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| On the Canal |
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| Loch Ness |
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| WW2 Training area |
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| Kev's running on empty |
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| Fort Augustus |
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| The steep climb out of Fort Augustus |
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| Wild views on to of the climb ! |
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| Beautiful Loch Ness |
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| Approaching Inverness |
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| Our Luxury B&B |
Monday, June 24, 2019
En route to Inverness - 120 kms / 900 metres climbing
On the Bus Henley !
Our friendly B&B hosts had provided H a lifeline overnight by suggesting that he could access a bus to halve today's expected 100 plus km distance. Kev has been suffering cumulative tour fatigue as well as I suspect some side effects from an Aussie bug that has made the tour with him!
With a big day ahead and a Co-op shop breakfast of Sausage Rolls and bananas, we launched straight into a canal induced headwind. This was tough going as we headed to Gairlochy before we venturing off road on a very rough forest trail that followed the huge connected Lochs.
After H had swallowed his optimal share of midges while taking an early morning break, we continued on to Fort Augustus separately with Kev aiming fair and square for the Inverness bus.
At Fort Augustus Kev placed plastic bags around his wheels and chain and adopted pleading puppy dog style eyes to be finally allowed by the F1 style coach driver to board the bus to Inverness.
I kept the ride going taking the high road (literally) on a huge climb out of Fort Augustus sweating gallons in the afternoon sun.
Hill climbed it was a long but magical cycle on a quiet B road that ran right alongside the Oily Black coloured Loch Ness - talk about a dramatic and beautiful setting.
Late afternoon and after a number of circuits of Inverness Kev and selfs paths finally converged at the luxury 4 star B&B of Redspokes Cycle company owner Dermott and partner Lynette.
Being a frequent Redspokes cycle customer Dermott had kindly invited Kev and I to stay in the "honeymoon suite" of this incredible establishment.
After 120 kms and a huge amount of climbing there were no arguments offered and definitely no matrimonial thoughts on my mind
With a big day ahead and a Co-op shop breakfast of Sausage Rolls and bananas, we launched straight into a canal induced headwind. This was tough going as we headed to Gairlochy before we venturing off road on a very rough forest trail that followed the huge connected Lochs.
After H had swallowed his optimal share of midges while taking an early morning break, we continued on to Fort Augustus separately with Kev aiming fair and square for the Inverness bus.
At Fort Augustus Kev placed plastic bags around his wheels and chain and adopted pleading puppy dog style eyes to be finally allowed by the F1 style coach driver to board the bus to Inverness.
I kept the ride going taking the high road (literally) on a huge climb out of Fort Augustus sweating gallons in the afternoon sun.
Hill climbed it was a long but magical cycle on a quiet B road that ran right alongside the Oily Black coloured Loch Ness - talk about a dramatic and beautiful setting.
Late afternoon and after a number of circuits of Inverness Kev and selfs paths finally converged at the luxury 4 star B&B of Redspokes Cycle company owner Dermott and partner Lynette.
Being a frequent Redspokes cycle customer Dermott had kindly invited Kev and I to stay in the "honeymoon suite" of this incredible establishment.
After 120 kms and a huge amount of climbing there were no arguments offered and definitely no matrimonial thoughts on my mind
En route to Fort William - 62 kms / 620 metres climbing
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| Neptune Stairs Fort William |
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| Glenfinan Railway Carriages B&B & Cafe |
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| En route to Fort William |
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| H recovers with soup at the Glenfinnan Railway Cafe |
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| Fort William |
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| Ben Nevis in the Background at Fort William |
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| Saying goodbye to Pommie Kev and Julia at Back of Kennoch B&B |
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| Neptunes Staircase Fort William |
Fort William or Bust !
With breakfast and the summer solstice behind us it was time to farewell our good UK friends Kev & Julia who'd accompanied us on the Outer Hebrides / Skye leg.
