Loch Doon to Dumfries

By the time of the dawn chorus the conditions outside sounded better and indeed the 6:10 am start for the last leg was not difficult to achieve. The headwind was troublesome as far as Carsphairn, where the sloping community garden was a relaxing place to have a picnic breakfast. At the top of the garden was a graphic naming the Rhinns of Kells visible from the plaque. This warrants a viewing without today’s blanket of mist!

Turning left on the Moniaive road, there was some shelter but still many and sometimes huge puddles to avoid for fear of hidden potholes. For the remainder of the ride home the odd dry spell was appreciated. It was a great day for the waterfalls and for the wind turbines in the area.

The usual stop at Watsons the grocers for coffee and healthy food made up for the ordeal of coping with the cycling conditions. Jade confirmed my memory of chairs being in the shop many years ago and added that it was possible to sit on a stool at the window. There I spotted a laptop and printer and Kerry logged on for me and later printed in colour Day 7 of Tour 1, which now has a photo of my tent pitched at Elgol. It emerged that Kerry is from Hillsborough and given my six years at Sheffield University it will be interesting to compare notes. The Broomhill Tavern is rapidly uncovered common ground!

The village shop as usual stocks a huge range of goods, and this extended stay to rest and shelter allowed the browsing through possible purchases for an excursion when both space and weight on a loaded bike are not restrictive. Moniaive at about 20 miles from Dumfries provides effective tour preparation.

A short stop at the often admired waterfall at Ruthin Bridge this afternoon was sufficient to indicate that the huge amount of recent rain making cycling problematic further north had extended to the Dumfries area. Tiredness was not an issue after the refreshing rest at Moniaive.

My last stop, to see Andrew at DG Wheels, was extremely productive. Andrew accepts and will implement my idea of buying a bike with a very low gear to (1) enable me to tow a heavy trailer for a less restrictive camping holiday within Dumfries and Galloway and (2) be fitted with modern rack-less storage bags instead of a trailer when my legs lose the strength to get today’s fully loaded bike up the Highland roads. (My last neighbouring camper in Oban uses all of his ten bikes!)