The Highlands

Intro by me and Daily Write up by Saul Muldoon.

Introduction…

Sometimes we talk about life experiences through work, but outside of this, there are other exciting adventures that we should appreciate and value. Over four unforgettable days in the Scottish Highlands, I cycled a total of 230 miles, climbing over 20,000 feet of elevation through some of the most breathtaking landscapes. The weather was remarkably warm with clear, blue skies, making the dry, dusty trails the best they’ve been in 10 years. Highlights included taking a ferry to the stunning Isle of Skye, where rugged coastlines and dramatic scenery took my breath away. The Torridon loop offered a challenging yet rewarding ride, with towering mountains and sweeping vistas. I also enjoyed a scenic ride to Contin, passing through remote, scenic countryside, and exploring the breathtaking Glen Affric before camping at Glensheild under a blanket of stars.

North of Scotland – Day 1

Sometimes things just fall right, and with possibly the sunniest and warmest conditions anywhere in the UK forecast this week, the North West of Scotland was looking like the perfect choice for a long overdue Caledonian bikepacking trip for San Kapil and myself.

The drive up to Glen Sheil on Sunday was long and warm, but as we passed the crowds picnicking and partying at Loch Lomond we knew we were headed much father north for some super riding on some of Scotland’s finest trails in near solitude.

Sheil Bridge campsite provided some stunning views of the 5 Sisters of Kintail mountain ridge, some decent showers and plenty of midges. So after a good night sleep on Sunday we were keen to be awake, packed up and pedalling early Monday morning to make the most of the forecast of 20C temps and wall to wall sunshine.

My plan had been to ride along the edge of Loch Duich, but this was foiled 5 miles in by a huge landslide that had totally obliterated the trail. There was no getting around the mass of mud, rubble, broken trees and other natural detritus. I would usually have had an attempt to cross, but in addition to towing a trailer which would need carrying over the chaos we had no way of knowing if there would be similar obstacles to progress further down the trail. So deciding to play safe, San and I pedalled back almost to our start point and take the road option to the tiny ferry at Glenelg.

As well as an additional massive climb over Bealach Ratagain, this did also give us the opportunity for another spectacular view of Kintail’s Five Sisters ridge in the morning sunshine. We also spotted the world’s coolest camper on the climb, a 4X4 Unimog conversion. This looked like it would go literally anywhere, although I suspect what the mpg would be on a long trip would be eye watering! It even had a rack on the back, not housing the usual couple of bikes, but a full sized quad! 

After a fast descent, and some coffee and fine carrot cake at the deliciously isolated Kylerhea ferry port, it was time to board the boat for the 10 minute crossing over the sea to Skye. Privately run, it is apparently the only remaining operational turntable ferry in the world, the six car capacity deck revolves to allow vehicles and bikes to embark and disembark from a slipway. What was even better was the young lad who came to collect our fare was an mtb’er. So after admiring our rides and chatting trails for a few mins he kindly let us have the crossing for free …..happy days. 

From the ferry dock at Kyherlea on Skye we had another climb to contend with, a winch upwards gaining 284m of height on the single track road to Belach Udal. It was tough going with the trailer, but the views from the top over to the Cullin Hills were sublime. 

On the way down the other side we met the man with the easiest job on Skye. We had noticed quite a lot of completed repair work on the tiny road, including resurfacing and bridge repairs. When we reached the current location of the roadworks this guy was enjoying sitting in the sunshine operating the “Stop-Go” board. He could’nt have had to deal with more than half a dozen vehicles an hour, and seemed quite pleased to have some cyclists to chat to briefly! 

Descending further (and faster) we enjoyed the views of the islands of Scalpay and Raasy, surrounded by beautiful azure blue seas vibrant in the sunshine. It really looked as if someone had turned the colour saturation up on the world.

By contrast to the tiny road the A82 on Skye was something of a shock, as trucks, camper vans and other holiday traffic thundered by. It was only three miles, but we were glad to reach Kyleleakin for a lunch of macaroni cheese with a view of the Skye bridge.

After lunch and pedalling over the bridge back onto the mainland it was a quick trip into Kyle of Lochalsh Co-op for some provisions. It looked like the store was still experiencing the fallout of the recent ransomware attack as the shelves were quite bare, but I did manage to find some pasta and (expensive) pesto for our tea. 

