6bloodychunks
Member
- Region
- USA
2025 - Our Rides in Words, Photos, Maps and Videos
- Thread starter Saratoga Dave
- Start date
RabH
Well-Known Member
Thankfully my morning chores were over and done with just after 10am so that freed up a bit more time for my ride today, once again that chilly easterly wind was still hounding us and it was around 20-25mph today! I decided to head into the wind and brave the cold all the way to South Queensferry ( a mere 30 miles) to cross the Forth Road Bridge and enjoy a lovely tailwind all the way home (or so I thought)...
I took the back roads out to Avonbridge and tackled the first big climb of the day up to Standburn, from there I enjoyed lots of nice descending all the way to Whitecross! I usually bypass Whitecross and continue on to Linlithgow but I decided to pass through the village today and before I knew it I was ploughing through sloppy mud, they were working in the fields and dragging all the mud on to the road! I probably should have turned back but the damage was already done and my mudguards were doing a fine job anyway! I then enjoyed the big descent down into the valley before the road ramps up again!
Thankfully it was just dry mud up the climb!
At the end of the road I turned east towards Linlithgow where I stopped for lunch, usually when I reach Linlithgow my average speed is close to 18mph...today it was just over 16 due to that headwind! From Linlithgow I continued east to Winchburgh where I turned north for Newton! I usually get a nice view of the Pentland Hills along this road but not today...
The sun was trying its best to burn through the cloud but it was defeated today!
From Newton I continued east towards South Queensferry, of course I had to stop for some photos of the bridges!
A short time later it was time to cross the road bridge and that easterly wind was really blowing on the bridge, I was looking forward to crossing and turning west to enjoy that tailwind!
Looking back at South Queensferry!
The iconic rail bridge which dates back to 1890!
The South Queensferry Crossing which was opened to traffic in August 2017!
After crossing the Forth I headed down towards the Rosyth Dockyard and grabbed another couple of photos from below the bridges!
Then it was time to head up the climb into Rosyth and finally enjoy the nice tailwind for a while, I used the main road initially before turning off to take the coast road down into Limekilns!
The tide was out once again, I have yet to see the tide in here...one day I will time it better!
I then climbed the cobbles up into Charlestown and headed north to join the cycle path towards Crombie before rejoining the coast road down into Torryburn where I enjoyed a cracking descent aided by the tailwind! I changed to my second battery here after 41 miles and then continued west through Newmills and Low Valleyfield and arrived in Culross (pronounced Cooros) where I joined the cycle path again!
The path is in great condition here but soon deteriorates so I rejoined the road which is in perfect condition and it was totally free of traffic at this time of day!
I continued west towards the Kincardine Bridge where I was hoping to get a nice view of the Ochill Hills but they were totally hidden by thick cloud, I actually felt a little rain in the air for the first time here but luckily it blew north thanks to the now SSE wind! After crossing the bridge I turned SW towards Carronshore and I was battling a headwind again, I had to turn the assist up to level 2 on the flat here! I arrived in Falkirk and was going to take the main road to Glenn Village but I timed it wrong as the schools were just coming out so I opted for the back road which is a huge climb up to the far side of Falkirk! It was time for level 3 assist up the climb and was I glad I had plenty juice left, at the top of the climb I turned east to take the road through Lionthorn which is a welcome descent!
The road then leads to Glenn Village where it was time for another monster climb, this one is in 3 parts! It's much more fun going down it...
This is the first part, the photo was taken from the top looking back down!
Part 2, also taken from the top looking back down!
After part 2 its a big descent which is quickly followed by the steepest part!
From the top of part 3 looking back down!
At the top I stopped for a well earned break and had a snack, the climbing was far from finished...although I soon had a big descent to enjoy which is usually well over 40mph but today I could only manage 38.8 due to the headwind! At the bottom of the descent I came across a road closed ahead sign, nice of them not to put the sign at the top! I thought I was going to have to head back up the climb again but I chanced it and got through without any issues!
I was glad I had a bit of a tailwind up this climb!
