we were sitting (on bench seats) in first class and needed to pay a supplement !
Disembarking at Eriskay on South Uist we hit a cruel 20% pinch (where Pommie Kev got a royal serve from a following female cyclist for baulking) before battling a powerful head wind for teh short ride to a local cafe to meet up with with Robbo our Tibetan cycle mate who'd ferried across with his camper van earlier this morning.
From the cafe it was a cyclists dream ! Despite the cold foreboding landscape a power fuelled tailwind was right up our freckles (another Henleyism !) helping us to fly along the Hebridean Cycle Way.
Mid afternoon we finally bade a fond farewell to Robbo who then turned around to cycle back to his campground on his unique Inspector Gadget styled bike - what a delight it was to catch up with him !
From here it was plain sailing North other than for one incident where we stopped at the junction of what we thought was the turnoff to our accommodation . While Pommie Kev and I studied the maps to check our location and Henley looked skywards to study the migratory habits of the Hebridean Albatross, Julia at Pommie Kev's silent prodding kept proceeding along the turn off - no problem except the road went straight up a 15% hill into signposted Ministry of Defence property !!
By the time we'd realised where we were on the map Julia had now summited the hill and was in real danger of being conscripted into the Hebridean cavalry (the UK military budget is a bit tight) or even being locked up !
After a quick phone call Julia descended surprisingly with a smile on her face no doubt thinking what she could cash her hard earned 5,000 brownie points in for at Pommie Kev's expense.
Finally we found our correct turn off and made our way to our overnight accommodation the Orosay Inn for a well earned Hebridean rest with ongoing prayers for a continued Southerly top of our agenda!
Monday, June 17, 2019
En Route to Castlebay - 58 kms / 800 metres climbing
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| Loch Awe |
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| Its been a hard day for Kev |
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| The Hills of Loch Awe |
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| Pommie Kev - as we approach Castlebay |
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| The hills begin to take their toll around Loch Awe |
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| Leaving our accommodation in Ford |
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| The Gang L-R, Aussie Kev, Julia, Robbo & Pommie Kev |
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| Castlebay Barra |
Remember Norway !
With 60kms to be covered, big hills to be conquered and a ferry to make, the only motivation that Kev needed for the day was the phrase "Remember Norway" ! In a similar situation in Myrdal Norway in 2015 we had to race to make our ferry - 2 of us made it and unfortunately Kev didn't !
With all this in mind we set off at 7.45a.m. with 5 & 1/2 hours to cover 60kms ! It sounded simple enough but with the rain starting & 15% + hills kicking in i was not so sure we were going to make it in time!
Even when a hill was conquered the following descent had to be done with caution as there were often more potholes than road - once descended we'd start the whole climbing process all over again !
If the early going of 10km an hour was worrying so was the wrong turn we made after 35kms that put us on to a busy A85 road but with a ferry to make there was no time to retrace our steps.
We pedalled like the possessed from Tanyuilt on the A85 finally making Oban with an hour to spare catching up with great UK friends Kev and Julia who planned the coming 6 day leg of our trip, a joint cycle of the Outer Hebrides & Skye. H's opening greeting to Kev and Julia were I'm rooted !
On board our ferry to Castlebay on teh Outer Hebrides we were surprised and delighted to meet up with Robbo a friend who we've shared trips with in the past to Tibet, Albania and the UK - what a great unscripted surprise.
Nearly 5 hours later and after 3 litres of drool from H we finally entered the mysterious Castlebay Harbour of Barra ready along with many other cyclists on the ship to enjoy a fabulous Outer Hebrides experience !
With all this in mind we set off at 7.45a.m. with 5 & 1/2 hours to cover 60kms ! It sounded simple enough but with the rain starting & 15% + hills kicking in i was not so sure we were going to make it in time!
Even when a hill was conquered the following descent had to be done with caution as there were often more potholes than road - once descended we'd start the whole climbing process all over again !
If the early going of 10km an hour was worrying so was the wrong turn we made after 35kms that put us on to a busy A85 road but with a ferry to make there was no time to retrace our steps.
