Here is a flavour of my ride:
The Highlander Audax,
Day 1 Brodick, Campelltown, Lochgilphead, Oban.
“Are you Dave Crampton?” asked Margret Wicks of Triple Echo Productions who produce the Adventure Show, or as she asked to be called, Meg. I had arranged to meet for the 08:20 ferry but had gone back to retrieve my helmet left at a mates house in Ayr. We made our introductions and Paul the Cameraman was introduced as I prepped my bike. More faffing with packing. I’d brought far too much ‘stuff’ with me and was trying to slim down even now, with 20 minutes until the ferry sailed. Paul got to filming with Meg asking me questions like how I was feeling, what did I expect, had Iplanned it, what was special about my bike… etc…Then a few short introductions with other riders and we boarded the ferry to Brodick. On board I met SimonWillis another cameraman/arranger for the program. He was in cycle kit and blended in with us. The sun was shining and the clouds were long gone, it was going to be a hot day.
At the Start we gathered outside a café on the ferry terminal and Mark Rigby started to hand out brevit cards. I’d met a few more folk including two dutch cyclistsRichard and Walter, who looked like they were setup for a leisurely tournot a fast paced light Audax, with two large Ortlib panniers and dutch ctyle touring bikes complete with huge 25mm tyres! At least I wasn’t taking the most gear! The start came as an anti-climax as Mark announced that we’d be better off waiting an hour and a half before setting off. Not the usual ‘off like a shot’ start then. Eager to start, we looked around at each other waiting for someone to set off first. That would be me then. As we wound our way along the coast I was past by the Swedish Train as they were to become, three Swedes who had come over especially for the event. I let them get away as I knew I would not make the early ferry from Lochranza and was mopped up by others heading the same way. The ferry looked tight as rumour spread that it was small and we might not all get on. The camera crew got wind of this and tried to get some reaction but we remained cool and all got on board without hastle. Off at Claonaig, we headed down a lumpy B842 to Campbelltown arriving around 4:30pm before finding food at a local Coop, the Audax staple food vendor.Heading to Lochgilphead on the main road it was much faster and flatter then the small road we had ridden down on. On route a few of us joined together to form a larger goup before splitting again as the speeds rose. Outside Lochgilphead I got a puncture and lost the group only to catch up again for food. In Lochgilphead I found most of those I’d tagged long with, before buying food and drink, ready for the last 60km to Oban. It was around 8pm. Riding away from Lochgilphead I met up with Ken Thompson again and we rode to Oban together. Towards the end I was flagging and starting to bonk. I dived into my Rocky Road chocolate stash in my tri bag, which helped some. As we dropped into Oban Simon stopped us short of our accommodation to ask how we were feeling. Tired but happy to be in Oban. It was around 10:30pm, not too bad for a 200+ with an enforced break at the ferry terminal on Arran.
Day 2, Oban – Tobermory – Broadford – Achnasheen – Gairloch – Poolewe.
6:15am rise and shine for the 7:45 ferry to Craignuire. Last on as I assumed cyclists would be kept until last, I just made it on before the doors close. A drunk islander was holding up the ticket queue inside the terminal asking why they would not let him on…. causing a few furrowed brows from late foot passengers wishing to purchase their tickets. On Mull we had a lazy ride to Tobermory for an early lunch. We gathered together by the clock tower to eat and share water and stories before boarding the next ferry back onto the mainland at Kilchoan. This time I had asked another cyclist what times the ferry sailed from Mallaig. 3:20pm and 4:40pm. So resolved I headed east then north over Morven at an average of 30kph towards Glenfinnan where I joined the A830 to Mallaig. Tagging along with Stuart Allan sadly I eventuallydropped him, fearing we would not make the 3:20pm ferry to Armadale. I reached the ferry terminal to be waved on eagerly by a cameraman outside the ferry termainl only to be stopped at the ramp by the ticket collector who informed me I’d nothing to worry about, just 3 cars left to board then me. Breathing heavily I was caught by Simon again and asked what it meant to catch this ferry? ‘Saved me an hour and 10 minute delay’ I said trying to catch my breath. On board the ferry I caught up with a few other riders including the Swedish train and decided to take it easy to Broadford.Water resup and then I rode alone to control at theBroadford coop where ice creams beckoned as I tried to find a shaded spot out of the oppressive afternoon hot sun. Water was becoming a problem, I was emptying my bottles faster than I could find refills. At Kyle of Loch Alsh I stopped again for 45 mins finding food for the next ~120km before the