some relaxing time off :)

That would be boring!! The days I had pencilled in for holiday didn't coincide with any of my friends this year, so I just decided to go on my own wee adventure - to be honest I thought I'd be bored of my own company within a couple of days at most, but I had good music and great banter... On Tuesday morning I got the train up to Ardgay (north of Inverness), and set off with my bicycle & panniers heading right up to the North coast - I had 6 days of touring round NW Scotland and absoloutely loved it. Pretty lucky with the weather (only a few showers, and some nice sunny spells in patches!) and the scenery was stunning - beautiful coastline and beaches, and awesome mountains just asking to be climbed!

Day 1 - Ardgay to Tongue (Talmine campsite) - approx 55 miles

The first 10 miles were a bit of a grind until I got going - first time I've cycled with panniers, looked like it was going to pour, and I didn't see a single person for about 2 hours!! Had a short stop at the Crask Inn which came out of nowhere (great wee place) and after that felt pretty good for the rest of the day! The midges were out in force though, I hid in my tent as soon as I'd put it up.


Day 2 - Tongue to Durness, + detour to climb Ben Hope (927m) - approx 44 miles

Weather was really nice (except right at the top of Ben Hope!), it was an easy climb up the mountain and nice to use different muscles for a couple of hours! I decided to go a cross-country route after the climb - river crossing followed by tough 4WD track which involved a lot of pushing, but beautiful scenery and a great downhill reward at the end!

A headwind made the last 10 miles tough-going but the views as you approach Durness are AMAZING, and the clifftop campsite was fantastic!!


Day 3 - Coastal run to Faraid Head (great views along coast) then Durness to Clachtoll campsite (near Lochinver) - approx 54 miles

A big day! The section between Kylesku & Drumbeg was BRUTAL - I had conveniently ignored the sign that said "Road unsuitable for caravans" thinking it might just mean narrow. Having said that, the views were amazing and what goes up must come down, so I got my fair share of freewheeling as well. The campsite at Clachtoll was in a beautiful location, and I had a great walk along the coast and onto the beach early evening.


Day 4 - Clachtoll to Ullapool via Lochinver - approx 42 miles
Climb Conival (987m) and Ben More Assynt (998m) just east of Inchnadamph

Another big day, and possibly the best one! After a quick stop in Lochinver for a weather update I cycled to Inchnadamph, up the 4WD track for about a mile and then hid my bike in some ferns before setting off up Conival - from the summit its a fairly easy 3km ridge walk (but tricky on rocky terrain) before climbing to the top of Ben More. Unfortunately (again) the views from the top were blocked by thick clouds but they had cleared later so I got some great views later as I ran down.

Once back at the bike I just decided to push on to the next campsite - it was a fantastic evening and for whatever reason my legs felt great despite the massive hill past Elphin - but I definitely had a smile when I saw the campsite sign 3 miles earlier than expected in Ardmair! I got myself a well-deserved lager from the camp shop and watched the sunset over the water - perfect :)


Day 5 - Ullapool to Beauly via Corrieshalloch Gorge - approx 51 miles

Today was a real hard push - my legs were pretty sore when I woke up, and starting off with a big hill against the wind did them no favours at all. I stopped for a short walk at the Corrieshalloch Gorge which is pretty impressive, and once I'd had the short break from cycling I felt better. It was the first day I'd had a headwind almost the entire day, and I found it tough-going!


Day 6 - Beauly to Inverness via Cannich & Drumnadrochit (and visit Urquhart Castle) - approx 50 miles


I did a nice circuit on the quiet country roads around by Cannich to Drumnadrochit (west side of Loch Ness) and then had a short run to Urquhart Castle. To finish off a fantastic trip I thoroughly enjoyed having a tailwind all the way back to Inverness - felt like I was flying!!

To see all the pics, go to this web album...