I have been waiting for the right conditions to cycle to St Andrews again, I was doing it in my dads memory as he passed away just over a year ago and it was his favourite place to visit in Scotland! It was his happy place and he visited every year until a couple of years ago when he was no longer able to make the journey! Conditions were just perfect, I set off at 5.20am with the intention of heading up the coast road to the town which is an 82 mile trip! I would then head home inland which is just over 70 miles!
My first photo was at the Black Loch, I was hoping it would be flat calm as there was very little wind at this time but I was out of luck!
A couple of miles later I had to stop to capture this photo while the early morning mist was still hovering in the fields, it actually looked much more misty than the photo suggests!
I stopped taking photos until I reached the Forth bridges as I wanted to make sure I missed the busy morning traffic, I timed it perfectly!
I passed over the bridge and at the other end there were big queues of traffic trying to get over the new bridge, I sort of felt sorry for them...well maybe not!
The old bridge is only for buses and taxis so it is very quiet these days, it can't handle the modern traffic! I was now on the coast road and tackled the big climb at Aberdour, the sign says 16% but it looks way steeper! I love the view down the Firth of Forth from here!
The road leads to Kirkcaldy and is so much fun to ride, its all ups and downs and twists and turns which is what I love most about cycling!
I reached the Esplanade at Kirkcaldy which was totally rebuilt in the last couple of years and probably cost a small fortune but they did such a great job of it!
Kirkcaldy can be a very busy town but once again I timed it perfectly to miss the worst of the morning traffic, it was all planned with military precision you see!
I continued along the coast to Leven where the bridge over the River Leven was undergoing massive renovation work so I was diverted over the old rickety bridge which has big signs saying weak bridge all over it, the limit was 18 tons though so I think my bike was safely under that...
After passing through Leven the road turns inland for a bit, I was passing the Lundin Links golf course and stopped for a snack and a photo!
Next stop would be the small town of Elie right on the coast where my sisters recently stayed in a caravan while our new heating system was being installed, the tide was way out today!
This one was taken at the other end of the town where the small lighthouse is situated!
I hugged the coast all the way to St Andrews, 5 miles from the town I changed my first battery which had lasted for 77 miles! Not bad for a 5 year old battery! As I arrived in the town I popped into the caravan site which overlooks the town way up on the hill to grab some photos! My sisters were actually here last week and had an awesome week of weather, their caravan had an unobstructed view of the beach and the town!
I then descending down the huge hill into the town proper and headed for the harbour where I enjoyed a delicious lunch from the cafe, my dad knew the woman that runs the cafe very well from all of his visits spanning more than 60 years! The water in the harbour was very low as the tide was out!
I decided to take my food to a bench overlooking the beach, not a bad view to enjoy your lunch!
It was so lovely sitting on the bench with the sea breeze keeping me nice and cool!
After a nice break it was time to hit the road home, I think I spent a little too much time on that bench as my legs had turned to jelly now and I was now riding into a strenghtening headwind! The road out of St Andrews is a bit of a nightmare but thankfully they built a nice cycle path which keeps you away from the traffic all the way to Guardbridge! I was still struggling a bit after my extended break and it took me quite a while to get my second wind, once it came I was feeling way better!
That soon changed though as my backside was starting to ache, I really should have bought proper chamois cream for such a long ride! I have been using vaseline and it has been working really well but with todays heat I think it evaporated and it was getting rather painful! Anyway I had my strength back now and was making good progress, just before reaching the village of Dairsie I grabbed my last photos!
Thankfully due to my first battery lasting 77 miles I only had around 76 miles to go with 2 batteries at my disposal so I was able to crank the assist up to negate that strong headwind all the way home! I arrived home very tired and my aching derrier was really troubling me but I had such a brilliant ride and I'm sure dad would have approved!
I always rememeber the first time I cycled all the way to St Andrews in 2012 on my Focus Cayo carbon road bike and when I got home I informed dad where I had gone (I kept it a secret) and he couldn't believe I had ridden all that way in one day! I then showed him all of my photos and he was just loving it, he was so proud of what I had achieved and I told him he was my inspiration and that he played a big part in making me the person I had become! I'm welling up now but I will always have those amazing memories of a very special person!
