The stats for the penultimate day of LEJOG are:
Miles: 74.4
Climbing: 2430 ft
Average Speed: 13.2 mph
Max Speed: 34.0 mph
Time Riding: 5 hr 38 mins
Total Duration: 8 hr 11 mins
Steepest Gradient:
A full account of day 12 will be posted once I have a reliable internet connection
Tuesday, June 24, 2014
Day 11 Fort William to Inverness
The stats for Day 11 where I ride in search of the Loch Ness monster are:
Miles: 70.2
Climbing: 2566 ft
Average Speed: 13.6 mph
Max Speed: 36.9 mph
Time Riding: 5 hr 09 mins
Total Duration: 7 hr 31 mins
Steepest Gradient: 8%
With less than 70 miles planned for the journey from Fort William to Inverness I had a really leisurely start not getting underway until after 9:30, by far the latest during the LEJOG.
Today's route was planned to head north out of Fort William taking a minor road for approx. 10 miles joining the A82 just west of Spean Bridge, then take the A82 to Fort Augustus, there climb up 1200ft on General Wade's Military road and head down the eastern side of Loch Ness all the way to Inverness.. This however was the day when I throw the route out. The initial half of the journey was almost as planned with the exception last 5 miles into Fort Augustus where I diverted from the A82 at Bridge of Oich and took the towpath on the Caledonian canal.
Feeling tired on arrival in Fort Augustus I stopped for a lengthy lunch break, enjoying fish and chips sat by the canal. After lunch the decision to be made was the climb up to General Wade's Military road and the fantastic views or stay on the A82 and travel along the west bank of Loch Ness. With the legs tired I opted for the A82, it was still a hard grind but that 1200ft climb was just not appealing.
I made steady progress towards Inverness but as I reached the top of the Loch it started to rain, requiring the maiden donning of the wet weather gear. The rain only lasted for 15 - 20 minutes and by the time I reached Inverness it was sunny and dry.
Miles: 70.2
Climbing: 2566 ft
Average Speed: 13.6 mph
Max Speed: 36.9 mph
Time Riding: 5 hr 09 mins
Total Duration: 7 hr 31 mins
Steepest Gradient: 8%
With less than 70 miles planned for the journey from Fort William to Inverness I had a really leisurely start not getting underway until after 9:30, by far the latest during the LEJOG.
Feeling tired on arrival in Fort Augustus I stopped for a lengthy lunch break, enjoying fish and chips sat by the canal. After lunch the decision to be made was the climb up to General Wade's Military road and the fantastic views or stay on the A82 and travel along the west bank of Loch Ness. With the legs tired I opted for the A82, it was still a hard grind but that 1200ft climb was just not appealing. I made steady progress towards Inverness but as I reached the top of the Loch it started to rain, requiring the maiden donning of the wet weather gear. The rain only lasted for 15 - 20 minutes and by the time I reached Inverness it was sunny and dry. Sunday, June 22, 2014
Day 10 Callander to Fort William
Day 10 stats for the up and down journey from Callander to Fort William.
Miles: 81.1
Climbing: 3257 ft
Average Speed: 12.9 mph
Max Speed: 28.4 mph
Time Riding: 6 hr 18 mins
Total Duration: 8 hr 18 mins
Steepest Gradient: 14.3%
The ride today started out after a great nights stay and a hearty breakfast at the Coppice House B&B in Callander. After retrieving Norman from his secure accommodation for the night I set off North West on NCN 7.
NCN 7 was a mixed bag for me and Norman, some of the trail is paved or crushed compacted gravel fine with 28mm tires but in places it was really only suitable for 32 or even 35mm tires. The upside of the trail though is it passes through some wonderful countryside providing for some great views.
After crossing the Glen Ogle viaduct NCN7 turns north but the old rail bed continues and is marked as a trail joining the A85 5 miles on. This I learnt is not the case. The trail does indeed continue but the surface gradually worsens and finally peters out in a sheep field. I had two choices at this point, retrace my route back up the hill for maybe 3 miles or cut across the farm land to the A85. This is exactly what I ended up doing, requiring me to lift Norman over two fences and push him through two fields full of sheep and cattle, thankfully no Bulls.