I grabbed a few photos before heading up the climb, its pretty much all farmland around here!
A final photo at the top of the climb!
I was now heading towards Slamannan and it was mostly downhill until the village where the climbing returned! I then took the back road to Longriggend and enjoyed the big descent down into Upperton! I continued west to Greengairs where I turned south and used the back roads to home! That was a tough day , I have ridden many 100 milers that were way easier than this ride and it was only 4600ft of elevation gain! It was mainly due to the headwind of course, I will enjoy a rest for a few days now as the weather is looking pretty nasty for the next few days with 50mph winds and heavy rain! I need another 152 miles to reach 1000 for the year, I hope the weather will be kind to me next week but I'm not holding my breath...
Attachments
Chargeride
Well-Known Member
Another nosey around ride in the glorious sunshine.
The whole of Liverpool has watched this building decay, and no one seems to want to knock it down.
The area around it has descended from the richest square mile on planet Earth to probably one of the most run down and dangerous area of the city.
This is close to Liverpool stadium and access to the streets are restricted on match day, they are all named after flowers.
They recently had some semi professional murals added, these houses are called two up two down, and are the got to for working class private landlords,
you can pick them up for 50 grand and were originally built with outside toilets, this entire area was covered in them, but most have been demolished
for slum clearance, entire communities were sent to dreadful new towns out in the country.
Just around the corner you are reminded of the areas reputation.
I'm cycling to the copper holding a go pro with a foam windshield, he's giving me a funny look, probably just checking it isn't a gun.
Its OK, he hasn't got one either
Plonked in the middle of it is a reminder of its grand past, nice houses, but no one wants to live here, so they become office space.
Literally across the road is this, facing a Mc Donalds on the main road.
Just down the road near to the tunnel entrance, commuters drive past this every day.
This is actually the first sight if you enter the city by tunnel, could we just knock it down please. imagine business men bringing clients to invest.
Or maybe they see it as potential, I don't know,
Nitrous Oxide for 'making whipped cream', they are trying to ban this stuff, but the dreamers will always find a way
I've never ridden here and its clear the city is going through its second renaissance, I didn't film for obvious reasons, but there were streams of minority families
walking in to these areas pulling large suitcases, enough for the locals to stand and stare.
Its exactly how the city was built originally, but there's one big thing missing..what is the industry?
What are these high rises for, theres no dock jobs, theres no massive new factories or imports.
Its almost like a theme park of a developers dream with no apparent reason for it.
This used to be the repair shop for the power companies vans, the bit missing was the garages, they just lease them all now,
Moving further out, this is the place I posted, the whole area feels like a post apocalyptic video game after people have rebuilt for a bit.
Its quite unsettling in a way I cant describe, the bizarre mixing of history and box like suburban estates, the roads around here give off a tired reflection
of their upmarket past, the people in the streets feel like they are just squatting in a theme park surrounded by modern life.
Im looking through a hole some has punched through to flytip.
Beautiful unused churches surrounded by overgrowth.
I feel like the should be playing Elanor Rigby from a speaker.
I had to stand on the bike to get his picture, this is ground zero for trains, the worlds first inter city passenger rail line, further down the remains
of an an incredible station carved out of the rock, the Duke of Wellington attended the opening, there were deaths and riots.
The whole area has a weird vibe, these were the very cutting edge of technology and construction and its difficult to see or pick out where it existed.
The nearby train station is in an area that just oozes history, almost Hogwarts level, but its lost in modern traffic jams and street furniture.
I need to return to work it all out.
This is the remains of the Art Deco Littlewoods pools building, it was built house the workers of the football lottery known as doing the pools, where you
could win life changing amounts, they were trying to convert it into a film studio, but it 'mysteriously' caught fire.
It seems they are still trying, but the iconic tower was lost and now it hardly seems worth bothering, tis was one of the worlds great Art Deco buildings
and was used to build planes and anti aircraft balloons in the war as the entire interior was one large space.
This is a modern rendering, but pretty well accurately depicts what it looked like in its heyday.
