Extra to Aberdour this coming Saturday

We've got the third of this year's Extra rides coming up on Saturday (25th).

For this ride, Alan will be leading us to one of our most popular destinations: the Silver Sands beach at Aberdour. This is a delightful spot: a sandy beach with extensive views over the Firth of Forth. Much of the route will be on the scenic Fife coastal path. We'll be riding on firm surfaces most of the way, but there will be one or two rough stretches that might be muddy. There will be a few moderate-to-steep hills - all fairly short. The total distance will be about 35 miles.

I'm sure you don't need me to remind you, but please keep in mind that these Extra rides are longer than our usual runs, with a faster pace and fewer stops. If you manage our usual 20-mile outings with energy to spare, you should be OK with this one. But if you sometimes struggle to keep up on our usual runs, you will probably want to give this one a miss.

Lunch

For this ride, you can either bring a picnic lunch or visit the Sands café which is right on the beach. This offers a range of sandwiches and other snacks, but it can get very busy, especially on a nice day. If you want to avoid a long wait for lunch, I suggest you go for the picnic option. There are plenty of places to sit on and near the beach, and there are also toilets there. (And we'll have toilet breaks on both the outward and return legs.)

Time and place

The ride will start from our alternative meeting point at the Craigleith path junction - see here if you need directions. Please get there in time for a prompt 10:30 departure. Because of the length of the ride, we will probably not get back to Craigleith until after 4 pm.

As always, there is no need to let us know in advance whether or not you plan to come along. Just turn up if you have a mind to.

And, as always, please remember to bring a spare inner tube plus whatever tools (if any) would be needed to remove your wheel in the event of a puncture.

Looking ahead

Our next "second Saturday" run will be on 8 August. We'll also have another Extra later in August - provisionally fixed for the 29th. I'll post the usual details here in good time.

Ride to Harlaw Reservoir

Unfortunately, neither of the group's two scribes could make today's ride, resulting in no report or photos. Apologies for that. 

According to the leader (Alan) the ride went well with no problems. For the seventeen riders in attendance, it was damp with drizzle on the way out in the morning, dried up for the picnic lunch stop at Harlaw, and turned warm for the run back in the afternoon.

Normal service should be resumed for the next ride. 

July ride to the Harlaw Reservoir

We've got out next ride coming up on Saturday (11th). We'll be heading to what has become our traditional July destination: the Harlaw Reservoir at the edge of the Pentland Hills. This is a pleasantly scenic route and a nice spot for a picnic lunch.

The route

For the outward leg, we will mainly follow quiet roads and well-surfaced paths. Although we will avoid the very steepest routes up to the reservoir, there will inevitably be a fair amount of climbing during the morning (the reservoir is 250 metres above sea level). But we'll take it at our usual steady pace, and allow time for stragglers to catch up.

In return for our exertions of the morning, we can look forward to some nice downhills on the return leg. But this will also include a couple of very rough stretches where we might have to dismount. Thankfully, these will be fairly short.

The total distance will be about 24 miles. Slightly more than half the mileage will be in the morning, so our lunch break will be a little on the late side.

And talking of lunch ...

... There are no shops, cafés or other catering outlets at the reservoir or anywhere near it. So please be sure to bring food and drink for your lunch. Happily there are several nice spots there for picnics.

There are portable (chemical) toilets at the reservoir. We will also stop for a toilet break about half way through the morning.

Time and place

As always, we will set out at 10:30 from our usual spot at the north end of Middle Meadow Walk. As I'm sure you know by now, there is no advance booking for our rides, so just turn up if you decide to join us.

What if the weather is bad?

The 20-Milers rides go ahead regardless of the weather (as some of us know only too well). For this ride, please bring a picnic even if the weather is bad, as we will find an alternative spot where we can eat our lunch under cover if necessary.

Looking ahead

We've fixed our next Extra for the 25th July. I'll post details of that ride in due course. In the meantime, happy pedalling.