A very challenging reccie

Note the ice in foreground!

In preparation for the official biking of Holy Island on 15th February, Lora and I set off to reccie the route yesterday. After a cold night, we were anxious about ice on the path as it was still below zero when we arrived at Berwick on Tweed by train.  We were going to travel on the official route, the National Cycle Network 1 (NCN1).

Note the NCN1 sign!

After a lovely ride along the sea as far as Spittal, the route went off-road.  Here in Scotland, a cycle way means that it is reasonably fit for bicycles. We quickly learnt that in England (and other parts of the UK?) it only means a right of way. The first off-road section was very scenic - it goes right along the coast - but is only fit for mountain-biking. The ice and the mud were major issues but it would have been a challenge even if the ground was dry and clear.  There was just only a mile of that and we thought the the route would be feasible if the rest was better.

After some nice back-road miles, the route headed off-road again. At one point it went through a muddy field of bullocks and you can imagine what the mud was like. The track from there to the causeway was beautiful, in terms of scenery but almost impassible on our touring bikes.  It took us 2.25 hours to cycle 11 miles!  Then we got the first puncture.  Happily this happened near the lovely Barn at Beal coffee stop where they were kind and nice to us in spite of our muddy, cow-dungy appearance (and smell, I presume).  We were so pleased that we could change a wheel but neither of us could master the fancy pumps we had and, it being January, there were no other cyclists around.  After wonderful soup there Lora got a taxi to Berwick and I carried on, checking out what looked like a better route.  It would have been hard to be worse but it was bad in a different way.  It was pot-holed and full of sharp stones and so I got my puncture just one mile in.  I was off-road and it took a long time to find myself in a place where a taxi could collect me.  Yes - I should have turned back but that didn't seem a good plan at the time.

Buckie for lunch!

On the way to the road I had to cross a level crossing with no barriers or staffing. There were dire warning signs, as there should be on a line where trains go about 120 miles an hour and are very frequent. I had to open heavy gates, get my bike across and close the gates again - this meant traversing the line 5 times. That was easily the worst moment of the day.  In the process I damaged my front brakes when the bike fell.

The weather was cold but lovely and bright all day so that did help.  My taxi driver then talked me through an on-road route, showing me the bit of the A1 which has an off-carriageway path.  On the train home I caught this 'Buckfast' moment!

The next reccie should be less challenging!  Who is up for it?

Island 1 - Crammond Island, biked 7th January 2014

Ready for action

In spite of the dire weather forecast, I set out today with Bill, Linda and Lora to bike to and on Crammond Island.  This is accessible by causeway two hours either side of the low tide.  It turned out to be a beautiful, if windy, day and we got the Crammond with three hours of safe crossing time in hand.  A notice board gives the safe crossing times for each day but there are still people who get stranded there.  While the lifeboat would come and rescue us, I did not think they would be keen on rescuing our bikes so we were careful about

Fun on the causeway

the timing.

We had a glorious run along the seafront, then took pictures (this project involves more photo-taking than cycling) of the island and us and us in various groups and stages of readiness.  Bill and I took our bikes onto the causeway, Lora walked and Linda kept an eye on the local coffee shop.  The causeway is quite rough underfoot, as it might be expected as it lives under the waves for most of the day.  Bill helped me with my bike down some treacherous steps and scratched his own beautiful new bike in the process.  Well, these are honourable battle scars, surely.

Muddy and slippy terrain

Job well done!

The short crossing  was lovely, with all the shore birds doing their stuff in the sand and the shallow water.  The island itself was challenging because we didn't have mountain bikes but we did cycle a bit in order to fulfill the promise.  We then had coffee and cake looking out from the most sheltered spot we could find.  We all wondered why we had not been here before.

This might be very local to me but it might well turn out to be the most challenging of the islands to be biked.  Having said that, last year's bridges each had their own challenge and I expect it will be the same with the islands.

A smashing start to this project.

Island 1 - Crammond Island - Tuesday 7th January 2014

The first expedition of the year will be to cross over to Crammond Island at low tide.  We know that the weather forecast is terrible but if we let that stop us we won't do any islands at all.  Crammond Brig was my first bridge in the bridge-biking of last year so it is fitting that Crammond Island be the first island.

Leaving Stockbridge, Edinburgh at 10.30 on Tuesday morning, 7th January.  Let me know if you'd like to join the fun. I am very thrilled to have a group of supporters for this first island and hope that will continue throughout the year.

January 1st 2014 - planning island-biking

On Christmas Day, Bill and I scoped out our first island.  He seems to have accepted that the island-biking involves him, without his having volunteered in anyway.  He seems to be up for it so we will start with Crammond Island sometime in January.

Then it will be Holy Island.  Both trips need planning with the tide tables, as both are accessible by causeways.  I am working on a full plan for the year and delighted that several people are up for joining in at various stages.  Let's go!