A very pleasant afternoon was had pedalling along the coastal roads in full holiday mode, enjoying the various views, visiting small villages and enjoying an ice cream. At about 5pm tired and tanned, San and I rolled into the Wee Campsite at Lochcarron, pitched our tents, cooked our pasta and did our best to avoid the midges as we reflected on a stunning day on the bikes. 

North of Scotland – Day 2

No trailer today, time for some unfettered riding on the Torridon trails. I’ve ridden Torridon a quite few times in the past, but never in such premium conditions.

The singletrack climb from Coulags to Bealach na Lice was a couple of difficulty grades lower given the current arid conditions. However the numerous rock steps, steep inclines and square edged drainage culverts, whilst still providing a tech challenge were a joy to ride in such stunning surroundings under cloudless skies.

We said hello to a group of German lads staying at the bothy, and further on passed some time with an American walker who it turned out has a husband from Keighley! Aside from that we climbed in delicious solitude. We pedalled, pushed and carried ever upwards in near silence, aside from the breeze and occasion birdsong, and of course various huffings and puffings from San and I. 

Over the belach the marvellous trip of Torridon Giants greeting us. Three Munros, Beinn Eighe, Liathach and Beinn Alligin, favourites from my hillwalking days, dominated our view, towering over Glen Torridon far below. 

The descent into Torridon is one of the classics of UK mountain biking, steep winding single track at first, gives way to vast slabs of Torridonian sandstone bedrock interspersed with rubblefests. I was loving the descent, even the hollows usually hub deep in mud were totally dry, with just the tracks of previous bikers to mark their presence.

Whilst I was well equipped for the downhill, having all mod cons including 130mm of front suspension and a dropper post, San was definitely old skool on his rigid Van Nic. That wasn’t stopping him enjoying the experience though, I could hear his whoops of delight from behind as he piloted his bike through the tech fest!

The descent goes on for miles, and finishes with superb views of Loch Torridon, and the adjacent village which was to be our lunch stop. A couple of cheese and onion toasties, lemon cake and (free!) apple juices later we were back in the saddle pedalling around the coast path for a bit, before heading upwards once again.

The Beinn Damph path is another classic, initially heading steeply upwards through the natural pine forest it opens onto the mountainside as a ribbon of rocky single track meandering for miles. Some of it was rideable, other parts less so, but hike a bike is all part of Scottish mtb’ing. Besides being out in the sunshine under cloudless skies on a deserted mountain was just wonderful enough in itself, regardless of whether you were pedalling or pushing.

It was a long climb up, but an equally long descent, slicing along the valley side the downhill of course made the hike a bike well worth the effort. As did the views over the sea to Skye, that is when you dared to take your eyes off the trail for two seconds. The last mile of so of descent was a new access road to a hydroelectric site, these seem to be increasingly common in this part of the highlands, and eventually we arrived at Kinlockdampf and the road. 

Tarmac back to our Wee Campsite with a stop for coffee and cake, and a chat with some Dutch motor bikers about just how great the riding is in this part of Scotland.

North of Scotland – Day 3

Wednesday was to be our cross country day, literally most of the way across the country from Lochcarron on the west coast to Contin in the east. About sixty miles of top trails, stunning scenery, and a bit of hike a bike…..but more of that later. 

Big rides require a big breakfast, so after packing up the tents, dodging midges and loading the trailer it was down a cheeky little trail to Lochcarron waterfront and The Old Butcher’s for breakfast. Fortunately the Old Butcher is somewhat forward thinking in his attitude to meat alternatives, I enjoyed a full vegan breakfast and San a veggie one. In reality they were very similar save for the fact that San’s fried egg had been substituted for wilted spinach in the vegan version. 

The good breakfast compensated for the slightly later start, especially as today’s route only had one possible food stop at Kinlochewe, plus the stores at Contin once we reached our destination. However we couldn’t hang about as Contin Stores closed at 7pm, so if we didn’t get there by then we’d be going hungry (or so we thought!). 

A few miles of flat-ish roadie action to Achnashellach were the perfect warm up, once again we were pedalling along under bright sunshine and blue skies. At Achnashellach we paused briefly to check out the tiny railway station. It’s on the Inverness to Lochalsh line, but the station is actually a request stop requiring potential passengers to hail the train in order to board. 