It would be fantastic if they save it, but the way movie production is going I don't see a future in that project.
The whole of Liverpool has watched this building decay, and no one seems to want to knock it down.
The area around it has descended from the richest square mile on planet Earth to probably one of the most run down and dangerous area of the city.
This is close to Liverpool stadium and access to the streets are restricted on match day, they are all named after flowers.
They recently had some semi professional murals added, these houses are called two up two down, and are the got to for working class private landlords,
you can pick them up for 50 grand and were originally built with outside toilets, this entire area was covered in them, but most have been demolished
for slum clearance, entire communities were sent to dreadful new towns out in the country.
Just around the corner you are reminded of the areas reputation.
I'm cycling to the copper holding a go pro with a foam windshield, he's giving me a funny look, probably just checking it isn't a gun.
Its OK, he hasn't got one either
Plonked in the middle of it is a reminder of its grand past, nice houses, but no one wants to live here, so they become office space.
Literally across the road is this, facing a Mc Donalds on the main road.
Just down the road near to the tunnel entrance, commuters drive past this every day.
This is actually the first sight if you enter the city by tunnel, could we just knock it down please. imagine business men bringing clients to invest.
Or maybe they see it as potential, I don't know,
Nitrous Oxide for 'making whipped cream', they are trying to ban this stuff, but the dreamers will always find a way
I've never ridden here and its clear the city is going through its second renaissance, I didn't film for obvious reasons, but there were streams of minority families
walking in to these areas pulling large suitcases, enough for the locals to stand and stare.
Its exactly how the city was built originally, but there's one big thing missing..what is the industry?
What are these high rises for, theres no dock jobs, theres no massive new factories or imports.
Its almost like a theme park of a developers dream with no apparent reason for it.
This used to be the repair shop for the power companies vans, the bit missing was the garages, they just lease them all now,
Moving further out, this is the place I posted, the whole area feels like a post apocalyptic video game after people have rebuilt for a bit.
Its quite unsettling in a way I cant describe, the bizarre mixing of history and box like suburban estates, the roads around here give off a tired reflection
of their upmarket past, the people in the streets feel like they are just squatting in a theme park surrounded by modern life.
Im looking through a hole some has punched through to flytip.
Beautiful unused churches surrounded by overgrowth.
I feel like the should be playing Elanor Rigby from a speaker.
I had to stand on the bike to get his picture, this is ground zero for trains, the worlds first inter city passenger rail line, further down the remains
of an an incredible station carved out of the rock, the Duke of Wellington attended the opening, there were deaths and riots.
The whole area has a weird vibe, these were the very cutting edge of technology and construction and its difficult to see or pick out where it existed.
The nearby train station is in an area that just oozes history, almost Hogwarts level, but its lost in modern traffic jams and street furniture.
I need to return to work it all out.
This is the remains of the Art Deco Littlewoods pools building, it was built house the workers of the football lottery known as doing the pools, where you
could win life changing amounts, they were trying to convert it into a film studio, but it 'mysteriously' caught fire.
It seems they are still trying, but the iconic tower was lost and now it hardly seems worth bothering, tis was one of the worlds great Art Deco buildings
and was used to build planes and anti aircraft balloons in the war as the entire interior was one large space.
This is a modern rendering, but pretty well accurately depicts what it looked like in its heyday.
It would be fantastic if they save it, but the way movie production is going I don't see a future in that project.
Stefan Mikes
Gravel e-biker
- Region
- Europe
- City
- Mazovia, PL
@Chargeride: How can you get from Liverpool to Birkenhead by bike?
Chargeride
Well-Known Member
Well, you can ride the tunnel before 7am or all day Sunday.
RabH
Well-Known Member
Yesterday we had another storm with winds around 60mph and torrential rain most of the day! Today was so much nicer but still very windy, around 30-35mph with gusts over 40mph at times! The wind was from the SW and the temp was a balmy 9C! With such a strong wind I had to choose my route very carefully to avoid dangerous crosswinds! On my last ride I had 3 big climbs near the end, this time it was 3 big climbs near the start! I headed east out to Armadale with a lovely tailwind pushing me on, then I turned north and took on the 3 climbs!
