Having passed the outskirts of Carlisle we were soon driving into Scotland past Gretna Green famous for the marriage of "escapees" from South of the border under the friendlier terms of Scottish law !
Along the way we stopped at one of those "megaliths" called freeway services for a quick cuppa and a weight check with our Europe / Uk trip almost finished.
As expected with all the fine eating of Europe (read baquettes and cakes) and balanced eating in the UK ( read eggs with everything fried !) we have lost little despite all of the hard - read Kev 1 kg and self about 3 kgs !
The going was slow but scenic as we entered the Scottish Borders with its customary rainy mist, circumnavigated Edinburgh and made our way to St.Andrews to give Kev a sight of the famous old course.
As luck would have it the day was the first round of the woman's British Open and our late afternoon arrival meant that we could sneak into the course without paying and watch a few groups play up the famous 17th and 18th holes !
In the clearing conditions, the course appeared to be immaculate and the the girls were making it look easy with most under par although one girl who hooked the beejesus out of her fairway shot straight into a communications marquee scaring the hell out of its custodian was doing her best to entertain !
For Kev he was delighted to be at the home of golf and suggested that many of the players could improve further if they took lessons off him !
Our escape from St.Andrews took as out through Dundee near to Blairgowrie and through lovely Dunkeld before ending up at peaceful Pitlochry Perthshire's outdoor adventure capital with walking cycling and mountain bike riding the go.
H did all the days driving a pretty commendable achievement with no replays of yesterday's effort when he attempted to drive down the wrong way of a one way street n a large town !
Weather permitting we hope to get in some cycling in this lovely area tommorrow with H quickly closing in on the 5,000 km mark !
Hi Kev & Mike, Ah, Pitlochry. Gina and I were there 2 years ago for the highland games. Pissed with rain all day and we sank up to our ankles in mud as we tried to negotiate the oval. Amongst all the other games, they had cycle races on the grass/slush riding bikes with 23cm tyres. Give that a go while you are there.
ReplyDeleteKev, had the annual 'lunch after the Friday ride' yesterday and there was only one person absent - poor effort! There was a little food left over but it sounds as if we don't need to keep it for you.
Have come down with a bad dose of a cold/flu since being back and have hardly been on the bike. The new Pina's sitting in the shed wondering what it's done wrong.
Enjoy the rest of Scotland, we have fond, but damp, memories of the place.
See you in a couple of weeks.
B2