LEJOG solo with Steve L

Today I have taken the longest time getting from point A to point B. Along Lochness via some of the Caledonian canal. As seems to be usual the morning is beautiful and sunny, but sometime in the afternoon rain occurs. And I don't know what is usual for this area but it seems to keep getting me like the monsoons of Asia and quite literally today I cycled around a corner straight into torrents of the wet stuff, and as fast as I tried I was quite wet through by the time I got my raincoat on. And then I rode out of it on the next bend, all quite bizzar, almost like it had its own micro climate? The option to ride along the canal was not something that I had planned for, but it makes a lovely change to both get off the fast roads and take a spell on the flat tow paths. The idea of a large mug of sweet tea and a large piece of coffee cake at a tiny tea rooms just on the edge of the canal and about 100 metres off the road helped settle the matter of choice, should I stay to my plan or de...

The Commando Memorial just above Spean Bridge just above Fort William Some of the main street Glencoe. Please accept my appologies for the disarray of the photographs. My computing skills are not up to my juggling skills, and so I could not get them to go quite as I wanted. More practice needed I think! Mmmm! where could I go next? This was the first time that I encountered the infamous 'Scottish Midge' and boy do they bite! Once one has found you and rings the dinner gong you soon become out numbered and out gunned. That is unless you use the Avon beauty product 'skin so soft', so effective that armies around the world issue it to their men! The ride upto Glencoe was very UP and the ride across the top was hilly and quite lovely, but the ride into and down through Glencoe was beautiful as I said earlier. I managed a few shots to give you a feel, but my camera skills could not convey the size and majesty that your eyes collect in their peripheral vision, even at 90 mil...

Finally the bit I have been looking forward to, and guess what so had everyone else in the entire world! There was more traffic on this 30 mile stretch than at any time in my whole trip! Oh my shattered dreams! I did finally wake up to the fact that there is a cycle/footpath along the edge of alot of the loch close to the waters edge. Made up of some of the old road and new footpath but very overgrown tarmac paths. Away from the rushing traffic the loch came back into focus for me and the sun shone, what more could I ask? The only problem now was that I was not making good enough time and so after about an hour cycling on the waters edge I had to pop back out into the traffic. Loch Lomond road is fairly flat and so it is easier to make good time, until you get to the end and start to climb into the hills. A flurry of rain got my raincoat on and turned me into a pressure cooker, so I had to take it back off and just get wet! The scenery is just as described by the poets, photographed i...

The ride from Annan to my next destination Failfield was another glorious day and yet again even though I thought I had put on plenty of sun cream got the backs of my legs scalded. As usual within an hour of arriving at my host house I called to let them know that I was about to arrive. A little surprised they said they would be ready to wave out the door at me when I got there. It turned out that they were expecting me the next day and so had a bit of a surprise when I called. On my arrival they asked me what I would like to eat and then went next door to order it from the pub. All very civilised really. As I was eating and talking to Derek about my journey so far he asked me what had inspired the choice of charity that I am raising money for? I explained that I had seen this promotional advert on the TV with this teenage lad called Alastair. He then told me that his parent lived just round the corner and that he would give them a call. Kim and Robert were delightful and said they wou...

Today started yesterday really when I left Warrington to travel up to Kendal and its YHA digs for the night. This meant that for the first time in my journey I would not be meeting with youthworkers or interested parties and so I was due to have the night off! Well I'm not much good at missing out and so when I spotted a huge banner on the side of a church building advertising the 'Boxing Club', I just had to find out more. At that moment this very old lady, Helen, came upto me and asked if she could help? I said I was interested in the concept of boxing in a church, and so in response she invited me in for tea and toast and a chat. I actually found out that the Boxing Club is separate from the church, but that there has never been any trouble because of it, because the boys are taught from the very start that the boxing ring is the only right place to fight. They have helped fund the church and been involved in all manner of events to help the church raise money. It was f...

Being a stay at home type I have never managed to make it to many I the sights of Britain and so on my way to my first nights stop in Scotland I thought I couldn't possibly get so close to the, World famous, 'not' church marriage haven. Well of course I am several decades to late to be able to see it for its original charm and romance! Now people come from all over the world to look and watch, and couples (quite mad, if you ask me) are paying, I suppose, to have their very personal moment photographed by tourists like myself. Seems all abit strange? The complex is designed now as a total money making device, all very clever but to a cynic such as I completely yuk! They do a very nice ice-cream though!

The whole of Britain is beatiful but to be able to take photos from the roadside with the weather not really knowing what it wants to do is quite a challenge especially as everything has to be wrapped in polythene bags against the rain, so as you can imagine the good bits are often the ones you cycle through because its raining or to be honest with you, I just could not actually be bothered! (A terrible thing to have to admit). Buzzards, fallow dear, beautiful roadside flowers and weeds and of course at this time of year the perfectly manicured fields of wheat and what ever else is a good paying cash crop I suppose? The incredible hills of Cornwall and Devon give way to the delightful flatness of middle England and now I have just started to climb into the hills of the Lake District and Scotland, my final prize..... By the way I must take this moment to say that I think today was longer than the ride to Telford. I will be checking the maps when I get a chance Carri!