Scotland Trip - Day 7, Saturday 21st August

Standard morning. Wake up, shower, have breakfast, pay the bill (£35.00), pack up and leave. This was the most expensive of the B+Bs, mainly because I was paying a single person supplement. It was more like a hotel than a B+B. I was fairly tempted to stay up another night, but a day of rest at home appealed to me, so I set of at about 10:45am.

Piper girl in Fort William

Fort William

Half hour stop in Fort William to purchase my own weight in whiskey and then off again at about 11:30am. When I planned the trip I had two choices as to a route home. Either back the way I came or down the edge of Loch Lomond to Glasgow. As it happen I now only had one route home and that was down Loch Lomond. The A84/A85 was still closed after the mudslide at Lochearnhead.

I had planned a roundabout route down the A828 to Connel and then take the A85 to re-join the A82 at Clifton Tyndrum and then on to Crianlarich. However it was going to be a long day anyway, so I decided to go straight down the A82 from Fort William to Crianlarich.

Stopped in Crianlarich for a bum break and then on to Loch Lomond. Pretty heavy going as most of the traffic out of the Highlands was coming down this road. Things got a bit better when I reached Tarbet where the A83 joins and the A82 becomes a much more major road. Down the side of Loch Lomond to Glasgow. With hindsight I would have gone over the toll bridge at Erskine, which would have put me straight on the M8. However, I decided to carve my way through Glasgow and pick up the M8 further in. Came across a group of Italian bikers who were scything their way through the city so I tacked on the back. They were good too, making good progress through the congested streets. I'm pretty good too and stayed with them until they joined the M8.

Down the M8 and join the M73/M74 and down to Bothwell service at about 2:30pm for a snack and another bum break. Fill up with fuel and crack on. A long haul this time down to Penrith where I leave and join the A66 to go across country. Have another bum break in a little village called Temple Sowerby. There seems to be a fair going on, so I stop and investigate.

They have enterprising locals in Temple Sowerby

Old car at the fair at Temple Sowerby

Steam lorry at the fair at Temple Sowerby

On down the A66 to Scotch Corner, onto the A1 and another break at Leeming Bar. I am now intending to get all the way home, but have to stop at Blythe Services for fuel when the needle suddenly drops and the fuel warning light comes on. I had done 240 miles since my last fuel stop and the light coming one generally indicates another 20 miles worth of fuel, so I had done pretty well. From then on it was a pretty uneventful trip back down the A1 and then along the A57 into Lincoln and home.