River Tweed - Peel to Fairnilee - 23/3/2008

With a cold, early Easter weekend at hand, what better place to be than on a river? Brian signed up for a kayak course up north, so I had the weekend to figure out for myself. I signed up to go on the EKC trip, which ended up on the familiar Peel to Fairnilee section of the Tweed. Having seen this section at both spate and trickle, I was keen to see it somewhere between the two but not so keen on the weather. The trip numbers may have been low due to the Easter holiday. The demographic split was unusual, too, but not really in a bad way! Of the 13 paddlers, 4 were men.

Charlie picked me up, then Ali, then his boat. We arrived at the boatshed to meet organiser Alan. The rest of the group trickled in. We had one first timer and a couple who would fit into the category of beginner/novice. When the sun was out, it tricked us into thinking the day might warm up. Faff factor was pretty low at the boatshed and reasonably similar at the Peel get-in. I don't know when we hit the river, but it didn't feel like lunchtime yet.

I practiced ferry gliding partly to continue getting reacquainted with a kayak but also to keep warm! When the sun was out, it didn't feel like 5 degrees. When the wind blew, it didn't feel like 5 degrees! We didn't spend a lot of time at the top practicing break-ins and break-outs -- there weren't any good teaching eddies this time around.

The rapids at Peel Bridge were a good introduction for some. I helped Alan chase Christina through them. We ended up near the front of the pack because it took a while to explain to her how and when to slow down and how and when to not slow down.

We found a few good eddies along the way to Fairnilee, but didn't linger too long in all but one. Emergency footpeg adjustment. The cold kept us from dawdling too much.

We reached Fairnilee and this time were not washed under the bridge so quickly. The plan was to take out above and inspect. At this point, I couldn't feel my hands or feet and every step was painful. I wasn't convinced that I would be getting back in the boat. Movement didn't help and Charlie couldn't get to his keys, so I found some semi-sheltered rocks and set up with a rope and camera. Initially, Ali stayed with me but then went to help people get their boats up the bank below the rapids. I wasn't convinced that I would have any luck fishing with my throw rope with my hands in their current state, but can't hurt for trying.

Fairnilee provided an exciting end to the trip, a solid grade 2 at the end of a very 1-ish section. Swims felt inevitable, though there were only two. Those two swims happened on the trickier river left line. Kudos to the newbies for going for the meat of it. It was a left to right chute with some weird water coming in from the river centre chute, so not the standard wave/hole pile to punch through. Christina followed and then led Alan through the easier centre line and had a clean run. Charlie took the centre line, too, a much drier option for an open canoe. Babs provided some of the day's entertainment. Her first run on the left line caught her by surprise. Her second run was still a little wobbly but nothing a good brace couldn't fix. Her second run also gave me my favourite picture of the day.

A couple of gusts of snow blew through at the end, both before and after everyone was off the river. My flask of tea was a welcome sight. Charlie provided more of the day's entertainment with his jetboil tea system. Fresh tea in minutes, no flask required. Charlie subscribes to the theory of All the Gear but No Idea, but so far, I can't fault his choices of gear.

Every trip to the Tweed reminds me of how pretty the Tweed Valley is.

The Fairnilee rapids got the best of Iva on her first run. Second time around, no problem.

Charlie took the open canoe line and left the cold water for the kayakers to enjoy.

Babs makes the money shot at the Fairnilee rapids.

The snow and wind assaulted us at the end, but neither with commitment.

Falkirk Wheel revisited - 16/3/2008

It's a bit early yet for a Falkirk Wheel and back ride, for daylight and fitness reasons, so we cycled there and got the train back. The wind was in our favour this time around, thanks to a forecast-based decision. We left a bit earlier than 1pm this time, too, though arguably not much before.

Somewhere between the Water of Leith path and the steps up to Union Canal, my GPS thing found its satellites and began tracking distance. We cycled roughly west with an Easterly or Northeasterly wind behind us most of the way. Our first stop was the climbing centre at Ratho where we got some juice and I ate my first snack of the day. Brian showed me the ride he wants me to try, the Aerial Assault. It starts with a zipline across the top of the climbing centre then leads to a number of obstacles to climb up, down or around for a couple more passes still across the very top of the centre. I am not convinced.

Brian had a celebrity sighting at Ratho. He saw Tim from the Office (original UK series) or Arthur Dent from the Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy. I live under a rock, so I recognised him only with some pointing and explanation.

We didn't stay very long, with most of the miles ahead of us yet. The canal cycle was very pleasant, though not very eventful except for the occasional sweet but daft dog who chose to run in front of the bike at the last possible second, eliciting a loud squeak of the brakes. Brian's pace leveled out with mine around mile 18, which helped me feel less like dead weight. When we reached Linlithgow, I asked if he appreciated me not yelling at him this time, even though he didn't hear me the last time either. We wondered what the two snow-covered hills were in the distance. Post-cycle map consultation suggested they were Stuc a' Chroin and Ben Vorlich roundabout Loch Earn.