hotel at Poolewe, my overnight stop for Tuesday. I climbed the hill out of Loch Alsh to see another familiar face, Meg waving at me, with Paul the Cameraman. As I climbed with another local cyclist, a contract worker who was out for the evening cycling we enjoyed the air and swapped stories before separating at the top where I, leaving him behind, desended at great speed for what seemed like ages, to Loch Carron. Passing the loch on the now famous road for its recent closure due to rock falls, which blocked the road, I head north east towards Achnasheen. Climing steadily the whole way the summer air was cooling and light fading. At the Ledgowan Lodge I was met again my Paul (cameraman) and Meg fired questions at me again while filming. I ate my evening meal, nuts and rice pudding, in a cloud of midges. Unable to find my 3 plastic spoons in my overheated, exhausted and befuddle state, I borrowed ablue plastic ruler from Meg to eat the rice pudding cold out of the can. It never tasted so good.~10pm now and my last ~65km to Poolewe setting of into the twilight.Stopping only to put on my bright gillet and change GPS batteries, I made good time with my MP3 player providing mydance music to help me along. At Gairloch I was confussed by the signsand larger than expected size of the town and spent 25 minutes looking for the ATM. I misunderstood the larger size of the village I kept going in circles. Eventually finding it I left for Poolewe around midnight. The roads were empty, the light almost all gone and with tunes in my ears I rode a section with no lights and was able to navigate the road easily in the dusk. I made the last few km to Poolewe in great spirits to be met by Simon again at the Hotel. Fearing I would be late for the key collection they had collected my key for me, unknown to me until I arrived. After a shower I felt much better. Bed at 1am Thursday morning.
Day 3 - 4. Poolewe, Ullerpool, Lochinver, Durness, Trantlebeg.
Up at a leisurely 7am I had aanother shower, dressing in my now sticky sweaty cycle clothing and making full use of the coffee and biscuits, I packed the sandwich lunch I’d organised from the hotel prior to my arrival. My morning piece to camera done I left for Ullapool alone. Along the way I met Adrian from Brighouse, and we rode together to Ullapool stopping brieflyalong the way at an independent hostel for tea and biscuits, Sail Mhor Croft Hostel at Camusnagaul. Then the last leg stretch to Ullapool in the heat again. There we had a vast plate of Macaroni cheese and chips, with huge quantities of water. Leaving Ullapool at 1pm we headed north towards Lochinver. 10 miles north ofUllapool my rear wheel broke a cassette side spoke and two others pulled out of the nipples. After over an hour or more fixing the wheel, I managed to get a semi trued wheel, and decided to abandon the recommended route along the coast instead taking the slightly longer but flatter main road to Lochinver. There I met up with Mark Hagger, Ian Oli?, Adrian and Chris. Retracing my route out of Lochinver we headed for Durness. Chris ad Adrian had decided to book into the local Backpackers hostelin Durness as time was getting on. After a brief stop at Scourie on the way for more late night food I was surprised at the greeting.As the kitchen was closing we managed to get Pea soup from a very gumpy counter lady. “What would you recommend?” we asked “Kitchens closing!” came the curt reply. “So can get some soup please?” “Kitchens closing, hurry with your orders!” Refueled with coke and soup we headed for Durness and itsrollercoaster road of ups and downs which linked sea lock after sea loch over huge rocky lumps.Arriving just before midnight, we bummed abrief cuppa and then Mark Hagger and Ileft the hostel for Trantlebeg, leaving Adrian and Chris for their 3 hour sleep.Outside the Spar Durness we regrouped with Ken Thompson and Ian Oli. Headed for Trantlebeg ‘overnight stop’ over 100km away,we rode off into the night, stopping for caffine based pills, water in Bettyhill and a little Audax Hotel action! On the ride over with the sea on our left (north) the sky was not completely black but a deep shade of blue. The horizon was a deep reddy brown with pink tindged edges and there were 4 white lines coming from where the sun was over the horizon. Looking behind us we could see the ambient light left over from the sun set, after the sun had gone down and ahead of us we could see the start of the sun rise. In between were these white lines in a fan shape. These white lines moved apace with the sun and grew in intensity as we rode through the early morning. As the sun came up we climbed to our last coastal hilltop level and were greeted with a spectacular view of the islands of Okney draped in a mist at sea level, just their tops poking out. It was a spectacular sight. Arriving in Trantlebeg I was cold as the temperature falls sharply around 6am. Just in good time, as I had been micro napping on the bike. Not wise! A quick checkin, then food, shower and sleep in that order.
