28 Hilly Miles

In an effort to condition our legs or more accurately our Coccyx (bum bone) for the long distance cycle trip we have planned for August we travel to the shores of Loch Katrine and Trossachs Pier where we hire a couple of bikes to test our levels of cycle fitness.

The challenge we have set is to cover 28 miles in 4 hours from the pier to Stronachlachar and return. Again the weather conditions are unforgiving on the outward 14 miles as it proceeds to rain like a cow peeing on a flat rock. Undeterred we press on through face on sheets of rain that make the road in front of us near impossible to view with both eyes open. The middle section of the challenge proves to be quite hilly as we need to disembark at some particularly tough upward climbs. Our struggle up these hills is not helped by the ill maintained gears continually slipping, resulting in bruised calves as the pedals repeatedly slip and return to the lower leg with a ferocity that has the air turning blue with profanities.

Reaching the half way mark at Stronachlachar in a respectable 1 hour and 50 minutes we take refuge from the driving rain in the welcoming tearoom at the pier and rehydrate with a couple of soft drinks before climbing back aboard our bikes and return via the route we have just travelled. The weather is a little kinder on the return leg and we manage to take in some of the beauty that surrounds this natural reservoir and again return in 1 hour 50 minutes to accumulate a total time of 3 hours 40 minutes for the 28 hilly miles complete.

Alighting from our ill maintained chariots at Trossachs Pier with no pain and little fatigue we take great confidence in completing the undulating circuit in such adverse and challenging conditions and look forward with excitement to our cycle around the Western Isles of Scotland next month.