Somewhere new beneath blue skies

For the opening Extra ride of the year, we headed deep into Midlothian to somewhere we had never visited before. Accompanied by blue skies, warm sunshine and a gentle breeze we made our way to Vogrie Country Park. A most impressive 20 riders mustered at the Fisherrow Harbour start point. That number for a normal 20 Milers would be good, but for an Extra it was very impressive. If not the highest ever turnout for an Extra, it must have been close. As ever, the weather must have played a part, but the lure of a new route and destination would have also swelled the ranks.

With the customary briefing over, we left the harbour and gathering mist behind to thread through an unfamiliar [to most] maze of Musselburgh residential streets to arrive at the town's railway station. A whizz down the new path, under a couple of bridges, over the roundabout and we were on the Grove heading towards Cowpits and Whitecraig. There we joined the path towards Dalkeith High School. We turned off the path and made our way up the hill past Smeaton Shaw Farm to the B6414. A number of the riders expected us to turn left; but no - it was right then next left to head towards Cousland. On this section, one rider began to have problems with slipping gears. Given the climbing that lie ahead, they made the decision to turn round and head home to get their bike fixed. It was a shame they would miss a delightful ride, but it was the right decision. Leaving that road, we climbed up the A6124 and took the bridge over the A68 trunk road. Over the bridge, a deft left followed by a quick right saw us on a lovely quiet country road with great views across the Midlothian countryside. The leader made it look easy, but that wasn't the case on the recce a couple of weeks earlier. Two wrong slots and a few minor detours had resulted. But that's why we do recces. On approaching the T-junction, the leader informed those around him that a left turn onto the main road would be followed by a stiff little climb. Hopefully the message got passed down the line. Onwards through Edgehead, down a lovely descent, a right turn onto the B6372 and we were on the final run towards Vogrie Country Park and our lunch stop. Into the park, a short ride down a narrow road and we were at Vogrie House. Riders split between the picnic tables and the Tree Top Café.

Lunch over, we regrouped and made our way back to the park entrance. A steady stream of traffic meant that we didn't all get out together. At the cross roads the first part of the group turned right and waited for the others to join us. It seemed like a longish wait before the others appeared. Apparently, they had been waiting for a gap in the traffic when two cars had a minor coming together. The damage was minimal, no one was hurt and none of our riders were involved; but it did result in a slight delay. With the group back together, we headed towards Pathhead. A glorious downhill run into the village of Ford was enjoyed by all. But the village lies at the bottom of a valley, and a substantial climb back up to Pathhead followed. At least we had time to get our breath back waiting to cross the busy A68 in the village. Lovely quiet country roads led us towards Cousland. A couple more steep hills, and we were in the village. The leader promised that it was now downhill all the way back to Musselburgh. Few believed him, but it was the case. We headed downhill away from Cousland, turned left at Crossgatehall and were soon whizzing down past Smeaton Shaw Farm. This time, we stayed on the road to enjoy our last glorious downhill blast of the ride. A short stretch on the busy A6094, a left as we entered Whitecraig, and we were back on the Grove. At the footbridge over the River Esk, the leader declared the ride officially over. It appeared that everyone had enjoyed the ride, the destination and the weather judging by the round of applause the leader received. Last, but by no means least, thanks to Neil for back marking.

Leader: Glenn

Report: Glenn

Photos: Glenn

In the heat of Midlothian

 

In all these years, the group has never been to Penicuik. On what must have been one of the warmest days of the year, our second Extra ride of 2023 saw us head to the Midlothian town. The skies were overcast with the occasional spell of bright sunshine, but boy was it warm. There was a noticeable breeze, but even that was warm. We mustered just thirteen riders at the Fisherrow Harbour starting point, which was a little surprising given the weather and the promise of a new destination. The leader had a good idea of how to get from there to the Grove until he spoke to the writer, who told him of a better way to avoid busy roads. As a result, the writer doubled up as temporary leader to guide the group on a twisty route through the quiet backstreets of Musselburgh. Once at the Grove, the reigns were handed back to the leader. At Whitecraig the leader surprised the writer by taking a new route to join the usual cycle path towards Dalkeith. We whizzed through Dalkeith's parks in the opposite direction to usual, over the Maiden Bridge and through the familiar kissing gate. Past the police station and Eskbank station before a comfort stop at Tesco. At this point, Iain kindly went round with homemade cakes. Leaving Tesco behind, we joined the cycle path which took us to Rosewell. There we joined NCN 73 for a delightful ride through the lovely Midlothian countryside to Penicuik, where most of us headed to Montgomery Park for a picnic, whilst a few opted to find somewhere to eat in town.

