Off to the west coast of Scotland at the end of May. I’ve been tasked with working out what we do on the day we go to Skye. Turns out Skye is actually a pretty big place. I’m led to believe that it’s the third largest island in the British Isles.

There are some must-see spots that we want to take in – The Quiriang, Glenbrittle, etc. Would like to check out Elgol but it’s a fair distance in and out.

Any way, really looking forward to this one.

Thursday had arrived and it was time to head for the ferry back to Belfast. I was looking forward to this journey as I had booked the overnight home from Liverpool and had plenty of time to get there. I took my time getting ready, packed the bike and set off. The main attraction of the day was the infamous A537 “Cat and Fiddle” road from Buxton to Macclesfield. However, I was unprepared for just how good a road the A6 approach to Buxton was going to be. It was fantastic, plenty of sweeping bends and quaint villages. The Derbyshire Dales were spectacular.

Leaving Buxton the road started to climb noticeably. The weather was cool but stayed reasonably dry. The A537 has had the title of the UK’s most dangerous road and now has 50mph average speed cameras along most of the route. These didn’t detract from just what a wonderful ride it was. The descent from the Cat and Fiddle itself was amazing.

After descending to Macclesfield the route was mostly motorway and A roads. I stopped for the afternoon in Neston to visit with an old friend and then headed up to the ferry terminal to wait for the boat home. It has been a great week but it is going to be good to get home. Can’t wait to get settled into my cabin and get some kip.

After reading about this route I was keen to give it a go. Anyone who has read any amount of the UK motorcycle press will be familiar with a lot of the sites round this route since it is one of the most popular routes for magazine tests and bike photography. Route info

I got a good start off in the morning and headed from Long Wharton to Melton Mowbray. I planned to start the day off with one of the famous pork pies and then get riding on the route. The plan was to enter Melton and then do the route anti-clockwise. It was a crisp morning and no rain was forecast. Not long into my ride I noticed something strange about my left foot. Looking down I noticed something odd about the sole of my boot. My trusty paratrooper boots had decided to fail and shed the sole.

There was no way I could continue riding with my boot in this state so I started frantically Googling to find a motorcycle store with stock that wasn’t too far away. I ended up heading to J&S in Nottingham where I managed to find a pair of boots in the correct size.

Suitably booted, I decided to head back to Mowbray and attempt to finish my planned ride. By this time I was getting fairly hungry so I decided to find one of the famous pies and get tucked in. Unfortunately disaster number two struck – I was too early.

Time was marching on so I decided I would try for a pie later and get on with the route. I headed back into the town and started off to the South. The route to Market Harborough began with plenty of average speed cameras. After that it was a combination of lovely roads and quaint villages. Very typically English and a wonderful showcase of the midlands. There were plenty of other bikes around but the traffic wasn’t too bad.

Time was marching on and I had arranged to see Meghan in the late afternoon so I didn’t stop to take many pictures. After a couple of hours of enjoyable riding I ended up back where I started. By now I was cold and hungry so it was time to try again for that pie.

With food obtained it was time to head to Kegworth and to meet up with Meghan. The Rutland TT is well worth an afternoon of anyone’s time.

Got an early start this morning. Managed to leave Edinburgh before the rain started. I was so thankful for the heated grips on the GS. Headed East out of the city towards Berwick-on-Tweed. It was a bit. Of a non-starter as far as being a tourist was concerned. The borders was a miserable ride – wet and cloudy. I could only see that bases of the hundreds of wind turbines they seem to have stuck all the way to. England.

Crossing the Tweed saw the weather improve somewhat, but I skipped Berwick and headed for Holy Island.

I headed over the causeway and rode round towards Lindisfarne. The castle is closed at the moment and there were requests to park up and walk to protect the village so rather that try to Pay and Display on the bike I decided to move on. I had my first fuel stop of the day at Lindisfarne Services.

Heading South now on the A1 – English roads are stressful. There are so many speed cameras and vans and so much signage. It really can be information overload. I decided to look for lunch at around noon. As that time approached the Garmin decided that it was time I had a break and suggested a stop in a little place called Easingwold just outside York. Had a lovely lunch in a little place called Morning Coffee – Afternoon Tea. The dish ‘Rachel’s Creation caught my eye – it was very good.

Now that I was refuelled, I continued the journey South. The further South I went the larger the roads became until I was on the M1 proper. By now I was at the stage of just hold on and keep going as my backside protested. One more fuel stop and then the last run to my accommodation.

Somewhat better weather today, which was a complete surprise. Headed off to church this morning. Connor was playing bass. Socially distanced church is still strange to me. It was good to meet some of his colleagues.

After church we headed for a lovely pub lunch. this was followed by a walk up Blackford Hill. Connor claims this hill offers the best views in Edinburgh. Others may claim the best views are from Arthur’s Seat – but you can’t see Arthur’s Seat from there.

It has been lovely spending time with Connor. He looks healthy and happy. I’m sorry to be leaving him. Big day on the bike tomorrow as I head 300 miles South to see Meghan.

Started the day off with a rather splendid breakfast in a cafe called Montpellier’s. Then Connor led me on a walking tour of the City. Social distancing coupled with wet weather doesn’t make city touring the easiest. The museums were booked out and it was difficult enough to even get a seat in a coffee shop. Didn’t stop me from having fun, though, and it’s always a pleasure spending time with the firstborn. Did get to see St. Giles Cathedral and the John Knox house. Other highlights in the pictures.

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I’m not much of a writer; I’m not really much at all when it comes to putting thoughts down on ‘paper’. I’m sitting in a room in Edinburgh, Having done my longest solo motorcycle trip to date, yesterday. Not too long in the grand scheme of things, at 140 miles, and certainly not as long as I will face on Monday when I head South.

The bike behaved beautifully. The F700GS is a forgiving machine that handles nicely. I had asked the SatNav to take me from Cairnryan to Edinburgh via Newtown Stewart rather than the more obvious ‘turn right at Ayr’ route. This took me up the A702. It was interesting to see the progression of this road as we headed towards the capital. The Southern end is more like a B road, full of twists and turns and pot holes. Thankfully the weather was with me and didn’t add to the challenge.

Arriving in Edinburgh I got settled into my room and then went to see Connor.