There is also Newbigging, fair few of them, the one in South Lanarkshire has the large flightless bird Rhea?
There is a place in Derbyshire that used to be called Newbiggin but is now called Biggin.
CityCyclingEdinburgh Forum » Commuting
The "I had a lovely ride today, thankyou" thread
(2697 posts)-
Posted 3 years ago #
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Rhea - local name ñandú
Any places called Oldbiggin(g)?
Posted 3 years ago # -
There is a tiny hilltop hamlet in south Lanarkshire called Pettinain, it has a New Town. Very odd.
Harry Blamites has a novel called New Town which has an Inn at Oldbiggin.
There is also Biggin Hill with airfield, detention centre, scene of Glenn miller’s death.
In England there will be a Mid Biggin and A Long Biggin
In Amsterdam there is a dance Newbiggin and Old biggin
Posted 3 years ago # -
According to the OS biggin doesn't mean the oposite of a micro distillery. Although there's lots of new little gins around these days too. Instead it simply means a building.
According to the article scots originated from a northern english dialect based with heavy Norse influences. Which seems to be why there are a lot of them around the north of England as well as southern Scotland.
@Frenchy GDF has been everested several times in the past. Although one of them appears to be based on faulty data as it is claiming a time of 1 hour 52. There are a couple of segments on the hill which have everest in their name suggesting that at least some of the everests were only climbing part of the hill.
@Hankchief, Yad moss was the real target for the day GDF was the bonus and Tan Hill just got in the way. I was very glad for a long relaxed dinner rather than more fast food.
Posted 3 years ago # -
Was out briefly in the sunshine and windy woo
Good day for Everesting Beech Avenue.
I managed five Reps. Was easier at the top. Approx four mins per rep. Under for the first two, then two of four mins then last one four mins ten secs.
NW wind was a help
Not too many folk or dogs out.
Posted 3 years ago # -
Took tandem yesterday from Strathardle to Dundee. Nice day out with lunch at Gen Isla Hotel. Crossed A90 into Dundee on very busy junction near Asda that Mrs LB thought was better than other routes in. Used Liff route to get off at Muirhead.
Saw 6 cyclists in 44 miles, half of these on Riverside cycle way. Car with four bikes on roof though.
Used Ember e-bus to get bike back into Edinburgh. Friendly as usual and so easy to book!Posted 3 years ago # -
Just back from a short break in North Wales, and having carted the bike all the way there I felt obliged to fit in a couple quick rides - which were almost the exact opposite of each other. The first took me along the coast on NCN 5 from near Rhyl to Llandudno and back again - flat (apart from climbing over the headland into Llandudno), mainly off road, on the sea front, hardly a puff of wind, but... torrential rain - the forecast said it would brighten up, and it did, a couple of hours after I finished (on the plus side it meant there were very few walkers to dodge on the shared use paths).
After that drenching the next day dawned sunny and bright, but a very strong north westerly was blowing in off the sea, so I headed inland with the wind on my back on a short journey of discovery. I found beautiful scenery, very quiet back roads, plenty of shelter from the wind and a hill that had me stopping twice to, erm, admire the view. I honestly don't remember when I last had to take a breather on a hill - I'm no racing whippet but I usually manage to grind my way up whatever I come across. I blame a degree of fatigue from the previous day (and all the chips and cake I have been eating recently).Posted 3 years ago # -
First ride home from Edinburgh after work tonight in >18 months. P***ed it down the whole journey. Dodging puddles. Spray up my back. Shoes drenched. Dark. No gloves. But quiet roads and paths all to myself. Bloody brilliant. Loved every second of it.
Posted 3 years ago # -
It wasn’t cold was what I kept telling myself.
Posted 3 years ago # -
Glorious this afternoon out the Whang into the wind, fortunately Gareth built like brick sh1thoise appeared and provided shelter til the Tarbrax turn. He went home I went down by the piggies then stuck behind some really stupid cows requiring a quad and a car to herd them to the byre
Sun kept shining and road dry, so after Auchengray I took the first road instead of crossing the railway then half way along swung right to South Lanarkshire Hardwood, crossed railway FIVE greyhounds being walked there, Dip Pool farmhouse field flooded, up over Kirk Green Smiddy and the mad Lorry Park in middle of tiny back roads,over to forth then back to Braehead.
Descent had magnificent views of Tinto Hill and Coulter Fell. Up the Esker then down to the apple pie. Big wind assist on home leg. All good.
Posted 3 years ago # -
I had a nice short ride yesterday up the pentlands despite the ride itself feeling like a total slog.
Started with a wee boy shouting at me from the back seat of his parents car "Merry Christmas". After so much grief being shouted from cars that made me grin like an idiot!
