Destination: Dumfries – Loch Lomond
Daily miles: 102
Total Miles: 685.7
Average speed: 11.4
Weather: Dryish, but still very windy, (prevailing winds..my arse!)
We left the lovely, warm B&B and headed to the local bike shop, as my back tyre was a little soft. More air identified a puncture, so after fitting a new inner, we left Dumfries around 9.30…Five miles in, we stopped to fit another inner, and patch a big gash in my rear tyre..Bugger! We set off again along the A76 towards Kilmarnock, and stopped for some afternoon tea at the Little Thief. It was 5pm and still 40 miles to go. It was going to be a late one…We took the A735 past Stewarton to Paisley, skirting around Glasgow and over the Erskine Bridge (with separate cycle lane), to pick up the A82 to Loch Lomond. The hostel was a lovely stately-home type building on the banks of the Loch, and we had 10 minutes to spare before the reception closed!! No inclination to cycle back out for some food, so it was a tin of Scotch Broth tonight (and again no beer – on a Saturday night too!!). Kept telling ourselves..one more day and then a day off! In all the tiredness of the day…we used the men’s shower room ….don’t know who was more surprised!