A good forest road took us upwards to the Coulin Pass, gaining us some 820 feet in altitude over about 2 miles. From the pass the views of the Torridon mountains were once again magnificent. Most of our hard earned height gain was swiftly lost with a warp speed plummet down the other side of the pass. I was gradually getting the hang of riding with the trailer again, becoming familiar with the tendency for it to try to push the bike straight on through corners and having to place more weight on the front wheel to counteract this. 

On the Coulin estate we stopped to admire the beautiful Torran holiday cottage, with views over Loch Coulin to the Torridon mountains beyond. Some more estate tracks eventually took us to the A896 through Glen Torridon. Being a singletrack road with passing places it is unlike most other A-roads, especially when (as is common in this part of Scotland) drivers often pull into the passing spaces and patiently wait for cyclists to pass.

The petrol station/general store/cafe at Kinlochewe was a welcome sight. It was busy too, as the village was acting as an overnight stop for the Cape Wrath Ultra running event. Being lunchtime most of the competitiors appeared to have left already and it was just marshals and officials enjoying a coffee in the sunshine. As it was nearly 12pm we waited a few minutes for the cafe to transition to the lunch menu before ordering toasties and Victoria sponge to fuel the rest of our day’s ride. The Brie and cranberry toastie was actually very good, possibly the best of the trip. Being a vegetarian bikepacker in Scotland you soon become very used to cheese toasties and macaroni cheese as the only meat free lunch options! 

Pedalling out of the village, we passed the tented village for the Cape Wrath Ultra. The staff were busy takening the tents down, presumably to ferry them onwards to the next overnight stop. We carried on up the gravel road through Incherill and the Heights of Kinlochewe, admiring the wonderfully isolated second homes/holiday houses that the owners had obviously spent a great deal of time (and money) creating.

From studying arial photography when planning this route I knew that I wanted to link two access roads in the hills. This would enable us to stay off road, avoiding a long stretch of potentially busy tarmac between Kinlochewe and Achnasheen. The first access road was to a small hydroelectric scheme and involved a super steep gravel road climb, which had me off and pushing for the first time in the trip. A further challenge ws a locked deer gate, but between us San and I were able to manhandle the bikes and trailer over the 6 foot obstacle. 

Upon reaching the mini hydro dam the track ended as expected. This left us a distance of just over a mile across untracked moorland to join up with a second access track for a pipeline way above Loch Fanich. 

Had conditions been any less than bone dry, this bushwhacking would have been a near impossible task. There was no way it was possible to ride up and down the peat hags, so we resorted to pushing the bikes and me carrying the trailer rucksack style on my bike. This was seriously hard work, there were still some boggy bits and more than once I sank up to knee depth. But we kept plodding on following the trace on my GPS and eventually reached the pipeline, and the bliss of a gravel landrover track. 

After some recovery time and a few fruit pastilles we were pedalling again, slightly downhill following the pipeline over 4 miles towards Loch Fannich. The views ovet to the Fannich mountains were superb as we rated for a few minutes by the loch.

However we couldn’t hang around for too long as I was aware there was still plenty of riding (and climbing) to be done, and we needed to reach Contin by 7pm if we were to get any tea. As we descended a superb gravel track into Strathbran two deer hinds startled by my presence ran alongside for some distance before jumping across the trail just ahead of me. 

Upon reaching the A832 again we had another deer fence to negotiate, and then we joined the road (and the speeding traffic) for a couple of miles before taking a lovely gravel road off to the south. 

On the OS map a footbridge is shown crossing a small gorge just before the ruined settlement of Badinluchie, however reality proved somewhat different. The bridge had clearly been washed away at some point, and had been replaced by a single metal rail about 4 inches wide and a good 12 feet long. Whilst a walker with impeccable balance may have been able to walk across@, there was no way San and I could get a bikes, kit and trailer over without the near certainty of tumbling onto the jagged rocks some 10 feet below. Fortunately a slightly less perilous crossing was to be had a few metres upstream, and we ferried our stuff accross without incident, just very wet feet.

The climb up the landrover track to the Strathbran – Strrathconnon watershed was steep and tough, but we eventually made it in the evening sunshine at about 5:30pm. From here I knew the final 10 miles of the route into Contin was predominantly downhill so there was a good chance San and I would make it before the stores closed. As it was we team time trailed it anyway, enjoying squeezing out the last drops of energy after quite a tough day on the bike. 