Once back on firm paved road I made good progress on the A85 to Crianlarich. Conscious of yesterday's poor lunch I stopped here and ate a more substantial meal and then head onto the A82 which I would follow for 50 miles to Fort William.
The A82 climbs up to Rannoch Moor at 1100ft, the climb is certainly worth it as the scenery is stunning. After crossing the moor the road drops back down to Loch Leven. It was on this descent that I encountered the first rain of this LEJOG, it hardly amounted to more than a brief shower not requiring me to don the wet weather gear.
After reaching Loch Leven I had only 20 miles to go to Fort William, which was a fast run in due to the wind now blowing from the south pushing me onwards.
Miles: 81.1
Climbing: 3257 ft
Average Speed: 12.9 mph
Max Speed: 28.4 mph
Time Riding: 6 hr 18 mins
Total Duration: 8 hr 18 mins
Steepest Gradient: 14.3%
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| Coppice House |
NCN 7 was a mixed bag for me and Norman, some of the trail is paved or crushed compacted gravel fine with 28mm tires but in places it was really only suitable for 32 or even 35mm tires. The upside of the trail though is it passes through some wonderful countryside providing for some great views.After crossing the Glen Ogle viaduct NCN7 turns north but the old rail bed continues and is marked as a trail joining the A85 5 miles on. This I learnt is not the case. The trail does indeed continue but the surface gradually worsens and finally peters out in a sheep field. I had two choices at this point, retrace my route back up the hill for maybe 3 miles or cut across the farm land to the A85. This is exactly what I ended up doing, requiring me to lift Norman over two fences and push him through two fields full of sheep and cattle, thankfully no Bulls.
The A82 climbs up to Rannoch Moor at 1100ft, the climb is certainly worth it as the scenery is stunning. After crossing the moor the road drops back down to Loch Leven. It was on this descent that I encountered the first rain of this LEJOG, it hardly amounted to more than a brief shower not requiring me to don the wet weather gear.After reaching Loch Leven I had only 20 miles to go to Fort William, which was a fast run in due to the wind now blowing from the south pushing me onwards.
Day 9 Biggar to Callander
The stats for Day 9 (Saturday), a hard slog from Bigger to Callander.
Miles: 70.1
Climbing: 3514 ft
Average Speed: 12.4 mph
Max Speed: 35.7 mph
Time Riding: 5 hr 39 mins
Total Duration: 7 hr 39 mins
Steepest Gradient: 14.7%
This morning the weather looked like it would be another warm sunny day but by the time breakfast was eaten the grey cloud cover had thickened and the wind had strengthened out of the west. The resulting cool temperature meant starting out with the arm warmers but soon required the additional warmth of the windbreaker.
The cool temp and wind along with the rolling hills made for slow progress as I headed to Falkirk and the Falkirk Wheel.
Arriving at the wheel via the Union Canal and departing via the Forth & Clyde Canal made for some welcome level cycling that was over all to quickly. The sun came out as I was leaving the wheel and made for a pleasantly warm ride up to Sterling and then onto the night's final destination of Callander.
The final 10 miles to Callander were a hard slog, partly due to the wind still blowing from the west but mostly I think to me not having eaten well during the day and the tank running on empty. One bacon roll and a chocolate muffin are not ideal for a 70 mile ride with 3500ft of climbing.
Miles: 70.1
Climbing: 3514 ft
Average Speed: 12.4 mph
Max Speed: 35.7 mph
Time Riding: 5 hr 39 mins
Total Duration: 7 hr 39 mins
Steepest Gradient: 14.7%
This morning the weather looked like it would be another warm sunny day but by the time breakfast was eaten the grey cloud cover had thickened and the wind had strengthened out of the west. The resulting cool temperature meant starting out with the arm warmers but soon required the additional warmth of the windbreaker.
