5 - Largs to Moffat

Stats for the day:
Distance: 139.2km (86.5 miles)
Elevation: 1720m
Saddle time: 6:33 hrs
Total time: 9:09 hrs

Punctures: 1/3

Average 
Speed: 21.2 km/hr
Heart rate: 97 bpm
Cadence: 71 rpm

Maximum
Speed: 57.6 km/hr
Heart rate: 139 bpm

Elevation profile

The Scottish mist had been falling heavily overnight so we decided to trust the forecast and go for a late start. Remarkably, on cue, at 10 o'clock it was dry & off we set, straight into the first climb of the day. 

For some reason we then allowed Nick to take over the navigation using his single page ripped from the road atlas - Bernard had the sat nav to rely on getting our supplies to Moffat. 

The consequences of Nick plotting is it involves taking the smallest roads under the guise of a shortcut. The downside is much slower speeds due to the combination of more hills which slow you down on the ups, but also on the downs, which are invariably slower as the road surfaces are worse; not to mention the regular stops to check the route.  However there are some pluses with virtually no cars around and a chance to appreciate your surroundings without a dirty great road through the middle of it.

leaving Moscow

We made it to Moscow, a 4 house village in Scotland, as opposed to extreme case of erroneous navigation. Then continued via a route almost certainly unique to anyone else plotting an end to end trip via a few farms and little else.  We found lunch in Darvel having passed by a number of boarded up shops both there & in the previous town. The lace making industry died a while ago & with it possibly the soul of the town. Even in just a brief visit there is a sense that many people will be struggling to make ends meet. 

afternoon showers

Lulled by the heat of the cafe we slapped on the sun cream and were soon met by a tremendous thunderstorm. Within a minute everyone was soaked through & I was carrying small lakes in my shoes. But once it had eased from hail to normal rain it wasn't took bad & gave a chance to rinse some of the farmyard from the tyres which I'd concluded was the source of the odour, not just from following behind nick too closely. 

Scottish lowlands

By the time the M74 came into sight the sun was shining again as we rolled through the Scottish lowlands. A final stop at the motorway services, before a final push to home for the night. Fuelled by expressly Stephan led us out and we managed to cover the last 29km in a more respectable 1hr 2mins, running alongside the motorway most of the way with the drone of traffic to accompany us. 

Another fantastic B&B was our prize as Moffat is a regular stop on route; last year they'd had around 400 cyclists staying, around 20 of which were doing JOGLE, the rest LEJOG.  In he curry house we met a chap who was on a solo LEJOG, his nephew is sending him daily directions and routes from Texas and booking his accommodation from there. 

So 5 days in, so far so good in terms of the body holding together, a little sore around the knees and tightness in the thighs but the evening stretching routines seem to be working. Onto the biggest test so far though, 100 miles finishing with a 1 in 4 climb up Kirkstone pass. Bring it on.