Saw a big owl, talked to a nice lady out on her horse giving it big licks till she saw me and slowed down even though I'd already pulled off the track (I was pushing anyway), had many lovely interactions on the hill and not even a bit of grief when I got back to town.
Posted 2 years ago # -
A lovely CW loop around the Pentlands yesterday morning with @edinburgh87. Plenty of cyclists out and about enjoying the break between the storms. On Moors (Muirs?) Rd to West Linton we passed a cyclist whose Di2 gears stopped working.
There were some new roads for me: between Byth Bridge and Dolphinton and the one via Dunsyre to Newbigging.
Lunch stop at the AP for a steak and haggis pie, a cup of tea and back home (with a steak and haggis pie for Mr Bill and two little rhubarb pies in my bag).
0-5oC most of the time and an occasional sunshine. A great day out. I especially enjoyed the new roads. Much better than the ones I used to take.Anyone been to "Little Sparta -- the garden of Ian Hamilton Finlay" ?
EDIT: forgot to mention that there were about dozen of cyclists at the AP when we got there, some left and new arrived by the time we left. The new railing is great for accommodating all the bikes.
Posted 2 years ago # -
Thanks for the idea @bill! Was a nice bit of calm before the storm(s). Haven’t been to little Sparta but it’s on the track I’ve had my eye on, between Dunsyre and the A70. Not sure what it’s like but hopefully try it out this year with more suitable tyres.
Posted 2 years ago # -
The Blyth Bridge to Dolphinton road is a beauty.
I keep meaning to go to Little Sparta but haven't managed yet.
Posted 2 years ago # -
Could today have been the perfect day for a bike ride?
Next to no wind, no precipitation, actual sun, not so cold first thing that hands got cold, and not too hot later so I didn't end up a sweaty mess...
Took a tour down to Moffat, out via the granites, St Mary's Loch and Grey Mares tail, back via the Devil's beef tub and Broughton. It was splendid, and the roads were lovely and quiet as well.
Why can't all rides be like this?Posted 2 years ago # -
It was very nice.
I only got as far as Threipmuir, but it was a lovely day for it.
Posted 2 years ago # -
My lovely ride was yesterday. The plan was to take the 0612 from Waverley to Oxenholme and then ride back via Great Dun Fell, and then due north through Langholm, Eskdalemuir and Innerleithen. I was very confident that Transpennine Express would run the train because it's Scotrail that's having problems with a shortage of drivers, isn't it? Isn't it? Transpennine cancelled my 0612. Luckily I found out at 10pm on Wednesday night rather than 0550 on Thursday.
With bike fettled and packed and approval from Mrs G for a day out on the bike, I had little choice but to formulate Plan B, dusting off a tour of the Borders from my list of routes on Strava.
Heading out at 0530, it soon became clear that the bottom gear wasn't really working. I stopped in Balerno to shorten the gear cable and roughly re-index the gears. The outcome was a working bottom gear, and 21 other gears that were noisy and didn't shift as sweetly as I'd like.
The southbound A70 was quiet to Carnwath. The northbound lane was like a mad race track of workies' vans heading in to Edinburgh. It would have been a really unpleasant place to be cycling.
Then to Peebles via the Red Barn and Blyth Bridge. The road to Peebles was unpleasantly rough in places. At the single track traffic lights thing just before Peebles a Borders Bus hung well back the whole way through and was very courteous. Onto the railway path to Innerleithen where I toddled along behind three mountain bikers and pondered how much nicer it is to be on a smooth path away from the traffic. They offered to let me pass, but it was pleasanter just gently trundling behind them.
Continuing east, the Borders were looking lovely. I had Scott's View to myself for an early lunch in the sunshine, then the sobering sight of seeing the smashed trees from the storms (was that this year?). It's the first time I've seen the damage: avenues of huge trees down or standing but with huge branches ripped off them. Whole swathes of woodland just flattened. It was quite shocking.
An idiot driver in Kelso tailgated me into the town, unable to pass. They finally blasted by in a cloud of smoke to find me on their tail through the town centre. The cobbles were rough. The market place was heaving. I didn't stay.
On through Coldstream. Shortly after I passed a woman pushing a bike with a flat tyres. She said she was nearly home, and declined any help. A little later there was a road downhill that was so rough that I had take it at walking pace, which is always galling and Borders Council Road Department fully deserve the stream of profanities I released in their general direction.
I stopped by the A1 just outside Berwick-upon-Tweed, in that weird triangle where the cycle routes meet and gird their loins before crossing the dual carriageway. The stop was to re-apply chamois cream after the first 100 miles, so it was inconvenient that a car parked right where it could see me fumbling around in my shorts...
