Grumpy Old Men On Bikes

We arrived at JOG at 5pm after a lovely day riding up the East coast in glorious sunshine.  Despite the sun it was chilly and we were 'glad' of the many hills to keep us warm. Just two more end to ends as a Bike Adventures tour leader in the next 8 weeks to look forward too :-). Sure beats working for a living! Steve -------------------------- Sent using BlackBerry

The hostel in Fort William was exactly what you would expect for 15 quid a night but we were all so tired we slept like babies (woke up with pooey pants). Today it was cool and cloudy with a pesky headwind as we worked our way along Lochs Lomond and Ness to Inverness then a mad dash up the A9 to Invergorden.  If you have never been to Invergorden (and I imagine you haven't) then you will probably want to keep it that way.  The people seem friendly enough but far too many fingers for my liking. Tomorrow, John O'Groats. Steve Ps The photo is actually from yesterday. -------------------------- Sent using BlackBerry

No report yesterday because we finished very late and had to rush for showers and food.  We had sun for our first full day in Scotland and it would have been a good day had Stuart not broken a spoke in the late afternoon.  A few weeks ago Stuart had patiently explained how it was perfectly ok to use sport wheels using very few spokes as they were special indestructible ones. The wheel completely collapsed.  Luckily he had spare spokes (ah...so he KNEW they might break) and I was able to effect a repair though it all took time. We spent the night in Stirling and today we headed into the highlands and across the pass of Glencoe which was spectacular in perfect weather. For once we made good progress and made it to Fort William by 6pm.  We are staying in a hostel - 5 bedded room.  Basic doesn't begin to describe it. We have covered 700 miles in 7 days.  Everyone had found it challenging and sore bums and knees are standard but I have no dou...

Yup - Scotland, and 500 miles done..... though our jubilation is tempered by the thought of another 400 to go.  A pretty good day all things considered.    Michael seemed remarkably fresh this morning despite an evening with his girlfriend and the rest of us were eager to leave Stalag Luft VII (or the Whitburn House hotel as it is also known) so we were rolling at 8:30.  Unfortunately John was struggling with a very sore knee so we told him to take some pain killers and man up a bit. Today was all about Shap Fell (often known as Shap Hell), supposedly the toughest climb of the trip.  Basically a 5+ mile climb of about 8% gradient.  The 45 miles before and after were scenic but nicely flat so all the work was in that short middle section. The boys did me proud.  Nobody walked, some didn't even use their bottom gears and only Michael wept a little.  Tonight we are in Gretna and have already had to fend off the advances from the bridesmaids in a wedding party ...

What should have been an 'easy' day was messed up by mechanical issues.  Stuart had a puncture early in the afternoon, then a 2nd and a 3rd.  Eventually he found a split I'm the tire wall through which the tube was escaping and getting ripped so a trip to the bike shop for a new tire was needed. So we ended up reaching our hotel at almost 7pm.  Our accommodation is a grotty  hotel (or quite a nice prison) but we are mostly too tired to care.  Tomorrow we will be in scotland, cleverly staying in the one part of the country with rain while the soft southerners enjoy their mini-heatwave.  Steve -------------------------- Sent using BlackBerry