An actual rideout! Completed! Glasgow - Tighnabruaich - Portavadie

[cosybike]

Just me on a mission to see how far I could get, and what the range of this wee thing might be.  I was quite surprised!

Lunch at the coach house coffee shop, luss
Fuel at Tighnabruiach
Dinner at The Village inn Arrochar

The new Portavadie Marina looks posh.  The restaurant should be opening soon.   There are loads of newbuild houses down there, hopefully for the locals, most of the victorian stuff looks like holiday homes.  

This is a great wee secret route to the kintyre peninsula at tarbert.  

I spent lots of Holidays on a yacht in the kyles of bute at Caladh harbour.  Eating icecream, watching the waverley come in, reading action war comics from the Spar (not really my thing but it's all they had), while drifting about in a rubber dinghy awaiting instructions for collecting new crew, the messages (shopping), newspapers.   When we were bored of that we scooted around with the outboard and learned some great boat handling skills.  To the extent the weans could thrash Dad pulling alongside a jetty.  And we knew what a crash stop was.  (chatting to lifeboat crew leads to experimentation)

Stopped at wee church graveyard for look and quick wee in the bushes by the road. (not in the graveyard)  Still had my earplugs in but could swear someone was talking to me. Expected to be chased away by some bizzy body but not a soul around.  Weird.  Tam o shanter eat yer heart out.
 
On the way back I caught myself trying to "clip in" to spd pedals at a junction.  Brain must have thought I was mountain biking!

http://maps.google.co.uk/?ie=UTF8&ll=55.863401,-5.259131&spn=0.001367,0.004415&t=h&z=18

Need a windscreen
Need a camera!
Need a wee foot cover with ducted hot air.
No crashes.  No breakdowns.
Cold, just on the edge of my endurance.


http://maps.google.co.uk/?ie=UTF8&ll=55.912273,-5.126495&spn=0.174717,0.565109&t=h&z=11

[Dave Milnes]

Nice one. We'll be down that way in June, the plan was to head south from Oban down to Lochgilphead then up around Loch Fynne down to Hunters Quay to get the ferry across to Gourock but it's a long way around and I think we'll probably head to Dalmally and Inveraray instead. We have a long way to go down to Creetown once back south of Glasgow.
We stopped at the Coach House in 2008, it's the one behind the Calcquhoon Arms isn't it?

[cosybike]

The Coach House Coffee shop is down in the actual village near the pier.  If the village is quiet its ok, when busy they can suffer from having too small a kitchen.  I helped out when they just opened as they had no staff and ended up with a great student job!  Crazy "auntie" Liz still works there and was pleased to see me.

The place behind the Colquhoun Arms is just as good according to recent "mum" reports.  She runs a B&B and takes her local area product knowledge extremely seriously!

Just checked the mileage - 172!!  zzzzzzzzzzzzzz

[Dave Milnes]

What's the weather like then up there, any snow left?

[cosybike]

Dukes Pass looks like this.   Passable with care!

[Huskyteer]

Cripes, not sure I'd fancy it much, but you certainly get some nice views as your reward!

[Mr.Chips]

Good thing there are one or two red bits on the scooter or you'd have lost it in the snow!

Great report and pictures.

 

[cosybike]

The dukes pass was clear low down, but once in the tramlines I was committed to the other side!    it was actually the grippiest surface around because it's not gritted at all.  Just a B road with one house.

Getting a camera tomorrow, Since cosybike "the business" has destroyed two it's paying!

[joyce]

I hated the Dukes Pass 

Dave it was -18 in Braemar again last night - hope it warms up for June.

Great report Cosy, and very brave for riding in such weather conditions.