I did it! John o'Groats to the Mull of Galloway - 429 miles in ten days. With money still coming in the trip has raised over £2,200 so far, and I lost 8lbs on the way.
We drove up to John o'Groats on Saturday 18th August in pelting rain, stayed in a lovely little B&B, and on the Sunday morning I said goodbye to Annmaree and Kirsten and started cycling. Thankfully the weather had dried up, and the first leg was really pleasant with very little traffic and the road following the cliff-tops, with stunning views. A strong crosswind made it hard work, and where the road turned inland to cross the numerous braes this became a headwind - at one point I was having to pedal to get down a 13% gradient!
The morning of day three saw me in Dornoch, where I stopped for a coffee and a natter with Mike and Beth Napper, on of my business clients and a major sponsor of the expedition. Along the Cromarty Firth I left the main A9 and headed down through Dingwall to Beauly where I camped the night in woods next to a river. It looked like an Idyllic setting, but by the time I had the tent up I was covered in midge bites from head to toe, and spent the whole night in the tent with the mosquito net firmly zipped up. The next morning I couldn't wait to get away from the little blighters.
Day four started with a long uphill struggle through the mist into Glen Convinth, but by the time I reached the top the top the mist had cleared and I was treated to a wonderful view across the hills, with the mist still hanging over Loch Ness in the distance. Then disaster struck. As I came down the steep hill towards Drumnadrochit the trailer hitch came loose and went into the spokes of my back wheel, breaking two spokes and leaving the wheel very buckled. I managed to cobble up the broken spokes and get a bit of tension into them so that the bike was rideable, but the wheel was still very bent and rubbing on the brakes the whole time.
The next sixty miles down the Great Glen should have been the highlight of the trip, but the rubbing brakes made it a real struggle, and I was having to get off and walk at the merest hint of a hill. That night I camped at Invergordon, in woods, beside the Loch, and once again I was eaten alive by midges. The next morning I was very stiff from the previous day's exertions, but the thought that I was only 25 miles from Fort William where I could get the bike fixed spurred me on.
Unfortunately Ben Nevis was shrouded in mist as I passed, and I arrived in Fort William just after lunch on day five. I went straight to the bike shop, and then did a bit of shopping while the wheel was being straightened. An hour later I was back on the road. What a difference! With the brakes free it almost felt as though the bike was pedalling itself, it was so easy I hardly wanted to stop, but I set up camp in Glencoe. Once again it was in woods, beside the river (you'd think I would have learnt, wouldn't you?), and once again I provided a hearty meal for the local midges.
Day six started with a long struggle up Glencoe - it took me two and a half hours to cover just six miles. But the weather was glorious, and when I got to the top the ride across Rannoch Moor was very easy, and the long downhill glide off the moor was even better! I stopped that night near the head of Loch Lomond. The West Highland Way runs parallel to the road here, and I was able to get off the road to camp. For once I wasn't near water or trees, and the lack of midges was a very welcome relief.
Day seven, Saturday, started wet and stayed that way. The morning was marred by an accident: a biker had been killed when he hit a coach on the wiggly road down the side of the loch. Traffic was backed up for several hundred yards either side as they waited for the police, but I was able to squeeze through, and the blockage meant that I had no traffic to contend with for the next hour through the twistiest, most dangerous bit of road.
There is supposed to be a cycle path down the side of Loch Lomond, and I tried to use it but it was hopeless - a very broken surface, overgrown with brambles and nettles which whip your legs, and it kept petering out in woods, or turning into people's private driveways, leaving you wondering where you are supposed to go, so in the end I gave up and decided I was better off braving the traffic on the main road.
After lunch I met up with Annmaree, Kirsten and my Mum, who had driven up to meet me. With a lot of trouble, and a little help from the Tourist Information Centre, we finally found a B&B in Dumbarton, although they only had one double room available, so Annie and Kirsten landed up sleeping on the floor. The next morning we said our goodbyes, and I headed off over the Erskine Bridge, into the traffic. This was the worst section in terms of traffic, and although the timing had worked out perfectly and I was doing it on the Sunday morning of a bank holiday weekend, it was still a nightmare.
When I got onto the A737 dual carriageway I might as well have been trying to cycle on a motorway, so I got off it as soon as I could and g onto the network of back roads that criss-cross the area. I had intended to stop somewhere near Kilmarnock, but couldn't find anywhere suitable to camp. In the end I landed up at Prestwick, and in desperation booked into the campsite. That was a disaster - £15 for the night, the site was right at the end of the main runway of Prestwick Airport, and they put the tents right next to the toilet block, so that even in the brief gaps between planes taking off and landing you are kept awake by the steady stream of happy campers slamming the door as they go for a midnight pee. To add insult to injury the water supply to the site was off so I couldn't get a shower, and after I had booked in I realised that the site was on the edge of the sand dunes, where I could have camped for free and been a lot more comfortable than I was on the site for £15.
Early next morning I made my way through Ayr and headed round the Heads of Ayr road. The Electric Brae is an optical illusion - a bit of road that looks as though it is going downhill, when in fact it goes up. I've often taken visitors that way in the car, and it's not particularly spectacular - you have to stop the car and let it roll the wrong way to notice the effect at all. But on a pushbike it is very evident - I was in first gear pushing hard on a stretch of road that looks as though it is going downwards quite steeply.
I treated myself to a fish and chip lunch in Girvan, then headed onto the back roads again towards Barrhill and New Luce. This is my sort of country: although it might not be as spectacular as some of the touristy bits further north, but I just love the remoteness - no traffic, no people, and often not even a building in sight. If the sheep were wildebeest it could almost be Kenya! I crossed the border into Galloway and set up camp for the night. I'm on home territory now, on roads that I have cycled in training, and with just 35 miles to go the final day will be fairly easy.
Day ten was a leisurely ride down through New Luce and Castle Kennedy, then along the shore of Luce Bay in glorious sunshine. I passed through Drummore at about four o'clock, then settled down on the cliff tops to read the paper and have a little nap. Annmaree was working and Kirsten had a swimming lesson, so they couldn't be there to welcome me until half past five. Finally I saw them go past and got back on my bike for the last time, to be greeted at the lighthouse by Annie, Kirsten and Mum with a big banner, a scrumptious picnic, and a big bottle of champagne. I'd done it!
One thing that has amazed me about the trip is the amount of support I've received along the way - people constantly tooting and waving as they pass, and handing me money when I stop. I've had more than £40 in pound coins and fivers thrust into my hand by motorists in queues and lay-bys (and even passed out of car windows as they overtake!). To all those people, and all my other sponsors, I want to say a huge thank you - your generosity has made it all worthwhile. The new orphanage building in Gilgil is almost complete now: they are at the stage of sorting out water systems and wiring up solar panels, so the children should be able to move in in a few weeks time. And we couldn't have done it without you.
To find out more about the orphanage, please visit the website at:
