DAY ONE
Ramo and I completed this run last week (Took me this long to recover enough to do a write up)
Departed my place on Sunday 10.30am and it was hot "Phew" Remember Ramo/Steve had just come up from Notts to mine (4 miles over the Scottish border, Nr Gretna Green), in one hit, apart from a fuel stop
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The objective was to get as far West and North as we could first day, but stop and take a little bit of scenery in as well our fiirst stop for piccies was at Loch Lomond,
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Then on to Tyndrum for lunch, A nice big Yorkshire pud filled with roast beef
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Heading north we soon come across our first proper Highland view with proper hills!
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then onto Glen Coe and boy was it warm there, a couple of pics and we were off again,
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Our next stop was Fort William to stretch the legs and skim some stones "as you do"
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And I caught "Crabs"
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"See" Told you so!
Next stop Shiel Bridge for an Ice lolly "As you do"
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It was then I phoned a mate of mine "Hammy" who said we were close to "Eilian donan castle" which featured in the film "Highlander"
and must get some pics of that.........
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getting on in the day now we thought get over to Skye and try and find some digs...( Yes we were "Winging it") over the Skye Bridge to Broadford and no chance all full, and we didn't speak with a German accent and ride a "Panzer".....so it wasn't going to happen!
back over the bridge to Kyle of Lochalsh, we eventually found a nice little B&B for £30 a night (Twin Room)
There endeth day one.....to be cont...zzzzzzzzzzzz
Right day 2.....08.30 breakfast and no rush to get going (Rem ember it's a holiday!)...So we loaded up and away by 09.30
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After fueling at Kyle we headed North and after a while we run beside Loch Carron to it's end where we turned left at "Strathcarron"
and the start of the "Applecross Peninsula" (Doesn't it sound grand) time for a pic.
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Next stop after the twisty bit was the viewing lay-by
Which had a view directly onto the isle of Raasay and the Isle of Skye,
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Next we had lunch at Applecross pub, and what a place for a midday stop! and the weather was Beautiful again
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Then onwards round the peninsula (Love it) and the scenery just gets better and better....golden sands, sea, hills. "Picture postcard"
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And how's this for a "Moody" TDM shot.....
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And another..
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That last pic is at Loch Torridon where we seen our one and only "Golden Eagle"....don't strain your eyes?
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Thirsty work this touring lark, so a nice drink at Kinlochewe, at the......
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From here on the roads got faster and faster and it got a bit "Ride it like you stole it.com" and before we knew it, we were in "Ullapool" and we finished a bit earlier than yesterday..but it had been a high concentration day! (These corners don't take prisoners)
only 163 mile today but it felt like enough!
found another cracking B&B £27.50 and single rooms!
So after the three "S's" we hit the town with our newly aquired "Midgy Repellant" on...it worked!
Dining was al-fresco at the local chippy, and boy was it enough....
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But this dining alfresco lark was not without it's hazards!!!!......there were "Bandits"...No not the Suzuki type, but big Fookers with wings!!!!!
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But using skills I Acquired 30 years ago, protecting the chips on my plate during school dinners, I managed to foil the big rat with wings plan
after a tour of the harbour and meeting the resident seal we toddled of to bed...
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And here endeth Day 2
Day 3 ULLAPOOL TO FORT AUGUSTUS!
Well you dont travel very far up here, before the next bit of "Wow factor" appears round the next bend!
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Onwards and upwards we soon come across a bridge ( at Loch Dubhaird Mor ) we thought would be worth a photoshoot all of it's own so we done a couple of passes and took pics on each others camera!
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So for the next run i said to "david Bailey" when I come into the lay-by I'll be using my "Cal Crutchlow" leg dragging technique ( yeah I know he nicked it from Rossi) to slow me down?.....So he cut me fookin foot off
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Next stop Durness for lunch, and funny we didn't take any piccies here....as there wasn't much here really!........but soon as we left and headed for Tongue things got even better, and I couldn't get stopped quick enough to get the pics...WOW
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This left a smile on our faces for a few miles, It just get's better round every corner!
Next stop was Tongue and a top up of fuel, £1.55 a litre one pump and two nozzles Petrol/diesel and be aware they have been known to run out of one or the other......as two of our friends on Blackbirds found out!!!!!
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Heading south now the hills began to dissappear and the countryside got a bit featureless now, compared with what we've witnessed until this point, It's still lovely, but we have been spoiled by this point!
we did see an unusual hut, with a roof that blended in with it's surroundings! (possibly a shooters hut)
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We soon dispatched Inverness and got on the A82 and wow what a road as fast as you dare, and the corners are sublime, in fact we got so into this road and got into a rythm, we almost forgot to stop and take a pic! And NO "Nessie" didn't oblige!
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So we rolled into "Fort Augustus" and the hunt for digs started again......and Ramo/Steve come up trumps again, a twin room £25.00 a night B&B
Here endeth day 3........Zzzzzzzzzz
DAY 4
Homeward bound, and a tinge of sadness, having to leave this picture postcard scenery, and the thought of all the responsibilities I left behind to go on this "Jolly" and even worse!.....going back to Work!!!!
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Staying at our B&B also was a German couple (We refrained from doing the "Basil Faulty" routine ) and very pleasant they were too, He owned an FJ1200, 22 years old and owned it from new! nice to hear it start cold on the choke, "Sweet as a nut"
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We bade them fairwell, and a safe journey, and shortly followed on behind them, and true to form we soon had to stop for a piccie....again!
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This time at Loch Oich, (Who you calling an Oich) It had been raining through the night but the weather was lovely now, and the roads were drying nicely, our next photoshoot was at the Commando Memorial at Spean Bridge! ( Bit pissed off "Arnie" wasn't there? )
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And lovely views of "Ben Nevis" and "Aonach Mor"!!!!!
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Steve had already decided that morning, that he was going home in one hit "Old Iron Butt" so we pushed on now and Fort William was dispatched fairly quickly, and headed for Oban, as the theme was the "West" coast,
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We had lunch at Oban, and a quick walk round the main street and the Docks area, then made "Progress" south on the A816 and what a road, there was a section on here half way between Oban and Lochgilphead, that reminded me of "Hartside" brought the "Horns" out it did!!!!
Wanting to push on! our next stop was Inverary, for an ice cream (as you do) and Lo and behold what's in the Harbour?
"The Vital Spark" the famouis old Clyde puffer, from the BBC Scotland comedy "Para Handy"
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I got a bad touch of melancholy on seeing this!......It's criminal that some Feckin eejit erased 27 episodes of the original Black and white series from the 60's when they altered the archive library to digital.....there isn't a strong enough punishment for such incompetence If you havent seen it....heres one of the survivors
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We also bumped into a father and son here from Germany, and the son obviously hadn't got the big bike licence and was touring on a CBR 125 Honda.....Good on him He said he wasn't looking forward to joining motorway's again!...I bet he wasn't!!!!
Anyroad on we go....were on the A83 now the roads still a cracker and the scenery was still there, as we got nearer Arrochar, i made the decision to try the A814 down to Helensburgh ......Bad decision!!! compared with the A82...there's NO comparison (Give this a Miss) lesson learned for the future on this one!!!
We soon dispatched Glasgow at "Rush hour" with some nifty filtering (Mostly Illegal...As you do) a fuel up and a coffee at Bothwell services, then a quick blat down the Motorway, and home!
Great 4 day's, Great weather, great company (Cheers Steve) and I still have a few private moments now, and have a big smile on me ugly mug at the memories!....and it's all stored in the memory banks for when the Winter Blues set in!!!!
Edited by jono49, 05 August 2013 - 11:07 pm.