We pedalled like the possessed from Tanyuilt on the A85 finally making Oban with an hour to spare catching up with great UK friends Kev and Julia who planned the coming 6 day leg of our trip, a joint cycle of the Outer Hebrides & Skye. H's opening greeting to Kev and Julia were I'm rooted !
On board our ferry to Castlebay on teh Outer Hebrides we were surprised and delighted to meet up with Robbo a friend who we've shared trips with in the past to Tibet, Albania and the UK - what a great unscripted surprise.
Nearly 5 hours later and after 3 litres of drool from H we finally entered the mysterious Castlebay Harbour of Barra ready along with many other cyclists on the ship to enjoy a fabulous Outer Hebrides experience !
Sunday, June 16, 2019
En route to Ford - 80kms / 750 metres climbing
Hilly Kilberry !
While rain is unpleasant, the cold uncomfortable, and the midges bloody annoying, all is forgiven when you get just a smidge of sun as we did today on the lovely Kilberry peninsular.
Leaving Tarbert and saying goodbye to our new found Scottish cycling friends (they had great bikes but just didn't know how to cycle them) and started climbing on the spectacular Kilberry loop. With one testing climb after another the terrain finally flattened giving us great views to the Isle of Jura.
After checking Henley's pulse (to make sure he was alive) after a break for lunch in the sun, we climbed some more this time in the warmth (15c) where even the midges had decided to give it up - this time though leaving the door open for hordes of Australian like flies !
A great 10km descent brought with it the rain before we took time out for a cuppa in Lochgilphead at the beginning of the Crinan canal. Here we bumped into 2 cyclists (Husband and Wife) we'd met yesterday. When we asked them why they'd got into Tarbert so late the night before the husband indicated that after lunch he'd walked 10kms as his legs (diabetic) had failed to function ! Hard going that !
After our cuppa and wit the rain easing we wound our way down the beautiful two hundred year old Crinan canal before turning off towards the magical Kilmartin Glenn with its abundance of history and scenery !
With H on the verge of ceasing to function we finally found our delightful b&b in Ford with our hosts kindly driving us into Kilmartin for dinner !
With a ferry to catch tomorrow at Oban, rain predicted and some bloody big hills along Loch Awe to be conquered the plan is for a 7.30a.m. start definitely a new record for us slovenly Aussies !
Leaving Tarbert and saying goodbye to our new found Scottish cycling friends (they had great bikes but just didn't know how to cycle them) and started climbing on the spectacular Kilberry loop. With one testing climb after another the terrain finally flattened giving us great views to the Isle of Jura.
After checking Henley's pulse (to make sure he was alive) after a break for lunch in the sun, we climbed some more this time in the warmth (15c) where even the midges had decided to give it up - this time though leaving the door open for hordes of Australian like flies !
A great 10km descent brought with it the rain before we took time out for a cuppa in Lochgilphead at the beginning of the Crinan canal. Here we bumped into 2 cyclists (Husband and Wife) we'd met yesterday. When we asked them why they'd got into Tarbert so late the night before the husband indicated that after lunch he'd walked 10kms as his legs (diabetic) had failed to function ! Hard going that !
After our cuppa and wit the rain easing we wound our way down the beautiful two hundred year old Crinan canal before turning off towards the magical Kilmartin Glenn with its abundance of history and scenery !
With H on the verge of ceasing to function we finally found our delightful b&b in Ford with our hosts kindly driving us into Kilmartin for dinner !
With a ferry to catch tomorrow at Oban, rain predicted and some bloody big hills along Loch Awe to be conquered the plan is for a 7.30a.m. start definitely a new record for us slovenly Aussies !
Saturday, June 15, 2019
En route to TarBert - 62 kms / 850 metres climbing !
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| Escaping the midges on the way to Tarbert |
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| Soup and rolls at Carradale en route |
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| The sun peeks through with the Isle of Arran in the background |
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| Midge territory |
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| Just short of Carradale |
Midges Galore !
After 2 days without cycling it was foreign territory as we jumped on our bikes (Kev having thankfully recovered from his Vertigo) and headed out of Campbeltown straight into the rain !
This was a day where we really didn't need to be wearing extra kgs of clothes as the mainly lightly trafficked road became exceedingly lumpy with some bits registering around 15% on the "WTF" meter !
