Yeah that looked grim. You could hear the ref’s immediate response too, turned around straight away and couldn’t look in that direction

Popping out at Callander, we thought it was probably about time for second breakfast and grabbed a table outside Mhor. A few thousand calories later we were on our way. We decided to head south of the river to Doune so once off the A81 (which wasn’t too busy), we turned east along the B8032 and meandered our way along yet another quiet country lane. Clouds were looking rather ominous but we were heading in the right direction and it was still nice and warm.

From Doune we continued along the cycle route into Dunblane, then on to Bridge of Allan.

The next bit from Stirling to just past Kincardine was probably my least favourite stretch of the route, mainly because following the cycle route felt fairly slow going as you wound round the housing estates and to be honest we’d been spoilt with such great views until then. Not sure what a decent alternative would be along that stretch, it’s not a part of the country I’m familiar enough with.

Arriving into Culross we dived off and took on some sandwiches and scones at Bessie’s (which were excellent).

From Culross we continued on the cycle routes along Forth.

Then up and over the bridge, through the Dalmeny estate and north through Cramond to then potter along the prom in the sun.

Absolutely cracking couple of days. Would highly recommend this route to anyone, and thanks again to those who helped with suggestions above.

So, on to Day 2…

Day 2: Lochearnhead to Edinburgh (approx 125km)

Pleasant start to the morning, during the week the forecast had said it would be misty, instead we woke up to another sunny, still day.  I sat and had a coffee outside the hotel whilst my mate went for a swim before breakfast.

Setting off from Lochearnhead, our route took us back on to National Cycle Route 7 then out west to Balquidder. Great off road section to start with followed by really quiet country lanes. This was a great detour, didn’t add much on at all but some stunning views.

From here we then continued south along Loch Lubnaig. Surface along here was absolutely fine, another great off-road section and my mate quite randomly bumped into three of his old classmates cycling from Glasgow to Inverness.

TBC…

It was fine, I had 32mm gravel king slicks and my mate was using my commuter which has 28mm marathon pluses. It’s a bit lumpier in parts than elsewhere on the route but nothing bad at all. The start bit is the bumpiest, then it’s pretty smooth. Plus you’re going a bit slower anyway because you’re climbing but I’d not hesitate to do it up or down on a road bike.

Yep, everything just aligned. Not a dull stretch along the whole of day 1. Even the bit along the A827 into Killin wasn’t too bad, not particularly busy and pretty quick to ride along.

All other parts of that day were perfect, hats off to the national cycle network. I’ve ridden a few parts of it before and just love rural Perthshire.

From Killin we then picked up the National Cycle Network again, this time taking us off road up and over to Lochearnhead. Another absolutely cracking route. The gentle winding downhill through Glen Ogle was great, a route that I’ve wanted to do for ages.

Day 1 done, time for beers and to watch the opening match of the rugby world cup (which also turned out to be excellent). Thanks all for suggestions on the route, it worked a dream. Absolutely fine with narrow tyres in case anyone reading is wondering.

Day 2 write up and pics to follow.

Didn’t get bored of the views heading up the glen to the cafe at Bridge of Balgie which exceeded expectations. 

Cracking lunch matched with sunning views. Though definitely ate too much, particularly given what was around the corner, but I’m absolutely powerless when faced with a pastrami, swiss and pickle panini.

Onwards and upwards, the next climb was really nice. Whilst at the time I’d been very tempted by the eclair on offer in the cafe, I think that would have definitely tipped me over edge as the gradients increased. It was so still too, barely a breath of wind which meant you really felt the temp.

The dam at Ben Lawers was really impressive and the descent off the top was great.

TBC…

River Garry

Loch Tummel

Glad of the sun cream

From Tummel Bridge we then headed back over the river and south. This was a nice climb, nothing too steep but some cracking views on the descent.

We then turned west up the River Lyon and I can see why it’s got such a great reputation. It’s absolutely stunning. The gradient is gentle and the surfaces excellent.

TBC…

Well, that was rather pleasant.

Day 1: Perth to Lochearnhead (approx. 145km). 

