St Andrews

August 24, 2019

We set off from a Travelodge for the last time and somehow managed to find how to get onto the bridge over the River Tay. What was really great about our start today is that it was almost proper summer weather and it would only improve as the day wore on.

Looking back to Dundee we could see glimpses of the RRS Discovery. This is the ship built for the Scott and Shackleton expedition to Antarctica in 1901. It reminded me of Leigh's dark humour - every now and then, when heading off to the loo she utters Captain Lawrence Oates' tragic words "I'm just going out. I may be some time.".

If you look carefully you will see the masts of HMS Discovery peaking out. She was the vessel used by Scott and Shackleton on their Antarctic mission from 1901 to 1904.

The cycle path between two streams of traffic.

The journey across the Tay was less than pleasant. With traffic screaming past you on both sides, even though you were quite safe, it felt as if a disaster was a millisecond away. The bridge architects were clearly not cyclists.

Once on the southern side of the river it was twenty or so kilometers of wonderful riding through plantations of fir trees. This area was so full of really great places to wild camp - why weren't they there in the previous three months ? Everywhere else in Scotland seemed so built up and fenced in.

Something interesting that we came across along the route was this old ice house where ice, collected from local ponds in winter, was stored wrapped in straw for the shipping of Salmon to the south.

Then it was on to St Andrews, the home of golf, or so we are led to believe.

Views of the clubhouse looking up to the pin on the 18th hole with the wee Swilcan Bridge in the foreground.

After that it was a bit of a climb up the Caernmill camping ground. With the wonderful weather and it being a bank holiday weekend south of the border there was always the risk we might not get a site. As luck would have it, we got the last available tent site - there are only eight of them. We will spend the next two nights here before heading further south.

The great weather meant we could enjoy proper summer food in bright and warm sunshine. The locals are all complaining about the heat (it is only about twenty two degrees) but we have really missed weather like this and were enjoying feeling warm. What is probably even better is the total lack of wind.

Today's ride: 40 km (25 miles)
Total: 2,961 km (1,839 miles)

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Mark BinghamWait.... It's AUGUST and the high is 22C??? I've been thinking of doing the Land's End to John O'Groats, and had no idea it doesn't get warm in the summers.
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1 year ago

Jean-Marc StrydomTo Mark BinghamSt Andrews is past latitude 56 degrees, further north than the whole of the USA, China and Japan. As a matter of fact, further north than the whole of Western Europe and all of Canada's major cities. So 22 degrees Celsius is warmer than usual for the locals.
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1 year ago