After Kev and Julia had departed heading back to their starting point at Connel near Oban, Aussie Kev and I flew the drone terrorising local seagulls to get some good shots of "Back of Kennoch's" beach.
With the drone packed away we were on the road soon silently grumbling at Pommie Kev's earlier promise that the day to Fort William would only involve 400 metres of climbing .
400 metres my arse (sorry Kev!) ! In fact we climbed almost that much in the first couple of hours in the days cycle !!
Our bike verge / path soon ran out as we cycled along the occasionally busy A835 Ideas of potential scenic detours were put on hold with Aussie Kev's cumulative tour fatigue reaching the "red" zone !
Our route had some very steep climbs out of beautiful Lochs and valleys. En route we spied the famous flying Scottish steam train the Jacobite which provided a romantic image as it raced across the incredibly green landscape. The romantic notion though was soon destroyed by groups of speeding Porches and Motorcycles that seemed to treat the roads like an F1 test track !
At the half way mark and with temperatures nearly hitting 20c, we had a restorative soup and toastie at the railway cafe of Glenfinnan well known for its aqueduct styled railway bridge that featured prominently in the Harry Potter films.
With lunch downed and almost refreshed we cycled the remaining 25 kms into Fort William.
Up in front I arrived just in time to see the stairs of Neptune (multiple lochs) and an adjacent swing bridge in action to allow passage of multiple yachts.
H arriving soon after had as much energy left as a Duracell Bunny without batteries. Kev was gone, spent, kaput, finished ! If he'd had the energy he would have thrown himself into the canal right there and then !!
Fortunately the fact that our accommodation was nearby seemed to revive him. Kev's luck soon deserted him scoring a blow up mattress and a sleeping bag as his bed for the evening ! You just can't help bad luck !
Our hosts though were very friendly and soon had us well directed around a town stunningly set against the back drop of the imposing Ben Nevis Mtn at 1345 metres the highest in the UK .
With tomorrow an expected 100km plus day and H just short of needing to be buried it was now time to urgently come up with a plan B !
After Kev and Julia had departed heading back to their starting point at Connel near Oban, Aussie Kev and I flew the drone terrorising local seagulls to get some good shots of "Back of Kennoch's" beach.
With the drone packed away we were on the road soon silently grumbling at Pommie Kev's earlier promise that the day to Fort William would only involve 400 metres of climbing .
400 metres my arse (sorry Kev!) ! In fact we climbed almost that much in the first couple of hours in the days cycle !!
Our bike verge / path soon ran out as we cycled along the occasionally busy A835 Ideas of potential scenic detours were put on hold with Aussie Kev's cumulative tour fatigue reaching the "red" zone !
Our route had some very steep climbs out of beautiful Lochs and valleys. En route we spied the famous flying Scottish steam train the Jacobite which provided a romantic image as it raced across the incredibly green landscape. The romantic notion though was soon destroyed by groups of speeding Porches and Motorcycles that seemed to treat the roads like an F1 test track !
At the half way mark and with temperatures nearly hitting 20c, we had a restorative soup and toastie at the railway cafe of Glenfinnan well known for its aqueduct styled railway bridge that featured prominently in the Harry Potter films.
With lunch downed and almost refreshed we cycled the remaining 25 kms into Fort William.
Up in front I arrived just in time to see the stairs of Neptune (multiple lochs) and an adjacent swing bridge in action to allow passage of multiple yachts.
H arriving soon after had as much energy left as a Duracell Bunny without batteries. Kev was gone, spent, kaput, finished ! If he'd had the energy he would have thrown himself into the canal right there and then !!
Fortunately the fact that our accommodation was nearby seemed to revive him. Kev's luck soon deserted him scoring a blow up mattress and a sleeping bag as his bed for the evening ! You just can't help bad luck !
Our hosts though were very friendly and soon had us well directed around a town stunningly set against the back drop of the imposing Ben Nevis Mtn at 1345 metres the highest in the UK .
