Day 9 – Loch Leven – Conon Bridge – 90 miles

A much needed lie-in this morning was appreciated by all. We said goodbye to Jenko’s parents and were on the road for 9 am. A shortish day today (only 90 miles, ha ha, never thought I’d say that!) The extra rest and shorter route saw a fast pace being set and for once I was happy to keep up and enjoy the ride albeit from the back. If I ever needed fresh legs to kick in it was for the final few days so I was very grateful. It was also very lucky because I (and we as a group) experienced our first major mechanical issue.

Without the right tools on hand to fix the issue and Jenko (our technical expert) looking concerned we thought we were going to have to pull out one of the spare bikes we’ve been travelling with. Thankfully no such measures were needed in the end but the van was called for and a lot of tinkering was done by a proud Jenko and myself, with Kit and Jelly overseeing proceedings. We were very impressed with the locals who asked enquired after us and even offered refreshments. So far I’ve been nothing than inspired by the Scottish friendliness toward tourists. I think I’ve enjoyed Scotland the most on this epic trip. 

Of again with average speed around 18 mph but more like 25mph at times. Through a bit of drafting I was able to lookup and enjoy the more than lumpy environment we are travelling through. There are some big hills out this way. Our route today took us along the A 82, a very busy road but our only option. It allowed us to traverse the Caledonian Canal which connects the West Coast to the North Sea.  We passed along Loch Lochy, stopping for refreshments at the Commando Memorial then through Fort Augusta and along Loch Ness. The later is an impressive stretch of water, however not for Jelly who asked ‘if it was around here somewhere’ after 20 minutes of cycling along its’ banks!

I was eventually dropped after three hours keeping up leaving Fort Augusta, which was a hive of activity with tourists from countries far and wide.  Along the banks of Loch Ness isn’t a bad place to be left and I enjoyed the scenery together with my thoughts, that is until I remembered a favourite kids show from my childhood. With the theme tune on a repeat loop in my mind ‘you can climb the highest mountain, you can go to Timbuktu, but you’ll never find a Nessy in the Zoo’. Sending me mad, I was suddenly desperate to rejoin the group. Sadly despite the songs promise I didn’t see Nessy at Loch Ness either although I’m still a believer and feel she’d heard of our ‘werrits’ and their newly sprouted fangs so was sensibly lying low for the day!

A small note on ‘werrits’, they are aggravated depending on the road surface texture. Kit works for a company that sounds like a road surfacing outfit, but he assures us it isn’t. He is however very informed on the properties of road surfaces particularly the aggregate used north of the boarder. Ask him about it, it riveting! Pleasantly it was mostly a smooth road day today.

 

Half way up Loch Ness we turned north. We stopped for lunch at Drumnadochit before meeting our very own Loch Ness Monster which was the final climb of the day. It was a beast! We fought hard at the front to get up it then enjoyed a fast ride down hill to the other side and into the highlands.

140 miles to go! Tomorrow is our last full day on the road before a 40 mile sprint on Monday. The profile for tomorrow looks really challenging so it’s been a few quick pints and early to bed, the weather will also decide how challenging this final leg will be and no one forecast can agree on what lays in store for us. Anticipation, excitement and dread are mixed together with the ambitions for the King of the Mountain trophy which will be settled tomorrow also. It’s Jelly’s to loose, but Kits now on his heels.