Annoyingly our slow uphill speed meant that those pesky little midge nippers that were out and about were able to slowly and painfully cannibalise us !
It was every man for them selves when Kev stopped for a sandwich to battle his nausea - the midges in the damp climate were horrendous !
Expecting to see a skeleton riding the bike, Kev eventually caught up to me as the sun finally appeared giving us magic views of the Isle of Arran just across the water !
After a few more steep climbs and some banter with some friendly local Scottish cyclists we took the A83 into Tarbert to our basic but comfortable accommodation. Our room is so small that Kev and I can hold hands together across our beds - but that's another not to be told story !
We had a quick meal in this touristy town and a quick brush up on its Viking history before journeying back to our room with Kev quickly settling down to his nightly fare of Trump mocking docos and Jimmy Barnes while I set about trying to work out how to get us to the next destination avoiding midges and without invoking too much stress !
Roll on the good weather !
This was a day where we really didn't need to be wearing extra kgs of clothes as the mainly lightly trafficked road became exceedingly lumpy with some bits registering around 15% on the "WTF" meter !
Annoyingly our slow uphill speed meant that those pesky little midge nippers that were out and about were able to slowly and painfully cannibalise us !
It was every man for them selves when Kev stopped for a sandwich to battle his nausea - the midges in the damp climate were horrendous !
Expecting to see a skeleton riding the bike, Kev eventually caught up to me as the sun finally appeared giving us magic views of the Isle of Arran just across the water !
After a few more steep climbs and some banter with some friendly local Scottish cyclists we took the A83 into Tarbert to our basic but comfortable accommodation. Our room is so small that Kev and I can hold hands together across our beds - but that's another not to be told story !
We had a quick meal in this touristy town and a quick brush up on its Viking history before journeying back to our room with Kev quickly settling down to his nightly fare of Trump mocking docos and Jimmy Barnes while I set about trying to work out how to get us to the next destination avoiding midges and without invoking too much stress !
Roll on the good weather !
Friday, June 14, 2019
Rest Day Campbelltown !
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| Henley into a good thriller and a case of i Cant be f...ed ! |
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| Campbeltown foreshore |
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| Unique bench designs Campbeltown |
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| Campbeltown Harbour |
Campbelltown Down Time !
With the sun out and the breeze gentle the only thing missing from a near perfect day for cycling was us actually doing any cycling !
A late night arrival, the exertion of having to carrying bikes up 3 levels of winding stairs and Kev still suffering from Vertigo could reasonably be used as excuses but the reality was that the rest day was planned well in advance after having expected a hard days cycle yesterday and with 9 consecutive hill laden days still to come !
Our apartment style accommodation made us feel at home as we took in a late breakfast before going our own separate ways to explore this quaint town who's history seems to largely involve Whiskey distilleries both legal and not
While H wandered around town I ventured with bike around the peninsular to get some drone footage
Incoming rain is about to threaten the mood tomorrow as we take the beautiful but hilly coastal route to Tarbert that is if H can be motivated enough to put his book away !
Our other immediate need is to seek out a bike shop with both of us suffering some early tour issues, Kev with a slipping chain and self once again with a retarding wheel. Our only problem is that our nearest bike shop is over 100kms away !
On the bright side there is only 1 road and it is clearly signed with our cycle route - even we couldnt get lost !
A late night arrival, the exertion of having to carrying bikes up 3 levels of winding stairs and Kev still suffering from Vertigo could reasonably be used as excuses but the reality was that the rest day was planned well in advance after having expected a hard days cycle yesterday and with 9 consecutive hill laden days still to come !
Our apartment style accommodation made us feel at home as we took in a late breakfast before going our own separate ways to explore this quaint town who's history seems to largely involve Whiskey distilleries both legal and not
While H wandered around town I ventured with bike around the peninsular to get some drone footage
Incoming rain is about to threaten the mood tomorrow as we take the beautiful but hilly coastal route to Tarbert that is if H can be motivated enough to put his book away !
Our other immediate need is to seek out a bike shop with both of us suffering some early tour issues, Kev with a slipping chain and self once again with a retarding wheel. Our only problem is that our nearest bike shop is over 100kms away !
On the bright side there is only 1 road and it is clearly signed with our cycle route - even we couldnt get lost !
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