As usual at this time of year, our cycling days have been few and far between. This is mostly down to the weather, and when we do manage to get out, we are weighed down with cumbesome winter clothing slowing our progress. Add to that the limited hours of light, and it’s little wonder we get so few miles done in late December / early January.
Just the week before, I tried a cycle on a cold morning and ended up skidding on ice, landing on my hip. That gave me the biggest bruise ever but luckily it has had no effect on my ability to cycle, other than making me even more wary of wintry conditions. The lure of safe virtual cycling indoors (i.e. Zwift!) is strong, but it’s just not the same. I was looking forward to our scheduled Lothian Cyclists Monday ride but the weather just wasn’t safe enough and it had to be called off. But wait, there was a weather window on the following day, so a few of us jumped at the chance of a frost-free ride, and met for a cycle along the East Lothian coast.
We arrived at Longniddry just as Scott was finishing up sorting out Fiona’s bike ready for the outing. Scott was the one with the bright idea to venture out, whilst Angus brought the local knowledge to fill in some of the gaps on the fledgeling route with good, quiet back roads.
So off we went eastwards along the coast road to start with. The day was a bit dull, but at about 4 degrees C, there was no risk of ice. There was also virtually no wind, and as we rode past Gosford estate, the tide was in and the sea completely flat calm. In short, it was a perfectly benign winter’s day. Being well wrapped up, if felt like a great day to get back out on our bikes again.
After passing through Aberlady, we turned away from the coast and along more quiet roads taking us gradually upwards. We took a right turn before Kingston then started heading south, towards East Fortune. By this time, we were beginning to think about a cafe stop. We passed by a few possibilities at Merryhatton and East Linton on our way to the tiny cafe at Tyninghame. This cafe has changed ownership since I last went there, so making sure the blueberry scones were as good as before was our major concern.
The Tyninghame Smiddy cafe, with outdoor seating for the hardy
As we arrived, it seemed busy. That was a worry, as at this time of the year you don’t really want to end up sitting outside. Luckily, the new owners have removed most of the craft displays from the adjoining room to make space for more tables, so we could be accommodated. Colette and I managed to order the last two blueberry scones, so it was down to us to come up with the verdict. Well, they weren’t quite as good as the old ones, but it has to be said that they were a fair bit bigger, which makes up for it and certainly won’t put me off coming back!
Colette found this grumpy-looking chap sitting outside the cafe.
After our tea break, next stop was Haddington for lunch, so we headed off along the old A1 as far as East Linton, then past Hailes Castle on the cycle route. Fairly soon, we arrived in Haddington and parked our bikes outside the Italian cafe. There’s such a big choice there, it was hard to make my mind up, but ended up getting the macaroni and chips, in common with Scott and Angus, while the ladies opted for lentil soup. It might sound like we’re obsessed with our food, and it’s true that these cycle rides are as much about the food and blether as the actual cycling; the trick is getting the balance right!
So the talk turned to how we were going to get back to the starting point. The old railway path is the most direct and quickest, but we had time to do more, so I suggested that we add a few more miles. With that in mind, Angus led us out of Haddington and up a steep hill heading towards the Hopetoun monument. We then turned left and went along what I think Angus called Bangly Brae, where we started going back downhill again.
Hopetoun monument in the distance
The afternoon was pressing on and it was just starting to get darker when Colette found that she had a puncture. I did my best to remove the offending thorn and replaced the inner tube with a patched spare that Colette was carrying. Well, we hadn’t gone far before I noticed that Colette’s tyre was flat again. Off with the tyre again, and I couldn’t find any sign of a thorn or anything to have caused this second puncture. So maybe there was a problem with the spare tube? We didn’t have another spare of the right size, but thankfully Fiona did, so we were able to carry on.
Ah, the joys of roadside repairs…
By this time, we had our lights on and were looking for the most direct way back, which was to join up with the railway track for the last mile or two. And so we arrived back at Longniddry to load our bikes back on the car in the fading light, having made best use of dull and an otherwise unremarkable winter’s day.