At the top of the final climb I turned east and enjoyed the big descent down into Bridgehouse, just over 40mph down this one! I then turned north again up into Westefield before turning east and heading up the big climb to Torphicen! It was so good to see blue skies again, its been a while!
I stopped at Torphicen for a couple of photos before heading up the big climb!
Its a gradual climb at the start before it ramps up!
Part way up I stopped for another photo, the sheep were enjoying the sun!
The view to the north at the top of the climb!
I then took the back road towards Beecraigs Country Park, no danger of a snow storm this time!
The park has been closed to the public since the big storm a few weeks ago now, they expect the clear up to take about 8 weeks! I took a few photos before heading up the climb, the horses were also enjoying the sun!At the top of the climb the road plunges down into the valley past the Beecraigs Loch (which is also closed) before ramping up again up past the visitor centre! I grabbed a couple photos at the top of the climb, this one is looking east towards Kingscavil with the big climb awaiting me way in the distance!
This one is looking north with the Firth of Forth down in the valley!
I then plumetted down the descent into the valley before battling up the big climb to Kingscavil, where I stopped for more photos looking back towards the country park!
I was now heading east on the road where I got caught in the snow storm last week, conditions were very different this time!
I then turned north for Bridgend, I chose this way as its tree lined so I had good protection from the winds! I had now covered 26 miles and it was time to turn west into the strong headwind! The road here leads to Linlithgow but I turned north to pass over the Union Canal, where I stopped for a break and some photos!
There is a cycle path that runs alongside the canal but as you can see its very narrow and lots of dog walkers use it so I stuck to the roads! After a couple of miles it was time to turn west again towards Linlithgow, I stopped at Linlithgow Loch for a couple of photos before tackling the traffic through the town!
Thankfully it wasn't as busy as I expected, I avoided the busier part of town though and took the back road to Torphicen! I soon passed over the canal again!
Then it was time to tackle the big climb up to Torphicen, I stopped part way up for another photo!
At Torphicen I headed south for Bathgate and I was getting battered with the crosswinds for the first time on this exposed part, its a shame the trees were at the wrong side!
At Bathgate I turned SW for Harthill which was directly into the wind and it was hard going but way better than those crosswinds! My plan was to turn on to the back road to Shotts from Harthill and use the back roads to home but the road was closed and I didn't want to take on that headwind up the big climb to Salsburgh, so I decided to take the back road to Blackridge which meant doubling back but I had a cracking tailwind for a few miles and hit 41.6mph on the descent down into Blackridge!
At Blackridge I turned west for home but with only 51 miles in the bag at this point I decided to turn north and take the road to Limerigg and enjoy the big descent down into Slamannan! Then I took the back road to Longriggend which was into the headwind again, I stopped for one last photo just before Longriggend!
Then I headed down the descent to Upperton before turning west for Greengairs and then south over the back roads to home, I arrived in my home town with 68 miles covered so I did a circuit of the town to round things up to 70 miles! 10 minutes after I got home the heavens opened, I sure got lucky and enjoyed a completely dry ride! Despite the wind it was such a great ride, I have now covered 918 miles but I only have 1 more day of riding left this month so unless I can get 82 miles done the 1000 will have to wait until March!
Attachments
fooferdoggie
Well-Known Member
Man it was 55 degrees with wind when I left work sun was somewhat out. started raining a bit but my wind jacket and my rain-resistant work pants were fine. till halfway home. 22mph winds and it was pouring like crazy. It would have been pointless to stop and put on my rain pants so I was soaked in the 2 miles left on the ride. but the brim on my helmet and my wrap-around glasses kept the rain out of my eyes.
