Wet and Warm

"The bicycle had, and still has, a humane, almost classical moderation in the kind of pleasure it offers. It is the kind of machine that a Hellenistic Greek might have invented and ridden. It does no violence to our normal reactions: It does not pretend to free us from our normal environment." ~ J.B. Jackson

Despite the thunderstorms on Sunday morning, 22 of us went to Dawyck Botanic Gardens near Stobo village in the Borders. why couldn't the nice weather last one more day. Quite a long ride, over 60 miles. Well done to everyone who completed the trip, you deserve a cake you bought at Dawyck. It you don't have a cake, try the cheesecake recipe below!!!! Certainly a ride at the extreme envelope of Spokes' rides.

Vistarific

Cycling through the Meldons provided some excellent vistas. The White Meldon was on the left at 427m and Black Melon is on the right at 407m. Compared to last year's Innerleithen ride, no Socialist Workers, 12 km less, and we didn't go over the Granites (404m high!!), it wasn't too bad, but pretty fast, 13 mph.

We did come across 2 heavy showers, had it not rained, it might have been truly excellent, instead of just excellent ride. One heavy shower on the way out of Edinburgh, and the other on the road to Romannobridge, the latter lasting about 20 minutes. After the second, we headed out to West Linton for a wee rest to recover, and dry out a little. We were lucky, because in Edinburgh, it rained for a lot longer. Rain is never pleasant, but given we live in Scotland, it should be expected. It does not rain as much as people think. Last week, going to and from work, I managed to cycle in between showers. There are stats that for the average cyclist, you could expect to experience moderate rain in about 12 days per year.

Anyway, 13 of us went to the pub and returned to Edinburgh at 6:00 pm. Hope those of you who left early got home safely. It was a bit faster than usual, but it is no fun hanging around in the rain.

Not a big price to pay for a great day out, it is all good. You are helping the environment by not using a car for your day out, you are helping your body by exercising, on Spokes rides you can chat and meet people of all ages and backgrounds. You saw nice scenery and, hopefully, had a great time.

I can promise an easier ride next month. If its nice, we'll go to the beach. Hope to see you.

Warm Regards,

Explore, Dream, Discover

"After your first day of cycling, one dream is inevitable. A memory of motion lingers in the muscles of your legs, and round and round they seem to go. You ride through Dreamland on wonderful dream bicycles that change and grow." ~ H.G. Wells, The Wheels of Chance, A Bicycling Idyll

Ride Statistics

Distance:       98.7 km (61.3 miles) A biggee!!!
Average Speed:  21.0 km/h (13.0 mph)
Total Climbing: 972m (3192 feet) max. 268 m
Time:           4 hours 43 minutes
Max. Temp.:     24 deg C (75.2 deg F)

Route Description

There were 22 of us at the start, we took the normal route out of Edinburgh when heading South (upwards!!), following the A702. Along, Lothian Road, Earl Grey Street, Home Street, Leven Street, Bruntsfield Place then turning left on to Whitehouse Loan. The Whitehouse Loan, Strathearn Place, Strathearn Road junction is open again. That allowed us to carry on to Newbattle Terrace, Canaan Lance, Woodburn Terrace, Braid Avenue, and Hermitage Drive. We rejoined the A702 at Braidburn Terrace. We carried on up Comiston Road, and Biggar Road, and then turn off on to the A703, Seafield Moor Road.

As this was a long cycle ride, we turned right to go through Bush, past the Science park, briefly joining the A701 and then turning off on to The Brae at Auchendinny, the B7026. We carried along the B road to join the A6094 at Howgate, and took us to Leadburn. We turned left on to the A703, which we followed, mostly downhill, to Eddleston. Here, we turned right on to a minor road, signposted for Lyne via the Meldons. At the end of the Meldons road, we turned right on to the A72, then immediately left on to the B712 signposted for Stobo and Dawyck Botanic Gardens.

The route back was flatter, we returned along the B712 and turned left on to the A72, which we followed for about 3 1/2 miles, before turning right on to the B7059 to Romannobridge. Here the heavens opened for a second time. By the time we got to Romannobridge, we were all sodden.

So we headed off to West Linton, from Romannobridge, this was a right turn on to A701, then left, rejoining the B7059. At West Linton, some people went home, 13 decanted to the pub. After drying out a little, we took the minor road across Auchencorth Moss to Penicuik, then A701 through Penicuik and Milton Bridge. We turned left to go through Bush and Easter Bush to join the A703, Seafield Moor Road, joining Biggar Road, to reach Fairmilehead at 6pm.