With tomorrow an expected 100km plus day and H just short of needing to be buried it was now time to urgently come up with a plan B !
Friday, June 21, 2019
En route to Arisaig - 80 kms / 750 metres climbing
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| Portree Harbour and coloured houses |
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| Dominant Cuillin Mtns |
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| Cafe at Armadale |
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| Ferry to Mallaig |
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| En route from Portree |
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| The Ferry we missed at Armadale |
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| Our B&B Back of Kennoch |
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| Near Back of Kennoch |
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| Beautiful morning views in Portree |
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| Old Road on Isle of Skye |
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| Beautiful sunset at Back of Kennoch |
Is Sex Better than Hill Climbing - The Jury is In !
The discussion came up a few days ago when I spied an on line article that suggested that Cycle Hill Climbing was very much like sex, slow and rhythmic and then you're fuc&ed when you get to the top !!
Gasping for air after having climbed up our 100th small hill for the day Julia gave her opinion remarking that there was no contest as hill climbing sucks !
For those wondering how Henley and I survived the night before in a double bed you can stop worrying as our manly images are still intact ! After yesterday's bum buster I was so buggered that I simply grabbed the beds doona and slept on the floor leaving H with bugger all bed coverings. Admittedly though the sight of H in his frilly nightie in the morning was pretty damned enticing !
After yesterday's tough ride we left lateish - 9-45 following Pommie Kev and Julia in the sun. At 9.46 it started bucketing down forcing us to scamper to the tourist info office until the rain had passed over and the sun had returned at 9.48 !
This was a mixed day of superb scenery, tough riding, variable weather conditions and very uncomfortable cycling as we rode on an extremely busy A road (with no verge) competing with high speed trucks and camper vans.
Thankfully most of the drivers were courteous enough but the speed they were going past was pretty unnerving even for the most experienced of us - Skye is just simply not geared for cycling.
Eventually we caught up with Pommie Kev and Julia at Broadford for a welcome coffee although Henley's shout somehow equated to an extra large one for him and a small one for me. I'm looking at payback which means a thimble for him when it's my shout next !
Turning off the busy of Kyle of Lochalsh road to the ferry at Armadale was almost pleasant with most of the busy traffic gone, the sun out and some superb scenery !
I say almost pleasant as the last 20kms to the ferry were almost exclusively into a headwind that had Aussie Kev just about spent and even Julia swearing (Gosh, Darn etc etc) !
A sign en route had indicated that our aimed for 3pm ferry was in fact leaving at 2.30 which caused us to throttle back to target the next one at 4.30 pm. To Pommie Kev and my horror we rounded the all but last corner with 1 small hill climb left realising that our ferry was departing at 3 giving us 5 minutes to make the ramp.
Racing to the dock we made it with a couple of minutes to spare, PK teeing up the tickets, but unfortunately the last stretch was too much for the others so PK and I watched forlornly as the ferry sailed off just as H and Julia cycled in. Still all was not lost as we sat back having a cuppa with a stunning vista in front of us
We boarded our now 4.30pm ferry complete with bus loads of "Septics" as H calls them (Yanks) for a magical 30 minute ride to Mallaig past a stunning coastline of craggy mountains which signified mainland Scotland and more hills to be climbed !
Disembarking we cycled past the famous Jacobite steam train and on to Back of Bennoch near Arisaig some 10kms distant. We were now well and truly knackered by our days ordeal
Our B&B helped restore our spirits somewhat. The B&B was beautifully situated overlooking beaches that were used to film Local Hero with the Skye Peninsular starkly prominent in the background
All that was left to do was to walk to a pub at Arisaig 2-3kms distant along country lanes on a lovely Summer Solstice evening enjoy our meal and return in time for a magical sunset - story book stuff indeed !
Gasping for air after having climbed up our 100th small hill for the day Julia gave her opinion remarking that there was no contest as hill climbing sucks !
