Monday 20 June 2011

Back home on the coast....



After being up north its been a great week back at home riding the coast again,
Riding from the back door and enjoying quiet beaches mid week,
Since up north i have really noticed how many types of rock and there colours we have here in East Lothian,
Basalt, sandstones of various colours and limestone along our coast...















And since returning home there has been a lot of sand movement due to the strong winds 3 weeks ago, a lot of the beaches that had rocks exposed after the sand was washed away during the big storm in April 2010 has returned!,
There has also been a lot of new driftwood washed up...











Been out with the `Fat` BOB Trailer too, collecting small driftwood for the house and garden...



This would make a great seat for the garden but need a bigger trailer!...


Also hauled some bigger stuff for fire wood this winter...



Had a good high tide beachride along the coast to North Berwick with Jason too despite a heavy shower of rain...







Rock art by JL...



Have you ever seen a rock that floats?
This stuff gets washed up sometimes, it is remains of man made Building blocks, made from power station ash...




Summer Tourist season now in the harbour town of North Berwick, New this summer is the The Lobster Shack



My friend Jim is working there (thats him holding the lobster on the website) and the lobsters are caught locally here on the coast by friend Robbie and his Dad who work out of the harbour here and Seacliff, just closing up for the day we settled for the local chippy before riding home through Yellowcraigs...











Sunday we rode the last days ride of this years Tweedlove cycling festival in the Tweed Vally in the Scottish Borders,
a free to enter 55km natural cross country ride, run by volunteers and with water and sweeties provided, you signed up online then signed in before and after riding the route after receiving a map which was also marked with tape and small pegs...



There were around 140 starters, 6 of us rode the full route together after one of us dropped back and short cut the route with 2 friends on holiday from the USA...



The wet weather did not add to what most of us felt was not the best of routes with what there is on offer in natural riding in the Hills around the Tweed Vally,
The route was in fact 41km and we had 5000 Meters of climbing, very sadistic!, Unfortuantly most climbs had long stretches of walking then we were not rewarded with good long flowy descents, typical of around here,
However i appreciate people volunteer to organise these events and we had a good laugh riding as a group of friends and there were smiles at the end after some fun muddy descents towards the end,
Cold wet, muddy, and happy to be finished!...



Were not the fastest and fittest of riders but i would say were above average so to be amongst the last to finnish makes me think there was mostly some real fast race snakes riding the event and a lot of people maybe pulled out with the awful weather that closed in and took the optional short cuts back to Peebles judging by the near empty car park,
Or maybe were all just getting old...

And to rub salt into the wound after eating a chippy in a bus shelter during another downpour we drove home to clear skys and 17 C warm air... aarrrggghhh!!!
It had been a scorcher all day just 45 miles up the road in East Lothian!
Oh well thats the way the cooky crumbles...
Off for a last beachride then its the grim return to work, only 4 days though then it a big party BBQ on Saturday for turning the big `four O` -:)

3 comments:

  1. That's a eroded block of aerated concrete.

    The Mudlove ...mean Tweedlove ride looks great.

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  2. `Mudlove` wasnt that great at the time believe me , but the East Lothian posse is made of tough stuff -:)

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  3. Good read Bruce and excellent pics. The floating rock commentary made me laugh... esp the "bizarre?!" at the end :)

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