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I had a 5 hour weather window today and thought a ride out to the Forth Bridge fitted the bill nicely, I was right! We had a rare SE wind which wasn't really in my favour for this ride but thankfully it wasn't a howling wind for a change, only around 20-25mph! I made my way out to Slamannan via the back roads and took the back road towards Shieldhill, it was a lovely morning!
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Just before Shieldhill I enjoyed the awesome descent down into Glenn Village again, 43.5mph this time and it was partially into the wind!
From there I took the road through Hallglen and passed through Brightons and Maddiston before joining the awesome back road to Linlithgow which is mostly downhill and in great condition! There are some very expensive houses dotted along this road, how the other half live!
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The owner was just leaving in his very expensive Range Rover when I stopped and he pulled up just along the road, I think he thought I was casing his premises...
I arrived in Linlithgow and made my way through the busy town without incident and was glad to get back on the quieter road out of town, now heading towards Winchburgh! I stopped for a snack and grabbed a few photos, the Ochil Hills were looking nice in the background!
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From Winchburgh I turned north towards Newton and got my first glimpse of the bridges over the River Forth!
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Rosyth Dockyard which is situated on the Fife side of the Forth to the north!
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The bridges were getting closer!
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It was my lucky day as the cruise ship Aurora was berthed close to the rail bridge!
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I then crossed the bridge into Fife, stopping for more photos!
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I had a closer view of the cruise ship from here, this one was launched in 2000 and it looked to be in very good condition! Its much nicer than these modern ones that are the size of a tower block...
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After crossing the bridge I was heading for Rosyth and stopped for a couple of photos of the new bridge!
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After passing through the town I had to use the main road for a couple of miles before turning off at Limekilns, where I stopped for more photos!
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Once again the tide was out, I sometimes wonder if it ever comes in here and if these yachts ever get to sail...
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I then headed up the cobbled climb into Charlestown, a real bone shaker but its only a short one thankfully! From there I was heading back towards the main road but used the cycle path towards Crombie, its a very fast road so the path is a real godsend! Sadly it doesn't last long before you have to rejoin the road for a quarter of a mile or so before the path continues! I then turned on to the coast road towards Torryburn, a fun road which is mostly quiet on a weekday! I passed through Newmills, Low Vallefield and Culross before joining the cycle path to Kincardine Bridge!
I crossed over the bridge and made my to Carronshore and into Falkirk where the climbing was about to begin, I took the road to Slamannan and got my first rain shower but it wasn't even enough to wet the roads! I stopped at Lionthorn for a snack before the next big climb and took this photo, the clouds looked a bit threatening!
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I continued up the climb with some light rain coming down, due to the wind being in my face it was soaking my glasses but thankfully it didn't last long! Another photo near the top looking north towards the Ochils!
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One final photo just before arriving in Slamannan, its such a great road but more fun in the other direction as its all downhill...
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From Slamannan I headed SW towards Greengairs where I turned south over the back roads to home, arriving just after midday and totally dry thankfully! The clouds were looking very threatening and I could feel rain in the air, I got the bike indoors and within 10 minutes the heavens opened! I couldn't have timed it better and what a great ride it was, I also passed 41000 miles today! 41027 to be exact and I'm only 26 miles short of 5000 for the year now!