~Day 4. Trantlbeg - Lairg - Dingwall - Speanbridge.
I had agreed with Mark that we would only sleep up to 4 hours but he was up after only 2 and I was woken from my slumber rudely to be told weshould head off. After the briefest of breakfasts(toast and tea) we setoff joined by Chris. Only a few km up the road Chris disappeared off the back and it was just me and Mark to the the end. The route took us on the B871 towards Strathnaver and then south to Larig. This was the fourth hot, dry day and we had to pull in to remote farm steads to find water, and only water, as the farms appeared deserted with doors left wide open when we knocked… Meeting Mark the Organiser at Grummore caravan site, we assumed we were last as he told us he had left the control to head south. We didn’t know we still had riders behind us. The climb over Shin forest was balmy, with huge timber articulated lorries and crazed white van men flying up and down with little regard for other road users. In Larig we found the Spar and MattC and Pat. We sat with them and fed and watered, carried on following MattC and Pat down through Shinfalls toward Ardguy. At Ardguy we called into an iced cream shop and finding it closed headed into the open cycle shop. Chris of Heavens bikes was a hero. The shop was due to close at 6:30pm and it was now 6:20pm. He sugest it would be ~45 minutes replacing my rear spoke and truing up my rear wheel, but was happy to allow us in. It turns out reading on the web Chris has saved many a LEJOG cyclist as they cycled by Heaven Bikes. Over the Struie climb I met Chris again as he headed home on his own bike. I then waited for Mark and we cycled on for iced cream at Evanton. On the way we were filmed by Meg and Paul. I’d been given a GPS tracking device and they wanted to swap mine for a fresh one. As I went to hand back my old one the car moved towards me on the right, and hemmed in by Mark on the left I was nearly wiped out by the car as I threw the GPS device through the open window and narrowly avoided the car! Dingwall the next control, we arrived around 9pm to control at the Tesco ATM. We met Matt and Pat at Tesco in Dingwall I think and left them for Drumnadrochit. In Drumnadrochit we found Simon cruising round for looking cyclists. I was becoming used to what cars they were driving and spotted them early on. We stopped for a brief chat on camera, and bummed coffee from them. It was past midnight! The last slog to the control at Speanbridge and food in Fort William took nearly the rest of the night.
Day 5. Spean Bridge - Fort William - Inverary - Ardrossan.
After a quick pit stop in a Fort WilliamBP station at 6am we headed into Fort William. We had been wondering where to sleep knowing we were too late for the SYHA in Glencoe but too early for its opening at 7pm and were wondering where we could doss for an hour out of the cold, midges. I had a moment of inspiration sat on my tender rear in the petrol station. Fort William has a hospital with an A&E. We could kill two bird with one stone. Suitably rested and cared for at A&E we headed out of town for Ballahulish.The SYHA in Glencoe opened at 7am but in Ballahulish while having an early breakfast we decided to avoid Rannoch Moor and its climb andbusy fast narrow road and head instead south for Connel Bridge, over the fantastic Falls of LoraII have scuba dived the falls in full flow and its as spectacular from the bridge as it is underwater! We had a quick sleepen-route to Connell, off the road and then our packed lunch in Connell at 12:30, in a laybywhere we turned east to Loch Awe.By now I was getting concerned for time and knowing Mark was slower than me I made the difficult decision to part company with Mark and shoot for Inverary.I had a hot few hours when we parted company. The climb from Loch Awe was very hard,with nearly no water left, I was having to ration it and breath solely through my nose to stop dehydration setting in.Fortunately I found a small house on the descent to Inverary who gave me water, from a spring in his garden, fed to his kitchen tap. I have never tasted water so good before!! I bought an iced cream in Inverary and then headed east and south to Strachur where I found an NHS doctors surgery who gave me more cold water and strong coffee. This fortified me for the ride along Loch Eke to Dunoon. I missed Simon the cameraman, who was apparently heading the opposite way on another ferry to interview me. The last 40km were hard. With a 'saire derrière' I found it more uncomfortable. As I rode the last few km through Ardrossan I was trying to identify a place to get a coffee so I could deliver a sensible piece to camera, but failed. In my delirious state, I saw the arrivee and camera crew on the road but my mind was telling me I needed to control at an ATM, not 10m from the camera where Mark was waiting also. On turning round I was confronted with Meg beaming from ear to ear, asking me how I was and what the best part of the ride was. I just fell on my arse on camera as I looked confused trying to think of something to say.... I’m afraid my energy and eager enthusiasm had long gone somewhere in Largs…. Knackered.
from me.
