Arrived at our destination of Fort William by 4.30, following a day of sunshine and superb scenery along the route of the Great Glen. For the last hour and a half we were spoilt with outstanding views of a snow capped Ben Nevis, in a cloudless sky. The stats for our ride are given below, but we clocked up just short of 60 miles – further than planned because of some impromptu off-roading, did an average of 12 mph and climbed 850m.

For the first hour and a half our route was on the main A road, avoiding the logging trucks and passing the iconic Urquart Castle, on the shores of Loch Ness. Coffee was taken at Fort Augutus where we became distracted by the Caledonian Canal and Bry’s stories of taking a boat along it. On a whim we decided to cycle down the tow-path in the vague hope that we’d get to Fort William. In the event, we did get as far as Bridge of Oich, where we rejoined the route as far as Invergarry.  Following signs for the public loo’s led us to our lunch stop in the superdooper Community Centre – soup and a cheese scone! After lunch, buoyed up by our earlier success, we again attempted to navigate our way ‘off-road’ – this time, however, the farm track became un-cycleable and we had to double back to rejoin the main road. It was then a slog from there to the Commando monument at Spean Bridge, where our route took us on a back road, with the aforementioned views, all the way into Fort William and our lodgings for the night. For the curious amongst you, supper was a couple of lesser known Bengali dishes, taken at a rather good Indian restaurant, preceded by  a couple of thirst quenching pints of Orkney Raven ale.

A quiet day on the birding front with only a handful of new species added, including Treecreeper, Canada Goose, Great Spotted Woodpecker and House Martin.

Stats from todays ride – slight under recording I’m afraid because I forgot to restart it  after a number of stops!

The iconic Scottish castle Urquart, by the shores of Loch Ness (no sign of Nessie though…!)

Bryan by the lock gates on the Caledonian Canal at Fort Augustus

Mid-afternoon and Ben Nevis hoves into view…

The Commando Monument, in the shadow of Ben Nevis, was a fitting reminder to us of the purpose behind one of our chosen charities, with personal memorials to a number of brave soldiers lost in conflicts across the globe.

The ‘Ben’ in all it’s splendour, bringing back memories of my first assent at the tender age of sixteen.

To close this evenings blog we’d like to say a big thank you to those of you who are following the progress of our cycling odyssey. Please remember to show your support for our chosen charities and perhaps as important, help spread the word.

Visit: http://www.justgiving.com/teams/justice

Good night, blog you tomorrow. Bryan & Trevor

Good morning readers. Woke up  this morning with body and soul still intact – which is a bonus! Today’s route takes us along the Great Glen – virtually from  coast to coast, in a matter of only fifty miles. What a small country Scotland is! The scenery should be spectacular but,unfortunately we’re on the busy A road, so little time to take it in. Our plan is to do several short, concentrated bursts with ‘touristy’ gaps in between. We’ll see if the plan works out AND the legs hold up!

Our route for the day is shown below:

It’s amazing to me how a route of only 50 miles, from sea level to sea level, following the course of Loch Ness can climb so much! A question I’ve raised with the Course Director, with very little by way of a sympathetic response. I’m beginning to be concerned…..I may blog later – much later!

Only about five miles after leaving Bonar Bridge, our over night stop, we were facing our most formidable climb yet – the infamous Struie Hill! After a steady incline away from the shores of  Dornoch Firth, the road does a slight decent into a ‘clough’ before rising steeply to the summit, a total climb of over 800ft.  Doesn’t sound much does it, but for two old men on a full breakfast it was quite enough! In fact the after-effects of it were to live with us for the rest of the day – my legs are still aching as I blog. On the plus side, we didn’t have to get off and push AND in the scrubby  hillside, beyond the view point, a ‘reeling’ Grasshopper Warbler – a most surprising addition to the bird list! The decent down to Alness was tougher than it should have been due to a moderate and very cold south-easterly wind. Coffee and cake was taken at the Evanton Community Cafe, before we  weaved our way through Dingwall and on to Muir of Ord  our lunch stop – which turned out to be a roll and crisp from the mini-market, eaten in the town square. Birding interest on route included Red Kite (from the release site on the Black Isle presumably) and our first Chiffchaff. The afternoon session should have been a breeze – 30ks  of gentle uphill and then a steep decent into the Great Glen and Drumnadrochit. As it turned, out the climb was a ‘lung-buster’ – long, relentless with a steep finish! The cumulative effect of Struie in the morning  and this climb to finish, left us both feeling it! Our accommodation was in the superb Greenlea B&B, run by Carol and John. A hobble to the pub for supper, washed down with a couple of pints, courtesy of Lochness Brewery and a happy hour reminiscing about ‘bikes we have owned and loved”.

