Inverness to Ivinghoe

Wednesday
3.5 miles
Total trip miles: 276
Hills climbed: too many

Euston at 7.50. Have to get the bikes through that lot....



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Gairloch to Achnasheen

Tuesday
29 miles

Dry, even saw sunshine this morning.



Not even too windy. Stopped at a cafe that isn't open until Thursday, but the woman who runs the shop next door made us a lovely cup of coffee- much needed caffeine, as we then had our biggest climb of the day. A tough hill with a newly surfaced road of the worst type. I think they just chucked loose chippings all over it to make it tough. Also a strong headwind appeared from nowhere to make us work. Rewarded by a lovely freewheeling for about three miles afterwards. Then a lovely cafe next to the station.






Train to Inverness, luxury seating:




Italian meal in Inverness:



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Last hill of the holiday

Having lunch at Achnasheen station cafe and waiting for our train.

Ullapool to Gairloch

What a wet day!

Wester Ross was full of water falls as the ground gave up all the rain that's fallen in the last 48 hours. Coming across from Braemar Junction over to the coast the road fell through a canyon, with water gushing from streams by the side of the road to join the raging river and one really high water fall - the highest I've seen in this country. Any one of the hundreds of water falls would have been a major draw in a less remote part of the country.

Arrived very cold and wet at a hotel where Antonio, a Spaniard with very little English, was very kind and put a heater on to dry our sodden clothes. I poured water out of my left shoe!

Later on we caught up with John and Ann, who we had last seen in Durness and spent an enjoyable afternoon together riding the (extreme) hills to Gairloch and eating the heaviest lemon drizzle cake ever baked at a tea shop. The last hill was the worst with a climb from sea level to 350m where it rained heavily for one last time before we reached our rather lovely B&B.

Ullapool to Gairloch

Monday
59.5 miles

After our wet 25 miles followed by an hour drying out, we carried on in drier weather. We hadn't gone far when we met up with John and Ann, two of the cyclists from Devon we'd met at Tongue youth hostel. We cycled with them for the rest of the day, which got us through the next thirty hilly miles.




Amazing waterfalls everywhere- no shortage of water up here.

Now staying at another comfy B&B.

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Drying out at the Broombeg Bar

27 miles done, total drenching. As we arrived at the bar, the bar man bought us a towel each.



Almost feel my toes again.

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Rain

View from the window:


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