For those wondering how Henley and I survived the night before in a double bed you can stop worrying as our manly images are still intact ! After yesterday's bum buster I was so buggered that I simply grabbed the beds doona and slept on the floor leaving H with bugger all bed coverings. Admittedly though the sight of H in his frilly nightie in the morning was pretty damned enticing !
After yesterday's tough ride we left lateish - 9-45 following Pommie Kev and Julia in the sun. At 9.46 it started bucketing down forcing us to scamper to the tourist info office until the rain had passed over and the sun had returned at 9.48 !
This was a mixed day of superb scenery, tough riding, variable weather conditions and very uncomfortable cycling as we rode on an extremely busy A road (with no verge) competing with high speed trucks and camper vans.
Thankfully most of the drivers were courteous enough but the speed they were going past was pretty unnerving even for the most experienced of us - Skye is just simply not geared for cycling.
Eventually we caught up with Pommie Kev and Julia at Broadford for a welcome coffee although Henley's shout somehow equated to an extra large one for him and a small one for me. I'm looking at payback which means a thimble for him when it's my shout next !
Turning off the busy of Kyle of Lochalsh road to the ferry at Armadale was almost pleasant with most of the busy traffic gone, the sun out and some superb scenery !
I say almost pleasant as the last 20kms to the ferry were almost exclusively into a headwind that had Aussie Kev just about spent and even Julia swearing (Gosh, Darn etc etc) !
A sign en route had indicated that our aimed for 3pm ferry was in fact leaving at 2.30 which caused us to throttle back to target the next one at 4.30 pm. To Pommie Kev and my horror we rounded the all but last corner with 1 small hill climb left realising that our ferry was departing at 3 giving us 5 minutes to make the ramp.
Racing to the dock we made it with a couple of minutes to spare, PK teeing up the tickets, but unfortunately the last stretch was too much for the others so PK and I watched forlornly as the ferry sailed off just as H and Julia cycled in. Still all was not lost as we sat back having a cuppa with a stunning vista in front of us
We boarded our now 4.30pm ferry complete with bus loads of "Septics" as H calls them (Yanks) for a magical 30 minute ride to Mallaig past a stunning coastline of craggy mountains which signified mainland Scotland and more hills to be climbed !
Disembarking we cycled past the famous Jacobite steam train and on to Back of Bennoch near Arisaig some 10kms distant. We were now well and truly knackered by our days ordeal
Our B&B helped restore our spirits somewhat. The B&B was beautifully situated overlooking beaches that were used to film Local Hero with the Skye Peninsular starkly prominent in the background
All that was left to do was to walk to a pub at Arisaig 2-3kms distant along country lanes on a lovely Summer Solstice evening enjoy our meal and return in time for a magical sunset - story book stuff indeed !
Thursday, June 20, 2019
En route to Portree - 90kms / 1250 metres climbing
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| Wild coastline heading toTarbert |
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| The road to the ferry at Tarbert |
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| Ferry to Uig |
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| Climbing out of Uig on the Isle of Skye |
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| Isle of Skye heading to Portree |
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| Wild and remote Skye |
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| Close to Portree |
The Way Matters !
We left Leverburgh early in dark threatening conditions with a ferry deadline in Tarbert (30kms distant) to be met.
Unfortunately it didn't take long before the skies opened up sending H scurrying for his bike bag covers and his back up neoprene diving suit - he knew that it was going to come in handy in Scotland!
Despite the gloomy wet weather this was a stunning 30km cycle along a wild rocky coastal estuary populated with stunning white sand beaches.and exposed wind swept golf courses
I almost felt at peace in this remote and beautiful area until some clown sped past me in the opposite direction on a narrow road. My well mannered response had the guy fuming. As the driver started to reverse back up the hill to continue the confrontation I pedaled off at lightning speed hoping that he'd confuse the orange jacket I was wearing for Kev's red one !
