We tried to get going as early as possible this morning - there was a 24 mile drive back to where we finished last night, which takes a while on winding Scottish roads.
Those first 24 miles, back to Oban, were quite hilly. Joel started struggling because his leg was hurting, it was raining on and off, and it began to look unlikely that we'd complete the distance before lunch. But some edible encouragement, along with ibuprofen, and prayer, worked wonders, and we were back at the Youth Hostel by lunchtime, enjoying a portion of chips along with our sandwiches.
From Oban, we went north, up the coast road, over the bridge across the mouth of Loch Etive, up to the south side of Loch Creran, over another bridge to the Strath of Appin, and round to the south side of Loch Linnhe. For a lot of the route we were on a very good cycle track, partly along a disused railway (thanks to Dr Beeching!), and partly alongside the main road. It was part of the Caledonia Way, and was very well signposted, with a good surface. With beautiful views and very little navigation required (there's not much choice of roads around here!), it was a very enjoyable afternoon, until we began to get tired towards the end, at least!
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| Decorative barrier on the National Cycle Route 78 |
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| Oban in the early morning sun |
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| Eilean Balnagowan |
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| These cheeky chappies watched us as we took a break |
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| Joel spotted this sign on the cycle route |
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