Arriving at the wheel via the Union Canal and departing via the Forth & Clyde Canal made for some welcome level cycling that was over all to quickly. The sun came out as I was leaving the wheel and made for a pleasantly warm ride up to Sterling and then onto the night's final destination of Callander.
The final 10 miles to Callander were a hard slog, partly due to the wind still blowing from the west but mostly I think to me not having eaten well during the day and the tank running on empty. One bacon roll and a chocolate muffin are not ideal for a 70 mile ride with 3500ft of climbing.
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| Union Canal |
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| Stirling |
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| Church in Callander |
Saturday, June 21, 2014
Day 8 Carlisle to Biggar (South Lanarkshire)
The stats for the last day in England and first day in Scotland are:
Miles: 70.8
Climbing: 2850 ft
Average Speed: 13.6 mph
Max Speed: 30.0 mph
Time Riding: 5 hr 13 mins
Total Duration: 7 hr 55 mins
Steepest Gradient:
Day 8 (Friday) started with very tired and sore legs, the worse they have felt on the entire journey. The aches soon eased as I threaded my way through Carlisle and onto the Scottish border at Gretna. Whilst relaxing and taking in the fact that I had ridden the length of England another couple of End to Enders joined me. We shared LEJOG stories before going our separate ways, them North West into Ayrshire and me North to South Lanarkshire.
The road north from Gretna is the old A74 demoted to a minor road when the A74(M) was built, it would be a great route as it is wide, relatively straight and the gradients are gradual but the road surface, as many had warned, is so harsh it sends constant vibrations up through the front forks, often causing the teeth to rattle. It is also a fairly boring route though there were welcome breaks as I passed through Lockerbie (grabbed lunch and ate with the Lockerbie Sheep) & Ecclefachan. Eventually I left the old A74 and headed along the A701 Edinburgh road into Moffat, a sunny market town. I took another break here, enjoying a nice Latte sat in the sun just relaxing watching the world go by. It was just as well I took the break because I was not prepared or expecting the climb that followed. Rising to 1372ft. The climb was not as hard as Shap the day before but was equally as stunning, only surpassed by the descent. The descent was Fantastic, mile after mile of awesome scenery as I descended from the source of the River Tweed down the valley for mile after mile. Perfect!
With only 6 miles to the overnight stop in Biggar I turned off the A701 and headed west, eventually arriving at the B&B at 4:45 (would have been earlier but I managed to put the wrong address into my GPS).
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Miles: 70.8
Climbing: 2850 ft
Average Speed: 13.6 mph
Max Speed: 30.0 mph
Time Riding: 5 hr 13 mins
Total Duration: 7 hr 55 mins
Steepest Gradient:
Day 8 (Friday) started with very tired and sore legs, the worse they have felt on the entire journey. The aches soon eased as I threaded my way through Carlisle and onto the Scottish border at Gretna. Whilst relaxing and taking in the fact that I had ridden the length of England another couple of End to Enders joined me. We shared LEJOG stories before going our separate ways, them North West into Ayrshire and me North to South Lanarkshire.The road north from Gretna is the old A74 demoted to a minor road when the A74(M) was built, it would be a great route as it is wide, relatively straight and the gradients are gradual but the road surface, as many had warned, is so harsh it sends constant vibrations up through the front forks, often causing the teeth to rattle. It is also a fairly boring route though there were welcome breaks as I passed through Lockerbie (grabbed lunch and ate with the Lockerbie Sheep) & Ecclefachan. Eventually I left the old A74 and headed along the A701 Edinburgh road into Moffat, a sunny market town. I took another break here, enjoying a nice Latte sat in the sun just relaxing watching the world go by. It was just as well I took the break because I was not prepared or expecting the climb that followed. Rising to 1372ft. The climb was not as hard as Shap the day before but was equally as stunning, only surpassed by the descent. The descent was Fantastic, mile after mile of awesome scenery as I descended from the source of the River Tweed down the valley for mile after mile. Perfect!
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| River Tweed |
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| Carlisle |
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| Lockerbie Sheep |
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| Moffat |
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| Tweed Valley |
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| Biggar |
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