We made the Tarbert - Uig ferry on time. H a little worse for wear slept most of the 90+ minutes over to the Isle of Skye while Pommie Kev, Julia and self took in some lunch time sustenance !
Disembarking at Uig on the Isle of Skye we collectively noticed the 1C temperature improvement - it was now almost a heatwave at 13C !
With a few different options to get to Portree, Aussie Kev and Julia shot off taking the direct 30km route on the main road taking coffee cake just 3kms down the road!
I though must have been on drugs as I instead listened to Pommie Kev and we were soon steeply climbing along the Northern coast admiring the stunning views of the wild looking landscape of Skye.
After an initial respite the climbing kicked back in again and again as we competed with the busy tourist traffic. Skye has a notorious reputation as being over touristed with b&b's often booked out over 12 months in advance. But is does come with amazing scenery !
After 2h ours of solid cycling and a coke break, Pommie Kev and I got hit with a tough headwind that shadowed us all the way into Portree an additional 2 hours later !
With Henley on domestic duties (washing) and working out which side of the double bed he's sleeping on (yes !) and what nightie to wear, I headed down the local with Pommie Kev and Julia to celebrate our days ride and intro to teh beautiful Isle of Skye.
We have an 80km ride tomorrow and a lateish start to allow me to recover from the hard days ride and the shock of having to share a Double bed with Henley ! ps - I'm opting for the floor !
Unfortunately it didn't take long before the skies opened up sending H scurrying for his bike bag covers and his back up neoprene diving suit - he knew that it was going to come in handy in Scotland!
Despite the gloomy wet weather this was a stunning 30km cycle along a wild rocky coastal estuary populated with stunning white sand beaches.and exposed wind swept golf courses
I almost felt at peace in this remote and beautiful area until some clown sped past me in the opposite direction on a narrow road. My well mannered response had the guy fuming. As the driver started to reverse back up the hill to continue the confrontation I pedaled off at lightning speed hoping that he'd confuse the orange jacket I was wearing for Kev's red one !
We made the Tarbert - Uig ferry on time. H a little worse for wear slept most of the 90+ minutes over to the Isle of Skye while Pommie Kev, Julia and self took in some lunch time sustenance !
Disembarking at Uig on the Isle of Skye we collectively noticed the 1C temperature improvement - it was now almost a heatwave at 13C !
With a few different options to get to Portree, Aussie Kev and Julia shot off taking the direct 30km route on the main road taking coffee cake just 3kms down the road!
I though must have been on drugs as I instead listened to Pommie Kev and we were soon steeply climbing along the Northern coast admiring the stunning views of the wild looking landscape of Skye.
After an initial respite the climbing kicked back in again and again as we competed with the busy tourist traffic. Skye has a notorious reputation as being over touristed with b&b's often booked out over 12 months in advance. But is does come with amazing scenery !
After 2h ours of solid cycling and a coke break, Pommie Kev and I got hit with a tough headwind that shadowed us all the way into Portree an additional 2 hours later !
With Henley on domestic duties (washing) and working out which side of the double bed he's sleeping on (yes !) and what nightie to wear, I headed down the local with Pommie Kev and Julia to celebrate our days ride and intro to teh beautiful Isle of Skye.
We have an 80km ride tomorrow and a lateish start to allow me to recover from the hard days ride and the shock of having to share a Double bed with Henley ! ps - I'm opting for the floor !
Wednesday, June 19, 2019
En route to Leverburgh - 63kms / 350 metres climbing
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| Benbecula Airport |
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| Causeway to Benbecula |
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| Negotiating rocks en route to Leverburgh |
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| Outside Leverburgh |
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| A sugar fix Leverburgh |
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| Leverburgh |
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| South Uist |
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| Departing Orosay Inn Locharnan |
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| Orosay Inn breakfast |
A Caravan too close !
The b&b rooms at Orasay might have been a bit on the small side and the beer a bit suss but the Inn's breakfast was overwhelming causing H's eyes to spin as we plowed into big bowls of cereal and fruit before tackling our huge cooked plates accompanied by the usual 4 gallons of tea !
