A few people have asked what the packing list is for the tour. Other than a small number of luxury items (iPad & Kindle), we tend to pack as light as we dare (which isn’t very daring). All the kit is stored in a pair of Arkel panniers and occasionally in a small bar bag …
This years bike holiday is a pretty simple double coast to coast. Having already complete the Reivers and C2C routes, this year we will make use of the Sustrans Hadrians Cycleway and the Walney to Wear routes. Day 1 – South Shields to Carlisle (81 miles) Quick Route:Start (0) – South Shields Ferry (3) – …
Today has been christened the bone shaker. The day started with a pleasant ride out from Callander along to the banks of Loch Venachar where there were few hardy souls wild camping on the ‘beach’. The wind had picked up and was blowing a gale, and for the first time it felt cold. It only took …
After such a glorious and relaxing day we had expected that today would be a little more challenging. The Met Office had issued a number of heavy rain weather warnings for parts of Scotland and so it came as little surprise to wake to a very damp world. A late breakfast had us on the …
Our expectation for the day was set. 65 miles with a long uphill stint following the A9 through the Pass of Drumochter didn’t sound like the easiest of days. It came as a pleasant surprise that we managed to cover almost 50 miles with almost half of the day remaining! The day started with the …
Day 5 started out bright, sunny and warm. After the hills of the previous two days, today was to be an easy ride along the Spey valley to Aviemore, only 40 miles away. Rather than riding along the busy A95, we climbed out of Craigellachie onto the B9102 which skirts along the top of the …
A heavy downpour during the previous night had left the roads shiny and just a little damp. However although the clouds were low we were spared an early morning soaking. Once again we were prepared for a tough day, another big climb, another ski centre and more miles, all on legs that were a little …
Day 3 marked our first foray into the Scottish Highlands. Through the planning of the route, days 3 and 4 stood out from the rest because they both involved long climbs up and over the ski resorts Glenshee and Lecht. With the weather forecast for rain approaching from the west we were sure today was …
Day two started with the usual aches and pains that you suffer at the start of a bike tour. With the sun trying to break through the early morning cloud we headed out onto the accident ridden B945. It didn’t take long before we reached the coast again at Tayport just as the sun cleared away …
After a very poor nights sleep at the Edinburgh Dreghorn Travelodge (lots of traffic noise and poor accommodation), we decided to skip breakfast and headed instead to the starting location for our tour, the rather glamourous Edinburgh Airport long stay car park. Any security guards that had been watching the CCTV stream from one of …