Into Berwick on the depressingly useless bike path, where a visit to McDonalds provided many calories and 500ml of Coca Cola to go in a water bottle for the next section of the ride. I followed the advice from @DaveC several years ago on the benefits of a cheeseburger in the pocket, and put one in for later.
Out of Berwick and heading for the other Berwick it was nice to turn north west and get some benefit from the easterly breeze. On the long drag up to the summit above Pease Bay I passed a crowd of riders who seemed to be on some event, making their leisurely way south. The usual blast down the hill towards the turned for Pease Bay, although quite how the driver behind me who leant on their horn as I slowed to turn off the main road thought I was going to indicate while braking from 40mph on a steep hill I don't know. Unlike in a car, on a bike you can't brake, turn and indicate at the same time...
In North Berwick I stopped at the station to eat the pocketed cheeseburger and put on a warmer top. I was starting to feel the 160 miles in my legs, my heart rate was dropping and food was becoming less palatable. It was great that the end was in sight (if only figuratively). Through North Berwick and on to Aberlady there was some kind of crochet war going on: lamposts wrapped, post boxes crowned and little flowers dotted around. It was rather lovely.
Then the end was in sight: Arthur's Seat appeared on the horizon. Feeling a bit sick and not hungry, I trundled along the coast road powered only by water. There was quite a bit of rubbish driving in Cockenzie and Port Seton: lots of small cars being driven too aggressively and too close to me, including one that came within elbow-touching distance.
Then home to Morningside, which was quiet and calm with the birds singing as the sun set, and a lovely way to end a grand day out on the bike. 186 miles, or 299.338 km. I seem to have lost 700m somewhere along the way...
Posted 2 years ago # -
Nice one @greenroofer. Not sure about the pocket burger though
Posted 2 years ago # -
Sounds like an excellent day out. The climb out of Pease Bay with all those miles in your legs must have been tough.
Posted 2 years ago # -
Tried to tell myself it would only be a short, 30min ride as I'm busy but on a day like this you just can't help yourself.
Beautiful all over the city. Ended up at Blackford Hill at one point - I swear they've made Observatory Road steeper...
Posted 2 years ago # -
Managed 2 rides today. Round Innerleithen loop on my own early doors and then out again this afternoon with mrs nobrakes on the tandem. Smashing. Lovely day.
Posted 2 years ago # -
I suppose this could go in the Veloviewer difficult squares thread but yesterday was such a perfect day that this thread works too.
I rode home from St Andrews via a somewhat circuitous route collecting as many squares as I could. It was a mixture of smooth tarmac, woody single track, farm tracks and grassy slopes. Given more time I would have liked to use less tarmac and more trails as they were the real highlight.
One of the first path I was hoping to use was signposted but appeared to have be blocked by the people whose driveway it used. Thankfully there was another route nearby which I diverted to.
The first highlight was a stretch through Chance Inn and past Clatto Reservoir first on pristine tarmac and then a mix of forestry track and paths through the nature reserve. A real soul cleanser.
Scanning ahead on my route when I was in Star I realised that Strava had routing me up the A92 dual carriageway. I assume it's used for TT races as I can't think of any other reason it would appear as such a popular highlight on the heatmap. I rerouted and joined the dual carriageway a few hunderd meters before the junction which was tolerable.
Pillars of Hercules cafe in Falkland provided my only rest stop of the day. It's somewhere I've been meaning to visit for a while and was well worth it. A great pasty and shady seating provided some respite and time to ponder what lay ahead.
Just a few miles after leaving I caught my first glimpse of the Lomond Hills. They are such a dominant feature of the landscape all over the easterm central belt and despite being above them gliding many times in my youth I had never been up them. They provide a large number of off road squares for the adventurous rider. Not knowing what they would be like but with many hours of sunlight still ahead I plotted my course upwards. After a short distance and long time I left the tarmac and plotted a course for the summit. There was an easy gravel path most of the way, but there's no avoiding the conical steepness of the final ascent. 250metres of hike a bike up slopes peaking at 50% later the view was astounding. A 360degree panorama stretching out for miles in every direction. Definitely somewhere to return to another day.
The descent was a little sketchy in places including a sandy escarpment. I'm sure another rider on another bike could have ridden down but I walked the steeper sections. I then looped eastward to visit the reservoirs before plotting a course skywards again to go up Bishop Hill.
The path was almost entirely rideable both up and down which was nice, although the views were once again awe inspiring the top was an anti climax being the highest point on a flattish ridge and marked only by a cairn. At the top I came across a radar dome* which I was unaware of, a nice coincidence as 364 days previously I had been at the top of Lowther Hill.
Once off the hills all that remained was the ride home on familiar roads. All in a very enjoyable 160km for my 6th flake.