DaveMatthews
Well-Known Member
Gotta say I would have been soooo tempted by that canal path...View attachment 189969
Yesterday we had another storm with winds around 60mph and torrential rain most of the day! Today was so much nicer but still very windy, around 30-35mph with gusts over 40mph at times! The wind was from the SW and the temp was a balmy 9C! With such a strong wind I had to choose my route very carefully to avoid dangerous crosswinds! On my last ride I had 3 big climbs near the end, this time it was 3 big climbs near the start! I headed east out to Armadale with a lovely tailwind pushing me on, then I turned north and took on the 3 climbs!
View attachment 189970
View attachment 189971
View attachment 189972
At the top of the final climb I turned east and enjoyed the big descent down into Bridgehouse, just over 40mph down this one! I then turned north again up into Westefield before turning east and heading up the big climb to Torphicen! It was so good to see blue skies again, its been a while!
I stopped at Torphicen for a couple of photos before heading up the big climb!
View attachment 189973
Its a gradual climb at the start before it ramps up!
View attachment 189974
Part way up I stopped for another photo, the sheep were enjoying the sun!
View attachment 189975
The view to the north at the top of the climb!
View attachment 189976
I then took the back road towards Beecraigs Country Park, no danger of a snow storm this time!
View attachment 189977
View attachment 189978
View attachment 189979
At the top of the climb the road plunges down into the valley past the Beecraigs Loch (which is also closed) before ramping up again up past the visitor centre! I grabbed a couple photos at the top of the climb, this one is looking east towards Kingscavil with the big climb awaiting me way in the distance!
View attachment 189983
This one is looking north with the Firth of Forth down in the valley!
View attachment 189984
I then plumetted down the descent into the valley before battling up the big climb to Kingscavil, where I stopped for more photos looking back towards the country park!
View attachment 189985
View attachment 189986
I was now heading east on the road where I got caught in the snow storm last week, conditions were very different this time!
View attachment 189987
I then turned north for Bridgend, I chose this way as its tree lined so I had good protection from the winds! I had now covered 26 miles and it was time to turn west into the strong headwind! The road here leads to Linlithgow but I turned north to pass over the Union Canal, where I stopped for a break and some photos!
View attachment 189988
View attachment 189989
View attachment 189990
View attachment 189991
View attachment 189992
There is a cycle path that runs alongside the canal but as you can see its very narrow and lots of dog walkers use it so I stuck to the roads! After a couple of miles it was time to turn west again towards Linlithgow, I stopped at Linlithgow Loch for a couple of photos before tackling the traffic through the town!
View attachment 189994
View attachment 189995
Thankfully it wasn't as busy as I expected, I avoided the busier part of town though and took the back road to Torphicen! I soon passed over the canal again!
View attachment 189999
Then it was time to tackle the big climb up to Torphicen, I stopped part way up for another photo!
View attachment 190000
At Torphicen I headed south for Bathgate and I was getting battered with the crosswinds for the first time on this exposed part, its a shame the trees were at the wrong side!
View attachment 190001
At Bathgate I turned SW for Harthill which was directly into the wind and it was hard going but way better than those crosswinds! My plan was to turn on to the back road to Shotts from Harthill and use the back roads to home but the road was closed and I didn't want to take on that headwind up the big climb to Salsburgh, so I decided to take the back road to Blackridge which meant doubling back but I had a cracking tailwind for a few miles and hit 41.6mph on the descent down into Blackridge!
At Blackridge I turned west for home but with only 51 miles in the bag at this point I decided to turn north and take the road to Limerigg and enjoy the big descent down into Slamannan! Then I took the back road to Longriggend which was into the headwind again, I stopped for one last photo just before Longriggend!
View attachment 190002
Then I headed down the descent to Upperton before turning west for Greengairs and then south over the back roads to home, I arrived in my home town with 68 miles covered so I did a circuit of the town to round things up to 70 miles! 10 minutes after I got home the heavens opened, I sure got lucky and enjoyed a completely dry ride! Despite the wind it was such a great ride, I have now covered 918 miles but I only have 1 more day of riding left this month so unless I can get 82 miles done the 1000 will have to wait until March!
