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Avery still night with no wind. There
was a lot of condensation inside the tent which froze as I packed it
away. My first objective was to visit the Falkirk Wheel Canal Lift.
It wasn’t far away but as I descended the hill I missed the left
turn. There was only one signpost and it couldn’t be seen from my
direction. |
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When I realised
my mistake I turned round and stopped to look at a prominent part of
the Antonine Wall. The Falkirk Wheel buildings were closed but I was
able to cycle round the site. A lot of construction work was going
on which looked like a bridge construction. I wheeled my bike over
the footbridge across the canal then rode down to the car park and
on to the main road. |
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I was on a busy main road with no
cycle track. After a few miles I reached Denny and turned right on
to a slightly quieter road. I continued north on the A872 heading
towards Stirling. I wasn’t planning to go that far, just to the
Bannockburn Centre. |
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I've
never heard of Herbertshire |
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I headed across town to the pe |
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I reached it and followed the sign to
the left. As expected the visitor centre was closed but the access
paths to the main monument were open. |
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Rober
the Bruce at Bannockburn |
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I rode to the circular enclosure and
adjacent Robert the Bruce statue to commemorate the 1314 battle
where Robert defeated the English under Edward II. I cycled east to
the A91 which the map shows is the site of the battle. There was
nothing there to commemorate the spot. |
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Another
site for Bannockburn |
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I then joined the A905 to the
Kincardine Bridge. It was an uncomfortable ride along a fast busy
road. I was glad to reach the bridge and ride the quiet cycle lane
across it. In Kincardine I tried to follow a cycle route but it was
a dead end and I had to return and join the busy road. |
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Power
Station from the
Kincardine Bridge approach |
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After passing the power
station the road was less busy. It was a lovely ride through Culross
but I had to join the busy A985 before leaving it to ride through
the quiet Limekilns. When I reached Rosyth I had my first view of
the magnificent Forth Road Bridge. |
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Kincardine Bridge cycle path |
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Forth
Road Bridge and pier for new bridge |
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Crossing
the Forth Road Bridge |
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Forth
Railway bridge from the Road Bridge |
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Its replacement was under
construction in the foreground. I soon reached the familiar
roundabout near Inverkeithing that would take me on to the Forth
Road Bridge cycleway. I was here last December and there was still
the same smell of sewage around. Up on the Road Bridge the sun was
out and I had a spectacular view of the nearby Forth Railway Bridge. |
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Near the
centre of the Road Bridge |
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Further along the bridge I stopped by
a couple of maintenance vehicles where a manhole had been lifted and
some engineers were inspecting under the cycleway. They were
checking for a possible route to fix a cable. Across the bridge
called at the supermarket to buy some water for my camp. |
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Inspection on the cycle track |
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Forth Road Bridge (left) and the Forth Railway bridge (right). |
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I spoke to a local man who was
interested in my ride. He said he used to cycle out from Queensferry,
over the Forth Road Bride then back again. I descended to the
cobbled road through the town and stopped by the railings to take in
the view of the two huge bridges. |
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Afternoon view of the near pier on the Rail bridge, a column of
the Forth Road Bridge and in the distance a column on the new
bridge |
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Another man stopped to talk about
my bike and the ride I was doing. He was also a cyclist and had
ridden across America and Australia. I left the roads and followed a
track along the coast to my planned camp spot at Hound Point. It was
an ideal camp spot as it was totally isolated and had wonderful
views of the Forth Rail Bridge and Firth of Forth. |
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Return to
Whittle Wanderer
