Spokes Ride to Livingston

A very breezy day for the Spokes Bike Ride. there are eight of us. Two are on e-bikes. As it is a westerly breeze it's best to head out in to it. As we cycle through Fountainbridge, a gust of wind blows me on to the pavement. I opt for a flat route out of Edinburgh along the canal, which is in to the wind, so no side gusts, but flat as well.

We turn off at Baberton on to a cycle path, which takes us to Heriot Watt Uni, then on to the Long Dalmahoy Road. As you can see from the Extra photo, it is sunny, but still windy. The gusts have become less frequent. The road drops down, then climbs to Kirknewton. From here, we drop down to East Calder to Mid Calder. 

At Mid Calder, we follow Main Street to access Waverley Path. This takes us through Livingston to the lunch stop, a pub chain. It turns out that one of the participants used to visit the pub when their children were young and were visiting relatives in the area.

After lunch, we head South to Harburn. Just as we leave the car park, one rider has a soft tyre, a slow puncture, so we wait while the inner tube is changed. The clouds come slowly rolling in when we do start cycling. At least the breeze has dropped a bit. Then SE along the B7008, through Harburn. A bit of a climb from here to Camilty Hill before the road drops down to the A70.

Time to head in to Edinburgh. This last part of the ride is wind assisted, which is always the case on the Lang Whang. The road is initially rolling before the last climb of the day, on the slopes of Auchinoon Hill. There is a layby here, which gives lovely views across Harperrig Reservoir, as shown in the main blip. A good place to regroup.

Once regrouped and snacked up, we climb the last bit of the hill, which is followed be along descent, with a little bump, to Boll-o-Bere, where we turn on to Glenbrook Road. Another regrouping is required here, and at the other end of the road in Balerno (mechanical issues rather than tiredness).

Once through Balerno, we turn on to the Water of Leith path. While not a tarmac path, it is easily cycleable, and not near the madness of the A70 from here to town. A nice green route to the end of the ride where the path rejoins the canal. (Handy as this joins up the loop from this morning's outward version).

Total 57.74 km, 35.88mi, shorter than planned because of the wind.

The route of the ride can be seen at Relive here.