Early start to get the bikes and stuff sorted. Mate had flown in the night before so rather than sort anything out then we just cracked on with a curry and a few beers. After a quick coffee we packed the bags then after a liberal application of sun cream we span along the cycle paths up to Haymarket just in time to grab some breakfast pastries before the 07:39 to Perth.

From Perth we headed out long Route 77 along the Tay before turning west to Almondbank and then on to Bankfoot and Dunkeld. Weather was already glorious and the roads nice and quiet. The rolling Perthshire countryside offered a perfect start to the day.

Into Dunkeld and in search of a bacon roll which Palmerstones delivered in spades. Onwards along Route 77 through Dunkeld House Hotel, the paved path a definite improvement on what was there previously.

Over the Tay and northwards through Dalguise to Logierait. Really pleasant route again and hardly a car in sight.

Dropped down into Pitlochry where had a quick stop to refill our bottles and grab a couple of cans of coke. Continued up to to Faskally Forest and then onwards over the River Garry along the north side of Loch Tummel.

To be continued…

Thanks all, given I’ll be heading north to south I’m minded to stick with the original route and head south from Bridge of Balgie rather than all the way to Pubil as it sounds like a better descent. I’ll have to plan another one from south to north that I can take on the longer one

Looking at the route again – rather than heading up Glen Lyon as far Bridge of Balgie then turning south, it appears you can continue up Glen Lyon to Loch Lyon, then head south to Kenknock and on to Killin following the River Lochay. Anyone done that route? Streetview from Loch Lyon goes all but the final km into Kenknock, surface looks paved but questionable condition. Adds about 12km on.

Or is the original plan as far as Bridge of Balgie then via Lochan na Lairige a better idea?

The part of the NC77 that runs south of the Dunkeld House Hotel is gravel – it’s only a short section, but probably wouldn’t be much fun on 25 tyres.

I think that’s now paved all the way to the Tay Crossing isn’t it? I seem to remember there was a project to improve it as I know it was a bit sketchy before.

This is excellent stuff, thanks all.

I live N. Edinburgh, about 500m off the cycle path, so the route to/from South Queensferry is a well ridden one. I think coming back in from South Queensferry it’s nice to go along the front on the gravel route, especially as it misses the climb out, though whenever I head out of town I usually stick to the tarmac through the estate as I quite like seeing the topiary heads and you get some great elevated views of the Forth.

Couldn’t remember whether the north side or south side of Loch Tummel was more pleasant / quieter.

Thanks for the recommendation on  the NCN to avoid the main road, and I’ll check out the alternative between Callander and Doune!

About the size of a small sausage. It’s winding the dog up no end.

Two questions, was it previously frozen and have you pissed anyone on here off?

As above, roughly that distance per day is something that you’ll hopefully be able to build into your routine so that anything you do doesn’t seem like a massive undertaking each time. I think with these things it’s about removing as many perceived barriers as possible. For example, for 9 miles or so you can take it fairly gently to just keep things ticking over, therefore you don’t really need to get changed into cycle kit, so that’s one less thing you need to think about and one less hurdle that may make you think oh I can’t be arsed to do that or none of my kit’s clean. Then just sit and spin whilst watching some crap on TV rather than just sitting on the sofa. Do you have a commute that you could build something into?

I think rather than a delay timer, the benefit to a smart dishwasher, or any appliance for that matter, would be that you could set it to go overnight. Then, when there are intermittent sources of generation e.g. renewable wind energy  that may not typically be used overnight as the energy demand is low and already covered by other baseload, those appliances could be then run ‘smartly’ to make the most of wind energy. Or alternatively, as mentioned above, to smooth the demand over the whole night, rather than just being switched on when everyone goes to bed (probably mostly between 9-11).

I’m in Edinburgh too and currently going though this for an attic conversation. I initially had a look on the Edinburgh City Council planning portal as a few houses near me have done some conversations so I could see what the plans looked like and also who the architects were. The same name cropped up a few times so I got in contact with them and they’ve been great. Familiar with the style of building and because they’ve done a few of the same style, they’ve got a load of ideas, sketches etc to hand.

Proeflokaal Arendsnest is a nice bar too, between Centraal and Anne Frank museum.

