Day 13: Fenwick to Arrochar (The Stripiness Of The Long Distance Cyclist)

Matt - Interesting day today. Left Fenwick with some reluctance. Great B&B and Nancy's homemade bread and cakes. Superb.

The day's riding started off ok and we found the canal-side cycle path which was great. Only problem was we lost it again in Dumbarton and so had to go back on the A82. This did mean that we made good time as the artics thundered by!

We did cross the Erskine bridge over the Clyde which was huge.

There is the beginning of an end feel to the days now which I think will get more pronounced when we get to Fort William.

Alan - Not my favourite day today. I started the day tired and didn't really recover. Added to that the roads and "cycle paths" were atrocicous. For Matt "I've got tractor tyres" Foster, this was not such an issue, but my road bike didn't like it. The highlights of the day were the first 10 miles from the B&B which passed through some great countryside on pretty quiet roads, crossing the Clyde on the Erskine bridge and finishing.

We also passed quite near Dunlop, which is named after the inventor of the pneumatic bike tyre (actually he seems to have "borrowed" this idea from another Scot) and just outside Dumfries is the birthplace of the inventor of the pedal bike. As much as it pains me to admit it the modern bike is another Scottish invention. I can only imagine that the English engineeers were all sitting at home looking at the wall waiting for someone to invent the TV so that they could watch East Enders. After the pedal bike was around for a while, an Englishman did get involved and used his knowledge of gearing to enhance the bike in a desperate attempt to get the Scots to finish it off so that they could then get on with inventing the TV. Although his solution was to just put a really big wheel at the front and a small one at the back, this seems to have been enough for the Scots to sort it out and then move onto TV, which satisfied the English, since this meant they could get on with inventing the TV soap.

At this stage I expected to ache. In fact certain places have been painful since the second day (Top Tip: Choose your saddle well. Find a bike shop that will allow you to try before you buy and then put in some serious miles. Don't pick your bike up a couple of weeks before and say "Any one will do. Just something to cover that post."). As various part start to hurt such as feet, ankles, knees etc, you then start to compensate which then triggers another pain. Generally, these all just disappear as you cycle along and enjoy the surroundings. What I wasn't expecting was stripes. With fingerless gloves, shorts, short sleeved tops and being very pale (I guess bluey-white would be a better description) I have now developed stripes. I'm just hoping this will become the new fashion....

Looking forward to tomorrow. We move from the Lowlands to the Highlands. It's going to be a tough day, but I'm hoping that the climbing will be rewarded with some staggering sights. Best get back to the beer.

Elayne: B&B review - last night West Tannacrieff near Kilmaurs - fantastic. Huge rooms, immaculate shower rooms and great breakfast. Even a little TV lounge to sit in. Nancy is a wonderful hostess and there are lots of little touches that make it a great place to stay. I was very tempted just to let them get on with the cycling on their own and stay there for the rest of the week. Go visit! Rob, Nancy says hi and we say thanks for the recommendation!

Tonight's B&B, Braemor in Arrochar is also very nice. Beautiful rooms and amazing views over Loch Long. We haven't yet met our hosts, as they are returning tonight from a couple of days in Lusaka (as you do!) but were made very welcome by Brenda. The whisky on arrival was a very nice touch, although none of us have managed to drink it yet. Dinner in the Village Inn quite good, although not quite up to last night's standard - haven't checked out the toilets yet - Matt just off to do so..

Matt - Toilet report- ordinary run of the mill fare. Not even a court.