*The dome was built in 2007 shortly after I stopped flying above the hill. It is part of a collection of Met Office rain radars. The locals objected to it on the basis that it blighted the ridgeline but I confess I had never noticed it before. Reading about it has answered the question as to why there are no windfarms in the Lomond Hills; they interfere with the radars operation.
Posted 2 years ago # -
@acsimpson - I'm impressed with your en-route re-routing: an enviable skill!
Posted 2 years ago # -
Thanks @Greenroofer.
Once I realised where the route was going it was quite a quick process, primarily using 3 tools.
1) Strava to check the heatmap for possible alternatives.
2) Google maps/streetview to check if there was a pavement/verge which could be used to cycle safely. There was for the first half but not the second.
3) Explorer helper for veloviewer to check which squares I would miss and if there was another way to pick them up.I had decent 4g reception which made things much easier that they would be in a remote area.
I also used my Wahoo to check distance remaining to ensure I would hit the magical 99 miles but I'm pretty sure I'm the only one who cares about that.
Incidentally it was the Wahoo which initially made we think I was heading to the A92 as when zoomed out sufficiently far it only tend to show the larger roads.
Posted 2 years ago # -
Yesterday (and today) I did Borderloop, which is the route behind the cycle direction signs with 'Loop' on them that you may have seen in the Borders.
I did it in one 25-hour push, rather than the 2-7 days the designers recommend, and I went anti-clockwise round it, so included going up the Wall of Talla. I did the second half overnight, after 12 hours on the bike in the rain, so that may colour my view. I started from Tweedbank, having taken the train from Edinburgh.
The sections from Melrose to Broughton, Broughton to Hawick via Talla and Hawick to Berwick were all lovely. Splendid views, nice roads (in the main) and just great places to be on the bike.
I really did not like much of the St Abbs Head to Melrose section: really 'laney' with some awful road surfaces covered in lackadaisical repairs, holes and loose gravel with lots of footling about on little roads where you can't see round corners: probably OK for a gentle potter, but not good if you want to make progress.
So if you decide to do the whole thing 'at pace', know that there are some bits that will frustrate you. If you are going to take it more gently, or just want an introduction to some lovely Borders roads, you can't go far wrong with much of Borderloop. Highly recommended.
Posted 2 years ago # -
A pleasant Pentlands loops this morning, lanes to Buteland, the start of the Borestane track turning left after Listonshiels, across to Bavelaw, down Green Cleugh, back through Den’s Cleugh and Harlaw. Quite cool at times, almost like a September morning. Stopped to watch the sand martins in Green Cleugh but there weren’t any, have they flown south already ?
Posted 2 years ago # -
There were certainly sand martins there when we went that way on 19th June. One flew past me at knee height about a foot away! If there aren't any there now then I'd certainly hope that they've set off south for the winter, though it does seem a bit early for that (most sources say they stay until September).
There were a lot of swallows about at Swanston stables yesterday - but then they do tend to arrive and leave later than sand martins.
Posted 2 years ago # -
A pleasant morning potter following the cycle paths through Broxburn, Uphall, Uphall Station and over the viaduct to East Calder, returning via the track through Selm Muir Wood and then Long Dalmahoy Road. Haven’t tried the new cafe at Selm Muir yet, could be a useful stop at times.
Posted 2 years ago # -
The cafe in Selm Muir Wood, a somewhat remote spot (see buried body of crimbo etc), is really making an effort to be a go to Destination. The anglers permanently pitched around the reservoir might be their regulars? Maybe some dog walkers
There is a little bit of a stooshie in the woods where a cairn has been erected in memory of a loved one with a little poem on a butterfly plaque. forestry commission. Have put a sensitive sign next to it alerting people to the fact they will be taking the cairn down.
Posted 2 years ago # -
Very pleasant 50-mile loop today (if one disregards the stiff headwind for the first half) that might be of interest to anyone who doesn't fancy too much time riding on roads.
Out west along the canal to Linlithgow to pick up the John Muir Way and come back via Bo'ness, Hopetoun Estate, South Queensferry and Dalmeny Estate.
Largely off road, on reasonable surfaces. The on-road bits are quite civilised and very doable with nervous or inexperienced riders I'd say.
You'll need tyres that are generous (anything under 30mm will be uncomfortable) and, given the risk of broken glass and thorns on the towpath, good puncture resistance. This time I was on my old commuter bike, a flat-bar hybrid with an Alfine 8 hub gear and 40mm Marathon Plus. Last time I did it I was on a nimbler 'gravel bike' of my own concoction shod with 35mm Panaracer Gravel King, and spent some time fixing punctures. You'll also need a bell, as you'll meet a lot of walkers and dogs...
Posted 2 years ago #
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