Day three should have been easier than it turned out to be. In bed now with liberal quantities of Ibuprofen gel strategically applied, hoping for a less demanding day tomorrow!

See todays stats below:

Bry doing final ‘flight checks’ before todays stage. The hotel was rather better inside than the outside decor would suggest!

The sign that puts fear in to the hearts of men (well cyclists really!)

And here comes Bry the ‘conquering hero’, approaching the summit.

This much deserved break came after the final climb of the day – a chance to recover and dry out our sweat drench kit!

It wasn’t all graft…there was some superb scenery along the way

Journeys end – our B&B for the night. Tea on arrival and a washing line for the laundry.

Total bird species for the trip – 70

Details of tomorrows route on the breakfast blog.

After a traditional evening meal  of leak and potato soup and Scottish Spicy Steak pie – don’t knock it till you try it, washed down with a couple of pints of Cairngorm Trade Winds at hotel Dunroamin we retired to bed. Me nursing a sore elbow and a bad back, Bry with a bruised toe from having slipped in the shower – a likely story!

Up early for a spot of birdwatching, well I was at least – six new species added, but dipped on the local nesting Osprey!

Todays route of  50 miles to Drumnadrochit, takes us up the infamous Struie Hill. Check it out below:

Better get packed and on the road. Tweetie bye.

Managed to mount my trusty steed and having loaded up the carbs at breakfast we needed every last one of them to get up the first hill – a real stinker from the hotel up to the village of Bettyhill. Thereafter we had a super 25 mile spin up the Strath Naver valley, with a well timed coffee break in the Gillies bar at the Altnaharra Hotel. After which, a stretching uphill section to our lunch stop at the elevated and isolated Crask Inn – see profile below! Met a lovely local couple in the bar who gave us a donation on the spot – how kind was that?

With the rain holding off, a 14 mile descent, albeit into an increasing head wind, to Lairg and then on to our final destination of Bonar Bridge. On balance, what I feared would be a difficult day, turned out to be a manageable and enjoyable challenge – the only low point was being involved in an altercation with an RV which wouldn’t budge from the middle of a single track road, resulting in him hitting my elbow with his wing-mirror. Bruised but not battered, it could have been worse!

Route for Day 2, showing elevation to the Crask Inn

Todays ride…

Bry leaving the Farr Bay Inn on a full breakfast…little does he know what’s ahead!

A breather by the shores of Loch Naver – note the snowy peak in the background!

A well-earned lunch stop.

A brief mechanical stop at Lairg and on the loch opposite….a Black-throated Diver!

Our destination – after a 90+k ride.

On the birding front, the species total has now moved up to 63. The highlights of which were a couple of Merlin, Fieldfare, Greenshank, 3 Cuckoo, Dipper, Siskin, Goosander and numerous Common Sandpiper on Strath Naver and on the estuary at Bonar Bridge a solitary Black-tailed Godwit.

There’ll be more blogging over breakfast…..

The challenge being – can I get on my bike at all! Woke up this morning, after a rather chilly night, with every muscle in my body aching. Bry, on the other hand (old hand) is like  a spring chicken! Today’s ride is only slightly further than yesterday’s, at 89ks, but with less climbing, so should be straight forward. All I need is for my body to start working again!

Route for the ride as below:

Tweets on route, signal permitting.

After much anticipation, planning and sheer hard work, today we finally started! We woke to glorious sunshine and a hearty breakfast. Packed our kit and pedalled down the hill to the harbour. The view across to the Orkney islands was stunning, an experience enhanced by the presence of a Tistie (Black Guillemot) just off shore, getting the bird list off to a flying start!