Viking1
Well-Known Member
- Region
- USA
- City
- USA RV Living Full Time. Home is where we park it.
We are currently in the Corpus Christi, TX area until the end of March. My photos will not upload for whatever reason, oh well. I am looking to ride Goose Island here in the area and maybe Padre Island, who knows.
RabH
Well-Known Member
You know me Dave, I like my hills...
RabH
Well-Known Member
They changed the allowable size of the photos so you need to reduce the size of your images to upload them now, around 1.3mb I believe!
Jeremy McCreary
Bought it anyway
- Region
- USA
- City
- Carlsbad, CA
Good to hear from you! Unannounced and unspecified photo size limits went into effect a few months ago. After a lot of trial and error, reducing my photo file sizes to under 2MB before uploading seems to be working.
Jeremy McCreary
Bought it anyway
- Region
- USA
- City
- Carlsbad, CA
Ah, the lure of round numbers! I do that all the time. I'm also susceptible to the lure of the next whole number: If I reach home at, say, 25.8 miles, gotta keep going till it's showing 26+.
Chargeride
Well-Known Member
Im picturing Jeremy when hes 99.
RabH
Well-Known Member
It has got to be done, triggers my OCD...
Jeremy McCreary
Bought it anyway
- Region
- USA
- City
- Carlsbad, CA
Better believe I'd be pushing for 100 at 99! Heck, I'd even eat kale to get over that line.
But I'll never have that problem. Younger generations will surely band together to set a mandatory boomer euthanasia age long before I get there. And we'll be lucky if it's a day over 80.
;^}
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Chargeride
Well-Known Member
Ha yes, that was something that came up with a discussion about undocumented migrants.
They just say whatever age suits them and its quite a decision to make.
In you fifties, just say you are 65 and claim a pension and other senior benefits.
In your twenties, say 15 and straight the front of the queue.
But its there for the rest of your life and unless you admit to it, then you be retiring in your 70s.
Ive looked at your picture and have decided you were at school in your 30s.
They just say whatever age suits them and its quite a decision to make.
In you fifties, just say you are 65 and claim a pension and other senior benefits.
In your twenties, say 15 and straight the front of the queue.
But its there for the rest of your life and unless you admit to it, then you be retiring in your 70s.
Ive looked at your picture and have decided you were at school in your 30s.
Saratoga Dave
Well-Known Member
40 degrees plus? Check!
Mohawk path partially plowed? Apparently!
Ain't much, especially since it turns out only three miles has been plowed and everything else is still absolute solid ice, but when we drove over it this morning, I realized right away that I could finally get my first actual bike ride in for 2025. The stationary bikes at the Y are fine as far as it goes, but enough already! Going back down into the low 20s in a day or two, and maybe some more snow, but for a moment it was back in the open air on actual tires.
Currently the roads are well plowed around here and the shoulders largely available, but only an insane person would try riding a bike this time of year when people just aren't expecting it. Maybe the Town will extend the plowed section a few more miles, or maybe winter will go away in a few weeks.
Mohawk path partially plowed? Apparently!
Ain't much, especially since it turns out only three miles has been plowed and everything else is still absolute solid ice, but when we drove over it this morning, I realized right away that I could finally get my first actual bike ride in for 2025. The stationary bikes at the Y are fine as far as it goes, but enough already! Going back down into the low 20s in a day or two, and maybe some more snow, but for a moment it was back in the open air on actual tires.
Currently the roads are well plowed around here and the shoulders largely available, but only an insane person would try riding a bike this time of year when people just aren't expecting it. Maybe the Town will extend the plowed section a few more miles, or maybe winter will go away in a few weeks.
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Jeremy McCreary
Bought it anyway
- Region
- USA
- City
- Carlsbad, CA
And survived the experience! Close enough: 30s in med school and residency.
When people ask my birthdate for ID purposes in person, I usually have to stress that the year's 19xx, not 18xx.
Chargeride
Well-Known Member
Ive just realised I got that back to front, but hey ho it worked anyway.
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