We finally rolled into Contin just after 6:30pm, only to discover that in addition to the stores there was actually a fish and chop shop specialising in veggie and vegan food which was open until 9pm! After some battered cauliflower florets and chips, we pedalled to the campsite to discover a sign on the gate saying bookings only. A little bit of Kapil charm/cheek was required to convince the owner of the campsite to let us stay as we’d not pre-booked. To be fair she was very accommodating, as we’re almost all of people we encountered on the trip. 

Tents pitched and a hot shower later it was time for bed after what had definitely been the toughest day of the trip so far.

North of Scotland – Day 4

As expected Day 4 dawned clear, bright but slighter cooler than the previous few days. Now being on the eastern side of the country it was also relatively midge free, so San and I enjoyed our porridge sat outside the tents in the sunshine. 

Just after 8am we were packed up and ready to hit the road after calling at Contin Stores for provisions. Today our route would take us about 50 miles in a broadly southwesterly direction, over the hills to Orrin Reservoir, through Strathglass and along the length of Glen Affric to the remote Youth Hostel at Allbeithe. 

For our initial couple of miles we were mixing it with the morning traffic along the A835, this included seeing several million pounds worth of Ferrari sports cars out on some kind of rally. But things soon quietened down as we turned on to lanes and then the 5 mile climb up the remote Orrin valley. As a service road to the Orrin Reservoir the surface was quite smooth tarmac and of an even gradient, providing a welcome relief from the miles of gravel climbs San and I had encountered the day before. 

Orrin dam is a massive structure some 300 metres long, housing a hydroelectric power station and an innovative fish pass, which allows them to travel from the loch to the River Orrin and vice versa. The dam dominates the surrounding landscape, although there is something appealing about its manmade incongruity set against such a wild mountainous backdrop.

After the dam the tarmac stopped abruptly and it was back to gravel (sometimes of the quite chunky variety) as the trail wound along Gleann Goibhre. At about 11am we stopped for our macaroni cheese pies purchased earlier from Contin. I can’t go for a trip to Scotland without at least one macaroni cheese pie, the nation’s greatest contribution to vegetarian cuisine! As we ate both San and I marvelled at the silence of the landscape, only punctuated by the noise of a gentle breeze and occasional birdsong. 

We hadn’t seen a soul all day and it felt to us like the hills were deserted. Which is why it came as something of a shock when a few miles farther on when around a corner on the trail came a 4×4, then another, and another and another. We pulled onto the side of the rocky double track to let the convoy of eight Landrovers, Mitsubishis, Toyotas and other off-roaders pass. The driver of the lead vehicle stopped to pass the time of day, it turned out he was a tour leader from Devon who had been bringing groups of 4×4 enthuiasts to the area for 30 years, presumably with special permission to use these estate tracks. As each of the other vehicles crawled past we exchanged pleasantries with the occupants, and were even given a couple of mint imperials by one. The group were an international bunch with the convoy comprising vehicles from the UK, France and Belgium amongst others. I’m not sure if we were more surprised to see them, or they us! 

Traffic jam over it was time for San and I to descend back to relative civilisation the way the 4x4er’s had come up, a four mile downhill into Strathglass. I had looked at this trail for years on OS maps and wondered what it was like, and the reality certainly didn’t disappoint. Doubletrack with rocks, boulders and washed away sections the route was an mtb’ers dream, and made all the more entertaining for having a few kilos of kit in the trailer pushing me along at warp speed. 

Strathglass was a pretty glen, and relatively well populated. Its sheltered aspect and wooded valley sides give it a green, welcoming look and the broad bottom provides fields for grazing for animals alongside the river. We pedalled along nearly its entire length, enjoying the sunshine and flat roads.

The small village of Cannich at the head of Strathglass has a number of attributes, although most importantly for San and I were the presence of a cafe and shop. Whilst waiting toasties and baked potatoes for lunch at the Bog Cotton Cafe I remedied a loose rear axle on my Yeti. Descending rough stuff with the trailer puts a lot of stress on this component, so it needs an occasional tweak on a multi-day trip. 

After a lunch and a visit to the village Spar shop for an ice cream and further provisions we were headed for the Affric Kintail trail. Initially climbing steeply upward on a narrow road, this waymarked trail soon gave way to fast gravelly forest road undulating up and down the glen side. As pleasant as this was I was glad of the short but sweet section of winding singletrack descent taking us steeply down to the River Affric at Dog Falls.