We retraced the final few miles of yesterdays ride before breaking new ground on the NCN (National Cycle Network) 1, which took us first to Castleton and it’s magnificent bay, then on to Thurso – for a coffee stop at Tesco and  onward, through Melvich and some increasingly hilly countryside to tonights destination, the Farr Bay Inn at Bettyhill.

The stats for todays ride speak for themselves, as do my swollen calves! Insult added to injury (literally) by a hike around the  local bay and surrounding area after we’d settled in and freshened up. But in truth the locality is gorgeous.

John O’Groats – the start of our adventure.

Delightful Castleton Bay – three species of Diver, Great Northern, Black-throated & Red-throated and a raft of Long-tailed Duck – not bad for a starter!

Enjoying a well-deserved breather at the Bettyhill view-point.

Bry taking in the view of Farr Bay after a hard day in the saddle.

Todays stats:

For the birders amongst you, total number of species today – 48, highlights of which were: Black Guillemot, a skein of Pink-footed Geese heading out to sea, three Lesser Redpoll, three species of Diver in Castleton Bay and a Sand Martin at Bettyhill.

Details of tomorrows route on our breakfast blog.

After three fascinating hours on Inverness station -the only distraction being a rather cheeky Herring Gull, we caught the  two o’clock to Wick. On route we decided to leave the train early and cycle in from the west. This turned out to be slightly further than anticipated, 25 miles to be precise, but a great ride nonetheless. We got to John O’Groats in the evening sunshine, checked into the SeaView Hotel and managed to grab the ‘last sitting’ for supper.

The long wait….fifty things to do on Inverness station.

Henry the hungry Herring Gull

Decanting at Georgemas junction

We’re on the way….

…and we’ve arrived. But only at the start…!

Yesterdays route:

Todays route:

For the birders amongst you a few highlights from today, non of which count to the End 2 End trip total, included 2 Osprey, Peregrine, several Buzzard, 3 Short-eared Owl, Dipper, 2 Wheatear, Stonechat, 4 Greenshank, several Swallows, Willow Warbler, Eider and a flock of Whooper Swans. Not bad for a ‘doesn’t count’ day!

Anyway breakfast calls…

Woke at 5.50 to a hard frost at ‘base camp’. Breakfast, load the kit and away to Perth station. Roads were icy – several car accidents along the route, so Bry takes it easy. Arrived at the station with a few minutes to spare. Feeling good, waiting to load the bikes on the train when I notice the destination board says “train terminates at Aviemore’ – not Inverness! Turns out that there’s been a landslide and it’s a bus service from Aviemore to Inverness, with no guarantee that they’ll take the bikes. As we only had a ten minute transfer window at Inverness to get the Wick train, things begin to look bleak…! As the train pulls into the station we decide that, in the absence of a “plan B’, we’d better get on it and take our chances.

Managed to persuade the bus driver to stow the bikes in the luggage hold and we finally arrive at Inverness ten minutes after the Wick train has departed. We now have a three hour wait for the next one and the prospect of a twilight pedal to John O’Groats and no evening meal.

Things can only get better…..

Bry’s bike, ready to load..

Pheasant in the frost at ‘base camp’.

‘What do you mean, this train terminates at Aviemore?’

What have they got to look so cheerful about?

Blog you later……

Spent the day checking and re-checking the kit – that’s Bryan for you, and reviewing the route to make sure we keep on the right road and are prepared for any of those nasty hills!

Also managed a few ‘Team photos’ in this mornings sunshine:

The current Official Team Photo…

Big Brother Bry..

…and me.

Turning our attention to packing…

Bryan’s kit, at the final stage of assembly!

…and mine. I always was a tidy little packer – I put it down to my police training!

Managed to get out  for a brief ride after lunch  – a 17.5k circuit from ‘base camp’, including the locally notorious Carrot Hill – it rained or hailed most of the way! An example of the stats we hope to produce for each days ride it given below…we’re working on the ‘technicals’!