Finishing breakfast I mentioned to H that we actually might need some sun cream when the weather changed and it started to rain.
The exceptionally strong wind though was thankfully behind us again as we took the Hebridean way coastwards and across a succession of beautiful causeways.
In between we cycled on more than our usual share of single lane roads with tiny passing areas.
These passing areas can cause a degree of friction between car and bike as some cars either try to squeeze past you in between passing bays or expect you to ride like the wind to avoid delaying them .
This stop start type of cycling is tiring although it did provide a degree of perverse entertainment as Caravans and tankers following pressured you in to pulling over or cycling like buggery to the next passing bay. One car towing caravan went within inches of pulling in on me which provoked my normal mild mannered Aussie response of cycling after him with the aim of kicking his tail lights in !
Pommie Kev guided us with due aplomb (read he was taking no shit from the Aussies) to Berneray on a beautifully wild loch filled route to our waiting ferry to Leverburgh.
Our 1 hour crossing saw us navigate gingerly between reefs and rocky obstructions before piling us out on to the shores of Harris.
In need of a quick fix we hit the local supermarket briefly sitting outside taking in the afternoon sun, before cycling 3kms to our b&b on the outskirts of town
It was obvious that Pommie Kev back was back in form as when I congratulated Julia on her days cycling Kev simply said "creep" under his breath.
As for our senior representative one K T Henley is doing pretty well despite his cold and his intense dislike of hills and warm frothy English beer .
His usual on trip faux pauxs have been kept to a minimum so far.
3 stand outs though include - 1) telling someone en route he'd cycled from Port Campbell that day (meaning Campbelltown on Kintyre 2) commenting loudly on a young girls green tinted hair only to have that same girl walk into our cafe and say good morning to her mum the cafe owner standing just behind us and 3) Calling a touring English cyclist a bore without realising that he was standing in ear shot - all in all a low strike rate so far for our esteemed cultural attaché !
Finishing breakfast I mentioned to H that we actually might need some sun cream when the weather changed and it started to rain.
The exceptionally strong wind though was thankfully behind us again as we took the Hebridean way coastwards and across a succession of beautiful causeways.
In between we cycled on more than our usual share of single lane roads with tiny passing areas.
These passing areas can cause a degree of friction between car and bike as some cars either try to squeeze past you in between passing bays or expect you to ride like the wind to avoid delaying them .
This stop start type of cycling is tiring although it did provide a degree of perverse entertainment as Caravans and tankers following pressured you in to pulling over or cycling like buggery to the next passing bay. One car towing caravan went within inches of pulling in on me which provoked my normal mild mannered Aussie response of cycling after him with the aim of kicking his tail lights in !
Pommie Kev guided us with due aplomb (read he was taking no shit from the Aussies) to Berneray on a beautifully wild loch filled route to our waiting ferry to Leverburgh.
Our 1 hour crossing saw us navigate gingerly between reefs and rocky obstructions before piling us out on to the shores of Harris.
In need of a quick fix we hit the local supermarket briefly sitting outside taking in the afternoon sun, before cycling 3kms to our b&b on the outskirts of town
It was obvious that Pommie Kev back was back in form as when I congratulated Julia on her days cycling Kev simply said "creep" under his breath.
As for our senior representative one K T Henley is doing pretty well despite his cold and his intense dislike of hills and warm frothy English beer .
His usual on trip faux pauxs have been kept to a minimum so far.
3 stand outs though include - 1) telling someone en route he'd cycled from Port Campbell that day (meaning Campbelltown on Kintyre 2) commenting loudly on a young girls green tinted hair only to have that same girl walk into our cafe and say good morning to her mum the cafe owner standing just behind us and 3) Calling a touring English cyclist a bore without realising that he was standing in ear shot - all in all a low strike rate so far for our esteemed cultural attaché !
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