Glen Affric is said to be one of the most picturesque Scottish glens, which is probably why the place was packed with people on this sunny Thursday afternoon. Whilst San used the conveniences I chatted to a group of elderly American tourists who were intrigued with the trailer, asking about its relative pros and cons as compared to panniers. 

As is so often the way as soon as we left the honeypot of the falls, the crowds of people melted away, leaving San and myself largely alone for the ride along this section of the Affric Kintail trail. To be honest I was slightly disappointed with the route, as excavators and heavy machinery had been working on trail improving drainage and undertaking forestry operations. For significant chunks of its 9 mile length the surface was churned up, which had baked solid in the sun, making the going quite tough in places. Also trees obscured the view of much of the glen for much of the time, affording only occasional views of the lochs and surrounding mountains. 

However as we passed Affric Lodge on the opposite side of the glen the views began to open up, making the previously dull section worth the effort. A stop to remove yet another tick from my leg (not sure why I seem to get so many) provided the perfect opportunity to sit for a few minutes soaking up both the sun and the views. 

A very posh looking fishing hut is located at the western end of Loch Affric, and some wild campers had already secured a prime spot nearby on the loch shore. However San’s and my overnight accommodation was still a few miles farther along the trail.

At the end of Loch Affric the trail changed from forest type roads to an all together more fun rocky, rubble strewn track with quite a number of stream crossings. After miles of vanilla off-roading this was a welcome relief, and we pedalled along enjoying every moment of the rollercoaster ride. The rocky stretches provided a technical riding challenge both up and down, something conspicuously lacking from Glen Affric until now. 

We passed a number of mountaineers huts, and crossed a worryingly decrepit wooden footbridge as we followed the River Affric upstream. At one point San stopped to fill his water bottle with the crystal clear water from a steam tumbling down the valley side, and after quenching our thirst we pedalled onwards enjoying the gem of a trail. 

After about three miles of rocky action Alltbeithie hostel came into view. The wooden building with a tin roof has been part of the Scottish Youth Hostel network since 1949. Deliciously remote, and entirely offgrid users can only access it by foot or bike, although a resident warden and supplies are ferried in by Landrover at the start of each 4 week shift. 

I had originally planned to wild camp or stay at the Camban Bothy a few miles further up the glen. But upon discovering the previous night that hostel had a couple of dormitory beds free, San and I booked in, tempted by the prospect of a proper toilet, comfy bunk bed and a warm shower. As it transpired an issue with the woodburner chimney meant there was no warm water for a shower. San was up for braving a cold one, whilst I sorted our kit out and found the tins of Suma beans and vegan sausages I had hauled in the trailer from Contin Stores. 

Sat on the bench outside eating our beans and sausages, accompanied by crisps, the view of the surrounding Munros in the evening sunshine was sublime. Everything was perfect weather wise, a warm breeze had even blown up to dry off our damp kit. 

Following a walk along the glen to survey the start of the following day’s route and for San to photograph cottongrass, we retired to the dorm room we were sharing with four other guys. If anyone was snoring it certainly didn’t keep me awake after another epically wonderful day on the bike in Northern Scotland.

North of Scotland – Day 5

I’ve never had a problem getting up early for a bike ride, and I had a feeling an early start this morning was going to guarantee something special. It was the final day of our trip and just 20 miles or so down Glen Lichd back to the van at Sheil Bridge. 

Both San and I slept pretty well, but we were awake at about 5am getting our kit together as quietly as possible so as not to disturb our fellow dorm residents. With no tents etc. to pack up, a few minutes later we were pushing our bikes past the hostel anticipating the morning’s ride.

And what a morning it was, clear blue skies, orange sun on the mountains and the whispiest, thinnest of mists swirling at ground level. It was cold too, our fingers froze in thin summer gloves, but we knew the air would soon warm and a bit of discomfort would be a small price to pay for the privilidge of riding in the hills on such a perfect morning. 

Initially we had to continue to follow the River Affric, now not much more than a large stream. The doubletrack was much as yesterday, rubbly, technical in places with occasional fords which we crossed carefully, not wanting wet cold feet in addition to freezing hands. 

By the time we reached the Camban bothy a couple of miles along the trail the sunshine was already beginning to warm the air, and we were feeling more comfortable. We said a cheery “Good Morning” to an early riser at the bothy out admiring the view and continued onwards.

