What a wonderful day. Clear blue skies, a gentle breeze and the A82 to bounce my way along for 90 miles (the A82 has to be the worst road I've ever been on - badly surfaced, badly potholed, badly maintained etc - but never mind that for now).
I left Paisley late morning, and headed over the Erskine Bridge to Balloch on the south shores of Loch Lomond. Had some lunch and bought some anti-midge spray. I've always been pretty cynical about these sprays before, but I got so badly bitten last time that I had to give it a go...and it worked a treat. No bites.
Today's route took me up the west side of Loch Lomond, which was bathed in sunshine and shimmering in the heat. A deer came out onto the side of the road, ran along side me for a few seconds and then headed back into the bushes. A heron flew close by.
I had a light lunch in Crianlarich and then headed up to Rannoch Moor and through Glen Coe. Whenever I've been here in the past, it's been so wet that it was impossible to enjoy the views, but today it was glorious. The (Grampian) mountains were stunning and the moor was very peaceful. The bird and insect life was stunning.
Took pictures of the white crofters cottages nestling at the base of the mountains, sat at the moor's edge and enjoyed the view. Very relaxing.
The ride was very hilly, but the climbs were long and steady so although it was a relatively slow day, it was also relatively easy.
The road surface was giving me truly sore hands and shoulders, so I tried wearing two pairs of gloves, letting my saddle down slightly and lowering the pressure in my tyres. Seemed to help a bit.
Miles so far: 801.53
Calories so far: 35,860
Sense of satisfaction: huge.
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