Two days cycling with Jonathon from Leuchars, near St Andrews to Aberdeen - almost too much but…. not nearly enough. My preparation for joining Jon was a stag weekend in Dublin, and this combined with the forecast had me driving up to Scotland with some trepidation. The hail that threatened my car windscreen on the M6 didn't make me feel any better.
Getting from A to B by bike, there can't be a more satisfying way of travelling. Even after my golf waterproofs had given up on the morning of the first (very wet) day, lunch in Arbroath and a visit to the bike shop had both me and Jon's well-timed puncture fixed, and we cruised through the rain to our destination, a B&B near Montrose.
Cycling gives you plenty of time to think, and the sleep it induces allows the grey-matter to do some serious batch processing. The exercise left me feeling fantastic - "tired but happy" as Fred Hall used to say at school after we'd been frog-marched up a Berwin.
The highlights:
- Seeing Jon come down to breakfast wearing what appeared to be a high-tech period bathing suit (circa 1890). My laughter induced an argument that had Kathy at the B&B describe us to the OAP couple who were at the table with us as "like an old married couple."
- Cycling into Johnshaven, a timeless fishing village between Montrose and Stonehaven, where the welcome sign stated "Children Playing, Narrow Streets, Please Take Your Time"
- Arriving in Aberdeen - after being diverted by the police up what felt like a hill too far we finally made it into the granite city.
It takes real drive and determination to do a trip like this on your own, thanks Jonathon for putting up with me, and good luck on the rest of the adventure.
Mike
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