Maple glazed hot wings. Absolutely sensational https://www.bbcgoodfood.com/recipes/maple-glazed-hot-wings

https://twitter.com/festinaboy/status/1669220908412682242?t=P1GGKAkQA8yiwuSVoiYKiw&s=19

<span style=”text-align: center;”>Mega obvious </span>

Recently took a mini pump and set of allen keys through in hand luggage back from Brussels. Was surprised about the allen keys but the chap saw my pedals, cycling shoes, helmet and pump and just shrugged and said ‘Cycling? Makes sense’. However I’d previously had a topeak mini 18 multi tool confiscated at Edinburgh which really annoyed me as I was already running late for the flight as security was carnage, think that was because of the screwdrivers, but still frustrating.

A few ales and filled rolls at the Bell in Aldworth before the downhill into Streatley too.

Heading back up from Norwich to Edinburgh. Have downloaded the Lord of the Rings audiobooks narrated by Andy Serkis so actually quite looking forward to it

Green Wing – Dr Statham self-administering a hot coffee enema

It’s not the cheapest but Mercado de San Miguel is worth a look, even just to walk through as it’s a pretty impressive building.

2 star place with rooms on the west coast of Wales, just over 2hrs from Birmingham – this place is supposed to be v good Ynyshir

On Arran this weekend and went up Caisteal Abhail, absolutely stunning views, couple of golden eagles too

Definitely recommend trying to find a shop and trying on different pairs back to back on a treadmill. In isolation a pair of shoes may feel ok, even reasonably comfortable, but when you try them against others you pick up slight variations and can differentiate between one pair over another. This is how I ended up arriving at a pair of Brooks Ghost a few years ago and now just get a new pair when they’re on offer (SportPursuit had a sale recently).

Aether 9A with 150mm Lyrik Ultimates and absolutely love it.

Imagine Mrs B. Racist turning up to the polling station on a cold and rainy day and being turned away. “I’m not bloody getting the bus all the way home to pick up my passport!”

But this is the problem, passport or not – old Mrs B.Racist will still likely be able to vote with their bus pass. Worse still, younger voters with a similar travel cards can’t use them to vote.

https://goodlawproject.org/generational-gerrymandering-new-voter-id-requirements-will-disenfranchise-young-people/

Yep – got an email to say mine was increasing from £36 to £45.

Phoned them up, they offered to discount by the £9 until the end of my contract (Sept). I still cancelled and have been getting calls from them offering better broadband at a cheaper price. Haven’t taken it yet as still looking around, Vodafone look to be offering some decent fibre deals so going to see what they say and if Virgin can make any further offers.

Classified Powershift hubs

https://www.classified-cycling.cc/powershift-technology

edit – just beaten to it.

From that link TJ it says that mitigation will not apply for “intentional or highly reckless acts of foul play”. Based on the text above, can they then differentiate between reckless and highly reckless? In which case, it seems like they didn’t deem it intentional, ‘just’ reckless and therefore which is why they have been able to take into account mitigation. Or is this the potential fudge you’re referring to?

A friend bought me this as a wedding present last year which I’m looking forward to trying:

I got a LanShan 2 a couple of years ago and like it. Easy enough to put up and packs down nice and small. Only used it with walking poles so far, need to order a couple of lightweight collapsible poles for bike packing. Decent amount of space inside.

Looking forward to it. Went over to Oudenaarde last Sept for a long weekend of riding so will be interesting to watch them again this year knowing just what the roads and climbs are like.

Hi, no nothing has appeared, I’d tried to PM you too and doesn’t look like that’s worked – email me at Douglas dot Dyche at Gmail dot com

Before you start going at it with the hacksaw – I’ve got an older set of 3 x 9 Shimano XT shifters going spare (M770 I think) – currently set up with the windows removed and the blanking plates in place but I’ve got the windows too if you ever want to re-install them.

Yours for the price of postage and a donation to the RNLI or a local mountain rescue team. Drop me a message.

I remember having a go on a Smuggler back in 2015, it was that ride that converted me to 29ers, it was such good fun. Didn’t have the pennies at the time for a new bike, but at least picked up an Aether 9 last year and absolutely love it.

Another vote for tortilla wraps, I make some with peanut butter and jam