Day 9 – Paisley to Fort William – Team LEJOG tear through the Highlands

Another day meant another cooked breakfast and we made sure to clear our plates as we knew that we had a long day ahead of us. The weather first thing was brilliant and, despite a few showers, this kept up for most of the day.

We headed out of Paisley and towards Loch Lomond on the A82. The road surface for some of this stretch was pretty awful. It was almost like sitting on a washing machine for 20 miles. The scenery around the Loch, however, was fantastic and it improved as we continued up the A82 towards Black Mount. After a steep climb we stopped in a lay-by for something to eat and carried on soon after the tuneless Bagpiper started. We carried on the A82 through Glen Coe and the scenery here was breathtaking.

After spending a lot of miles climbing we descended towards Loch Leven at quite a speed. Whizzing through the Pass of Glen Coe admiring the waterfalls and mountains was one of the highlights of the cycle and it made the training all the more worthwhile.

It took us just over 7 hours to reach Fort William meaning that we averaged an impressive 14.5mph, including stops. The cycling seems to be getting easier and I’m looking forward to tomorrow’s cycle up to Inverness and the lie-in that the short trip will allow us.