Shortly after the bothy I became aware my rear tyre was beginning to soften when I felt the rim contact one of the many square edged drainage culverts transecting the trail. I knew the tyre was on its last legs, and as the sealant was reluctant to fix the leak it was time to pop in a tube for the last few miles of our ride. I pumped plenty of pressure into the tyre to hopefully avoid any pinch punctures or rim dings on the rocky descent I knew was coming.

Crossing the beleach at Cnoc Biodaig, we were only about 1200 feet above sea level, but the isolation of the spot and the surrounding Munros made it feel much higher. A ribbon of gravelly singletrack took us over the watershed into Glen Lichd. Although well known amongst walkers and mtb’ers I had never ridden the Glen Lichd trail previously, but had read of its technical nature as an mtb descent, and heard stories of it being a notorious hike a bike when taken in ascent. Sounds perfect for tackling with a trailer then!

All I can say was that dropping down to Glen Lichd in the early morning sunshine was one of the best mtb experiences of my life. Negotiating the steep, rocky, narrow, tech trail, passing waterfalls whilst trying not to tumble into the Allt Granda many feet below was exhilarating. 

Some sections were more natural, others had been roughly lined with rocks to limit erosion, but all were tremendous fun, particularly the switchbacks which the trailer snaked around without issue. In fact the key with the trailer on this tech terrain is largely to forget it is there and just ride as you would normally, trusting it will do its thing and bounce along behind. 

We paused to admire the waterfalls halfway down, watching the water drop straight off a cliff into the stream below. Just as I was starting to physically tire on the descent, Glenlicht House the Edinburgh University Mountaineering Club hut came into view, marking the end of the techfest. Maybe I lost concentration slightly at this point, as despite being careful the whole way down I managed to pinch flat my rear tyre on a culvert. So for the second time that morning it was off with the wheel and out with the tyre levers and pump to change the tube and get us back on the trail.

The remainder of the Glen Lichd trail comprised of heavy gravel doubletrack through fields of sheep. It seemed like loads of aggregate had simply been dumped on the trail as a means of repairing the uneven surface. This made for tough going, but neither San or I minded too much given the epic descent we’d just experienced. 

Back on the tarmac and passing the campsite and ranger station at Morvich, we were very near to the end of our journey, but the Affric Kintail Trail had one final treat. A section of lovely wooded singletrack alongside the river, lined with bluebells this provided a fitting end to our adventure. 

From there it was simply a couple of miles back to the van at Sheil Bridge, although we did stop off on the way for an egg butty made for us by a nice lady from Lancashire at the Wee Bun House next to the Kintail Lodge Hotel.

North of Scotland – Epilogue

What a great mini adventure in Scotland! Four and a half days of riding covering 230 miles and over 20,000 feet of climbing on some absolutely stunning trails. 

The best Scottish spring for years no doubt helped to make this trip so good. Not only did we experience wall to wall sunshine and pleasantly warm conditions throughout the ride, but lack of rain in the weeks prior meant the trails were virtually mud free. Bikepacking is so much more fun when your kit is not constantly covered in mud, grit and other unpleasantness. 

So many highlights from the week, the little ferry from Glen Elg to Skye, the loop of classic Torridon trails, the isolation of Loch Fannich and of course the early morning techfest descent down Glen Lichd on the final day. That’s not to mention the many marvellous mountains, lochs, streams, beaches, forests and trails we witnessed along the way and make the area such a unique place for a bike trip.

Thanks so much to San for joining me, and especially for his characteristic unfailing positivity. His love for pedalling is constantly evident, even when hike a biking over untracked moorland, scaling 6 foot deer gates, paddling through mountain streams or riding up the umpteenth hill of the day. Whatever the challenge San is always smiling and obviously loving every moment of the experience. His psychological resilience and diesel engine physical endurance makes him such a good companion on such an adventure.

All our kit worked with minimal fuss or problems, no mechanicals at all save for a couple of punctures on the final morning. As ever my 20 year old Bob trailer continues to offer sterling service. It’s off-road capabilities are remarkable, following on pretty much anywhere the bike goes. Bob’s luggage capacity allows for for a few luxuries, including a Trangia stove enabling us to cook something resembling proper meals in the evenings. 

Thanks also to Pete Breakwell for the midge nets and Smidge spray which were well used, particularly on the west coast. The other Scottish creepy crawlies which seem to becoming more prevalent are deer ticks. I had to remove 5 from my legs over the course of the trip, although interestingly San had none. 

What a trip…..packed with new experiences, good times, and of course lessons learned for our next Scottish adventure!