Another route ticked off up the Pentlands

The start of the long haul to the top of Black Hill

We've made it to the top of Black hill!

A bit of blood = a bloody good ride!

Roger recharging the batteries

Looking back towards Scald Law

There's been a route or two that's bugged us for sometime in our forays up the Pentlands, one of them being a track we've seen to the top of Black Hill but never been able to figure out how to get onto it, well today we managed somehow or other after a bit of hike-a-biking up through some heather, eventually reaching it and then slogging it out up to the top. The descent back down leaves room for improvement but that's for another day!
The next route to be done was the Skyline back from West Kip to Flotterstone involving five summits with a fair bit of pushing involved and with the weather being ideal today Baz and myself went for it, Roger unfortunately started to cramp so he bailed out after East Kip. The temperature which had been just above freezing when we started at 6am got up to nearly 60 degrees and was perfect. The final descent down from Turnhouse Hill to Flotterstone was brilliant and made all the climbing and pushing worth the effort. Over 4,400 feet of ascent in our 27 mile ride and not even a twinge of cramp!!

Clive's birthday bike ride route

A hard hike-a-bike up from the Howe.

Near the top we got into the sun.

They must have been keen on their religion in days gone by, though the pony seems like a good idea!

We held the birthday party here at the foot of West Kip!!

Back home after a brilliant 30.5 miler!

Clive chose the route today as it was his birthday and we ended up doing most of the stuff we do in reverse. Amazing how things are so much different the other way round and something we plan to do a bit more of this summer. An absolutely great 30.5 miler with the only mishaps being Clive attempting to fall off for each year of his life (only minor), me having a front flat a mile from home and Clive discovering a rip in a tyre when we did get back home

Baz's Trance comes out of retirement!

Clive points the way into the mist.

Baz didn't actually cycle up this way at all!

Mishap! A broken chain, never mind "bicycle repair man" was on hand!

A 28.5 miler this morning with the full climb up Castlelaw, the first for some time and eventually ending up at West Kip for the descent back down to the Howe. Only mishap today was Baz's chain breaking about 6 miles from home but after a bit of banter it was fixed. Baz was out on his Trance today, his 29er managing to burst the sidewall of a tyre whilst tethered in his garage, temperamental machines these 29ers!!
My weeks riding is just over 100 miles off road again.

Nearly taken out by a badger!

Out with Dougie and Dylan up the Pentlands tonight and saw not one but two badgers, the second one being slightly kamikaze-ish as it scuttled over the road up by Glencorse reservoir and but for a bit of nifty braking and swerving by me could have had his tail run over!!
24 miles again tonight in a wind that couldn't make up its mind which way it was blowing from, and discovered, from Dylan, that his father in law is to carry the Olympic torch for a section of the way in Northern Ireland. Now that's what I call a tenuous if distant claim to fame by myself!

13 miles minimum tonight to be done!

I need 13 miles tonight for my 100 miles for the week and Clive, who's been cycling to his work each day last week, needs 12 for his 200 miles. Last night we did a 26 miler in conditions that ended up only a few degrees above freezing and woke up this morning to see snow on the hills where we'd been last night. Just seen a post from Dougie on Facebook to say that a race he'd been taking part in in Buckinghamshire today had taken place in horrendous conditions, rain, snow and a plentiful supply of mud so its not all doom and gloom in Scotland for once!