Pretty hairy out Lang Whang punishment pass wise. Turns at tarbrax tollbooth. Coconut gorse, swallows, lapwings. quickening
CityCyclingEdinburgh Forum » Commuting
The "I had a lovely ride today, thankyou" thread
(2685 posts)-
Posted 5 years ago #
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@gembo I love coconut fragrance of gorse
Lower Holyrood Park was enveloped in car fumes today as main car park was closed people just parked where they liked.
Posted 5 years ago # -
Mini-srd took a friend for a cycle and picnic to spylaw park. By all accounts they had an excellent time.
Posted 5 years ago # -
@srd, all off road? and downhill on the way home. Did they brave the aqueduct? Next stop Malleny Gardens?
Posted 5 years ago # -
https://www.nts.org.uk/visit/places/malleny-garden
Bonsais no more.
Posted 5 years ago # -
@chdot is that the same place as the suntrap gardens as I thought they closed a few years back
Posted 5 years ago # -
'off-road' indeed. the friend is not a confident cyclist (yet).
I had never heard of malleny gardens. I will suggest it for a future outing.
Posted 5 years ago # -
Things that convinced IWRATS that world is not just a sterile promontory today;
1) The brush of drifting cherry blossom on my bare arms as I bicycled under that most excellent canopy the sky.
2) A Goth in summer plumage.
3) Intervening to redirect three Italian ladies who were heading 180° off their intended bearing.Posted 5 years ago # -
“is that the same place as the suntrap gardens”
No.
That was Googar.
This is Ballerno.
Scottish Bonsai collection elsewhere.
Entrance used to be by ‘honesty box’.
(May still be.)
Posted 5 years ago # -
Posted 5 years ago #
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Bonsai moved to Ecclesmachan in a small suitcase.
Malleny has an honesty box. The grumpy gardener npot arpound as he used to get upset if the money on the box was lower than the folk in the garden.
they had an open day a few years back with a putting competition, it was terrific.
NTS memebers go free
Widow of ex NTS High Heid Yin lives in Malleny House on peppercorn rent. She is a demon on her shopmobility scooter and indeed at the queue jumping in scotmid. Also some astonishing cable knit leggings
Posted 5 years ago # -
Up at the crack of dawn (literally) this morning.South down the A701 to Romanno Bridge, Peebles, Innerleithen (I tried the railway path between Peebles and Innerleithen and liked it), Galashiels, Coldstream, Eyemouth, Dunbar and back across East Lothian via West Fenton to Aberlady (I'd never used this route across East Lothian before, and it was very nice in comparison to the busy roads via Haddington or the coast road). 150 miles. I was running out of energy and enthusiasm towards the end, and planned to bail onto the train at North Berwick without realising that my route didn't actually go to North Berwick, so by the time I'd noticed this it was too late and I was committed to riding the whole way home...
Achingly beautiful views all day, particularly around Peebles where low morning sun was lighting up mist rising from the trees. Everything looked fresh and green. Sunny. Nice temperatures. The wind did as expected: it was calm in the morning, and by the time it picked up in the afternoon it was a gentle tailwind when I needed it most.
Really a very lovely day out on the bike.
Posted 5 years ago # -
@greenroofer, chapeau
Posted 5 years ago # -
@greenroofer
Sweet.
Posted 5 years ago # -
Only place I can think to put this.
Towards the end of a normal Sunday ride today we were waiting at the lights at Gilmerton and two small boys crossed the road, one with a ball the other on a bike; the latter called out, "Cycling's good isn't it?".
Just hold that thought for the next couple of decades dear boy.
Posted 5 years ago # -
Gridlock in S Queensferry.
Side by side tandem from ABC project.
Prom recliner
Posted 5 years ago # -
On Sunday after road being closed after moffat I ended up on the A702 Abington to biggar. I have cycled this road before and thought would not ride it again. I rode it as was behind schedule after the road closure. Even on Sunday evening an awful road cant think of one worse. I wonder why this road is so bad. I have ride A71,A70, A7, A68 roads of this type on Sunday and generally ok. The A702 even on Sunday evening seemed worse than the A71 on a weekday. The A702 below Abington is great for cycling but when head past Abington towards Biggar that section seems one of the worst roads in scotland
Posted 5 years ago # -
The parallel road is a little better @ed1
Posted 5 years ago # -
I agree with amir, this one is a little better:
Posted 5 years ago # -
Up there with "Cycling down the A702" and "Let's go to PoP in Aberdeen" on the list of Things Which Seemed a Good Idea at the Time is "Cycle 50 miles without ever being more than 3 miles from your own house"...
Posted 5 years ago # -
Oh! :-0
Impressive, I assume you have done it.
I understand if you don't want to share but is it on Strava?
Posted 5 years ago # -
@Frenchy - yeah, but going to PoP in Aberdeen was a good idea. Chapeau for this other achievement.
I've gently wondered if a slightly longer version of this might be a good idea for my first attempt at a 400km ride: rather than repeated loops of the Braid Hills, I was thinking of repeated loops of the Pentlands via Carnwath, allowing a chance for a stop at home every 60 miles or so. The only downside I can see is that it might be a bit hard to get motivated to restart for lap four...
Posted 5 years ago # -
Yeah it is, I think I just added you there, so it should be easy to find after that, but happy to PM a direct link.
I'm afraid it's not at all interesting, I just did 7 laps around the Braid Hills (Lasswade Road > Braid Hills Drive > Comiston Road > Frogston Road).
Posted 5 years ago # -
No 5am stop at Forfar McDonald's for breakfast then?
That's where you went wrong ;-)
Posted 5 years ago # -
@frenchy - Braid Hills Drive though is a great boulevard
Posted 5 years ago # -
Yes - although more often than not I'm cycling into a headwind on it, so Frogston Road is where it's really at. If only the parked cars on Comiston Road could be disappeared.
Posted 5 years ago # -
Did a longer commute this morning involved getting through Kirknewton, and crossing the A70 by Beechgrove Farm and heading up into the Pentlands, following the old path towards Carlops.
Very surprised to see an excellent cycle path parallel to the 4WD track which made progress very straightforward. Sadly I didn't have time to go over to Carlops and instead had to go along a less perfect path to Wester Bavelaw which was at times well beyond my bike and my skills. Then a clear descent all the way down to Heriot Watt.
An absolutely stunning morning and once I left the A70,I only saw 2 farmers on quad bikes.
Next time an earlier start would allow a more thorough investigation.
Posted 5 years ago # -
@paddyirish, the Listonshiels road? Up towards the Bore Stane? Mountain bike I am thinking?
Posted 5 years ago # -
@gembo - I don't think so. At the Balerno end I went up Haughhead Road and after about a mile, I followed the sign for Carlops. It was gravel to start with and then a lovely new cycle path - a (runner) colleague said it was built last year and he's hardly seen anyone using it.
EDIT: I was on a CDF and only had to dismount when I took the turn to Wester Bavelaw. That was MTB territory, but I would have been walking sections of that if I had brought a MTB as well.
Posted 5 years ago # -
Lots of lovely bits in my mini tourette in Caithness, but climbing out the back of Castletown in the warm sun with drifts of yellow gorse (and therefore the whole world smelling of gorse flowers) and a light breeze directly at my back was defintely a highlight.
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1p1WTTfORA6plfNR6id9si6yMM3XYOrU9Ow/view
Posted 5 years ago #
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