Refuel #2 began at Linlithgow, which left us 11 miles more to the Falkirk Wheel. More daft dogs and their people added excitement to that leg of the journey. We reached the tunnel either just before 4 or just before 5. Brian wanted to see how far he could cycle before having to stop for lack of light. To his credit, he got about 50m into the tunnel. It was pitch dark with lots of dripping. The glare of sunlight from the other end, even though it was about 600m away, I am convinced helped with the pitch dark. My eyes never felt adjusted. Falkirk High station was on the far side of the tunnel, so I didn't get to test my theory.

We reached the Falkirk Wheel after some nice downhills, knowing full well they would be uphills soon. We saw the last boat of the day make the journey up the wheel and then headed inside for snack #3 for me and snack #1 for Brian.

Rather than let stiffness set in too quickly, we got back on the bikes and headed for the station. The uphill was as sluggish as I expected. My legs de-stiffened near the top, not completely ill-timed since we had a couple miles yet to get back to Falkirk High. Backtracking was uneventful and we arrived to have only a few minutes wait to the train home.

The view from the River Almond crossing had me examining lines.

A typical view during the first 18 miles.

The River Avon crossing was a long, bumpy bridge. But a pretty view.

Brian wondered if he could cycle through the tunnel. To his credit, he got about 50m before abandoning the idea.

The Falkirk Wheel -- Archimedes would be so proud.

The view across the top of the Falkirk Wheel just before disappearing back into the tunnel.

Blackness Castle in the Wind - 9/3/2008

We found Blackness Castle this time around, though the wind tried to blow it and us away soon after we got there. Perhaps more attention should have been paid not only to what the weather would be like but also from where it was coming. The day started out reasonably enough. We got a lazy start to South Queensferry and found our way to the Round the Forth trail with some creativity in Dalmeny. Bridge repairs had led to trail closures, but with a few creative hikes, we arrived and departed South Queensferry.

The familiar cruise to Hopetoun House we had hoped would lead us to the trail that followed the coast to Blackness Castle, but we were unsuccessful finding that trail. We avoided the one wrong turn that led us astray the last time thanks to some cyclists coming from the other direction. The nice people at Hopetoun House wanted to avoid cyclists in the main part of the property but didn't sign post the diversion very thoroughly. One more sign would do it.

We got to pet a stallion and a very pregnant mare. I think come early or mid April, that same enclosure will have a baby horse in it, too.

We reached the familiar roads on the other side and missed the potential trails leading off to Blackness. The A904 was where I remembered it to be. The options from there were to cross and find the canal or follow the A904 for a while. We took the latter option, staying on the pavement until it ended and then crossing over to a quiet B road. The B road ended at Old Philipstoun and we headed back to the busy A904. It wasn't the best cycle, but only two miles of busy road doesn't warrant much griping. We followed the signs to Blackness Castle and enjoyed a nice downhill zoom along the way.

Unfortunately, I was running out of steam and bad weather was rolling in. I had hoped to find a shop in South Queensferry to get snacks because my supplies at home had been empty. No such luck. Blackness was a bit too late but never would have been worse. I got some tablet from the gift shop and that would have to do. Looking west across the Firth of Forth toward Bo'ness and Grangemouth showed some ugly clouds moving rapidly in our direction. We decided to beat a hasty retreat rather than enjoy a pitstop at the castle.

The wind kicked up and the pressure dropped. No surprises with what followed. Brian was gone and I struggled to just keep moving. We followed the sign to Linlithgow, which took us out to Champany first. About halfway there, the bullets of rain fell from the sky. I felt very frustrated that my legs just wouldn't work fast enough and even more annoyed that I was getting pelted by rain while Brian had completely disappeared with the rest of my rain gear. I yelled at Brian. Even if he was right beside me, he wouldn't have heard me.

There was a pub/restaurant in Champany that Brian asked me if I wanted to stop there for food. I told him I didn't care, that I was angry and frustrated and cold and I don't remember what else. We took a short break in the pub's waiting area -- they did full meals only, no snacks or coffee -- and the rain let up. We followed the pavements on the A road into Linlithgow and found food there.

Food service at the pub in Linlithgow was stereotypical for Scotland, friendly but helpful only when I asked very specific questions. Lots of questions. Juice went a long way towards feeling in my right mind again and so did the food that followed. Eventually. We caught the train home though dusk beat us there by a few minutes.

Brian poses where it all went wrong last time. Or at least one of the times it went wrong.

We found Blackness Castle this time, but didn't stay for long.

The ominous clouds on the horizon didn't stay on the horizon for long.