In my last post, I indicated that I was getting ready to undertake three of the more challenging cycling days in my trip. And frankly, I didn’t know the half of it! My first day took me from Oban to the tiny Scottish village of Bridgend—a distance of just under 60 miles that included four steep ascents that I couldn’t climb under pedal power, forcing me to dismount and walk. On the upside, a beautiful portion of the ride took me beside Loch Awe, where the scenery included the remains of the 15th century castle.
The second day took me from Bridgend to the city of Dunoon, which was a ride of only 41 miles, but which included almost as many feet of ascent as the previous day’s ride did. So yes, once again there was quite a bit of walking. I’m not sure the pictures below will do the terrain justice. But here’s a shot of the loch on which Dunoon is located as seen from on overlook near the top of the first climb:
If you’re not sure how high that is, this might help. Apparently, Noah’s Ark actually settled near the top of my second climb:
And last but not least (and especially for those of you who are familiar with National Lampoon’s Family Vacation), a third climb took me beside a lake created by a dam high in the hills. So I took this dam picture. Unfortunately, there was nowhere to buy some dam souvenirs.
My third day of cycling took me from Dunoon to Glasgow, which is only about 33 miles, but which begins with about 1000 feet of ascent—all of which I had to do in the rain. Fortunately, my route eventually found its way onto some fairly level cycle path, which even included some amusing artistic installations created by local residents:
So in the end, I did make it to Glasgow, where I will have three days to rest and recuperate before I do anymore cycling. In fact, I spent most of this morning just riding around the city on one of those “hop on/hop off” bus tours, just so I could get an idea of what’s here:
So, even though I felt a bit like this statue must feel when I first arrived:
I think I’m going to enjoy my time in Glasgow. I’ll be attending worship tomorrow morning at a Baptist Church that I found not too far from where I’m staying. I’ve got a tour of the cathedral interior scheduled for tomorrow afternoon. And then there are some art galleries and other attractions that I hope to visit before I set off on Tuesday, bound for Edinburgh.
Thank you all for your ongoing prayers. Without your support, I don’t know if I would’ve made it this far. Please know that you continue to be in my prayers, too. And I will look forward to hearing about your summer adventures when we’re all back together again.