The group came back together and we left Penicuik on the A701 - the main road to Edinburgh. A combination of inconsiderate and near-psychopathic drivers, heavy traffic, poor road surface and laughable excuses for cycle lanes made that by far the least enjoyable part of the ride. Just before the Gowkley Moss Roundabout, with great relief, we left the road and joined a shared use cycle and foot path to negotiate our way onto the road for Roslin, where we joined the cycle path towards Shawfair. Leaving the path at Lasswade Road, a number of twists and turns on cycle paths and quiet roads took us to a comfort stop at Morrisons on Gilmerton Road. Through the backstreets of Moredun, along Old Dalkeith Road, through Craigmillar Castle Park and Peffermill and we were at the Innocent Railway. The coolness in the Innocent Tunnel was very welcome on the way back to town.

At the Meadows, the leader declared the ride officially over. Despite the heat and the very unpleasant road out of Penicuik, everyone enjoyed the ride. Thanks to Mike for leading and Alan for backmarker duties. It is very likely that we'll head to Penicuik again for an Extra ride; but we'll need to find a better route out of the town.

Leader: Mike

Report: Glenn

Photos: Glenn

The summer's final hurrah

The last 20 Milers Extra of the year signals the end of summer. Having a large turnout, lovely weather and a new route and destination enabled us to go out on a high. We headed out into a delightful, quiet and unexplored part of Midlothian with a lunch stop in Pathhead. Deserted country lanes, open countryside devoid of other people and the crossing of a shallow ford made for a great ride.

The weather forecast for today had been changing all week. At first it looked as if it would be dry, then light rain looked imminent. By last night, we were expecting a dry but cool day with overcast skies. That didn't sound too bad for late September. What we eventually got was a dry day with a light breeze, a comfortable temperature and sun shining down from a blue sky containing just a few fluffy white clouds. That doubtlessly helped muster the 26 riders that turned up to start from Fisherrow Harbour. The leader gave the cutomary briefing insisting that everyone would walk across the ford. Why? Because on the recce he had crashed heavily whilst crossing it and was very lucky to escape with nothing more than cuts and severe bruising. A good reason why we do recces and a good example of what a leader will do to ensure everyone's safety on the day. A willingness to "take one" for the group!. We're not sure if 26 is a record Extra turnout, but it's definitely close. The leader decided not to split into two groups, and that worked out OK. We made our way to the path for Whitecraig meadering through backstreets that were unfamiliar to most. From Whitecraig we joined the cycle path towards Dalkeith, turning off and climbing past the farm at Smeaton. More climbing followed as we headed towards Cousland and turned right on the A6124 towards the A68. With the climbing over [for now], we paused for a sweetie stop and to regroup. A glorious downhill followed to Fordel Dean before joining the A6093, which was far busier than usual. It was good to leave that road behind and follow a much quieter one to the sawmill at Windy Mains. Waiting to regroup, there was no doubt how the place had got its name. We were now on a lovely quiet lane heading towards the ford at Costerton, with a real sense of being out in the sticks.

Arriving at the beautiful little ford, the leader stopped and led the group over the footbridge alongside. A few opted to walk through and a couple of riders just had to ride across - fortunately without incident. The leader allowed himself a wry smile at the thought of those riding slowly and carefully across compared to when he had approached at a fair pace on the racing line, only to have his front wheel slide from under him on the slippery surface. As the others headed away from the ford, he paused for a couple of minutes alone to exorcise the associated demons before pedalling after them. We were soon at the busy A68. Fortunately, we only had to travel 200 yards along it before turning off onto the much quieter B6458. With the sun shining down from a clear blue sky, no sign of human habitation and fields full of sheep - this was idyllic. More quiet roads took us from Tynehead to Crichton and back to the busy A68 at Pathhead. Rather than try and turn right onto such a busy road, we wheeled our bikes up the pavement to "The Foresters" pub for lunch. The food was good and we were all impressed with how they dealt with such a large group of hungry cyclists arriving unannounced.

With everyone fed, we headed off leaving the busy A68 behind. Past the impressive gates leading to Preston Hall, we turned left and headed towards the A6093 that we had headed out on in the morning. This time, a quick left and right and we were on another of those delightful quiet lanes that characterised today's ride. Some more climbing and we were in the village of Cousland. We dropped down to join the A6124 which took us to Whitecraig and onto the River Esk Path. At the bridge across the river, the leader declared the ride over. Part of the group headed over the bridge and onwards to Edinburgh, whilst the remainder headed down to Luca's in Musselburgh for ice cream.

It's always good to hear people say how much they have enjoyed a ride, and plenty said that today. Somewhere new for most, lovely quiet roads, a real sense of being out in the sticks, wonderful scenery and great weather - a fitting finale to this year's series of Extra rides. They will start again in May next year. But of course, the usual 20 Milers rides will continue throughout the year - all welcome, free and no need to book.


Leader: Glenn
Report: Glenn
Photos: Glenn
Map trace: Jim