Triumphrat

Bonnie06Tangerine · 08-14-2009, 05:01 AM

I am an American living in the UK, better known by some as the Yank on a Triumph. My friend and I plan on taking advantage of a three day weekend that is coming up to Scotland; I live in Mildenhall and will be obviously leaving from there. Here is the quick breakdown of the trip.

Day 1:

Leave immediately after work and plan to ride to about an hour outside of Glasgow.

Proposed riding time: 4-5 hours

Day 2:

Leave early morning for about a five hour ride to the Loch ness Clansman hotel where we will go looking for Nessie and stay the night.

Day 3:

Travel across the Highlands to go to the Aberdeen area which according to Google will be about a three ride. From there we chill for a little bit and then push to a little south of Newcastle which is showing 3-4 hours.

Stay the night at Newcastle

Day 4:

Travel back home that is showing a 4-5 hour ride.

I have never been to Scotland and I have been finding conflicting information when it comes to the climate. I have heard that August timeframe is beautiful and I also have heard that August is the worst time to go up to Scotland. I have even heard the joke that you get to see all four weather seasons in every single day for the month of August. So I am stumped; I have never been to Scotland but I am dying to go there on my Bonnie. Trying to plan out this epic ride for myself though and I am not sure what to expect. Is it a bad idea to do this ride in the month of August? Is the likelyhood of getting caught up in massive thunderstorm showers likely for the month of August? Should I scrap this idea all together and plan a better time to do this ride? Or have I been getting bogus information and this will turn out to be a ride that I will remember until the day I die? Any kind of help over this would be greatly appreciated and I will be posting photos and a ride report once this killer ride is over if I should do it. Thank you.

Squeek · 08-16-2009, 10:53 AM

Based on 30 years of riding in Scotland I would say that -

A) You could have great or rubbish weather in any month of the year

B) Even if you experience poor weather conditions you can still have a great day on the bike as long as you are properly geared up. Much of the landscapes you will be traveling through will look even more impressive if the weather is slightly less than perfect.

C) The best way to plan runs in Scotland is to have a basic plan but be prepared to alter it if the weather looks grim, there can often be a big difference in conditions depending on which side of the country you are on. And have a plan B prepared and possibly a C as well.

D) Never trust a weather forecast for more than 3-4 days ahead.

E) Weather systems generaly travel (usualy fairly quickly) across the country from the southwest, you can use this info added to any weather forecast work out wheather you want to be traveling "in front" of any impending rain or hanging around a bit and waiting for clearer weather.

superfour · 08-16-2009, 03:57 PM

I did a two week tour in Scotland last year.I think you will find the weather very variable and probably wet.But with the right gear its not a problem.Scotland is stunning sunny or wet.
I used multimap to plan my routes and I found that the journey times where dependant on traffic and weather.
One thing I can say for certain you will be riding some of the best roads in the country.You will enjoy yourself immensely.

Bonnie06Tangerine · 08-16-2009, 04:19 PM

I really appreciate the input; to go this far up north on my Bonnie can be a little daunting when considering that we could be in a downpour and have to do six hour ride days in order to make the loop we have planned out. I guess that I will keep a close eye on the weather reports as the date gets closer and make a determination then. I do have the gear for bad weather so we will probably go for it unless they are calling for serious storms throughout the entire weekend. I have heard how awesome Scotland is and this will be my only chance to ride it so here is hoping for the best...thanks again for all of this help.

KuzzinKenny · 08-16-2009, 09:10 PM

Hey Bonnie06Tangerine !! i think your main problem in the Highlands will be fuel, i`ve no idea how big the Bonnie tank is, or what they get to the gallon, so my advice would be, if you see a fuel stop, top up !!

i came back from John O`Groats a few weeks ago in the rain/dark and never thought anything of it, it didn`t spoil my trip. the only bummer was a strong X wind that blue rain behind my visor if i got slowed down to much but that was just the type of helmet i wear !!

a GPS will help with fuel stops, i wouldn`t go without mine but i have no sence of direction

have fun and i hope the sun gods shine for you !!

KK

ps Quote, In Scotland, there`s no such thing as bad weather - only the wrong clothes !! Billy Connolly

pps http://www.tigertriple.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=5858 Scotland in april !!

ppps this might come in handy...............

http://www.trafficscotland.org/index.aspx

NeilD · 08-17-2009, 05:41 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by KuzzinKenny

Hey Bonnie06Tangerine !! i think your main problem in the Highlands will be fuel, i`ve no idea how big the Bonnie tank is, or what they get to the gallon, so my advice would be, if you see a fuel stop, top up !!

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agree on that - when I was up there, if I saw a petrol station or toilet I used it, as you dont know when the next one will appear.. !

richards · 08-17-2009, 08:53 AM

I have also heard the scare stories about not holidaying in August, I go every august/september , The problem I think is the midges in the glens when the sun isnt out and there is no breeze.
Take some midge repellant and have a good time.

Squeek · 08-18-2009, 12:58 PM

Which route have you chosen for the day 3 three plan ?

Carrbridge, Speybridge, Tomintoul, Corgarff is the best, the A96 the worst.

If I had to choose one month in which to tour Scotland it would be August.

Bonnie06Tangerine · 08-18-2009, 04:51 PM

Squeek,

Here is the route we are thinking over right now. Couple things to remember though with my situation:

#1. This is the last summer riding season for me because unfortunately I am due to leave the UK next year.

#2. My goal before leaving here is to essentially cover the British Empire on Bonnie. Eventually I will end up back in the states and Bonnie will be with me; I plan to one day pass this bike on to my son but before then, I want to collect as many countries on her that I can.

#3. This will be my only chance to ride up into Scotland that I will have so I want to ride as much as Scotland as I can. I know this means that a lot of the routes will have to be on the highways but I just don't see any getting around that. I tried to squeeze one more day out of work but I can't. If we were able to have four days instead of three then we would of ran up to Thurso just to say that I was at the top but unfortunately that isn't going to happen.

With that said, here is the route:

Day 1, Thursday right after work:

Ride up to Carlisle using the A1 almost all of the way. Finish the five hour ride and stay the night.

Day 2, Friday:

Leave Carlisle and got to Lochness using M74 and A9 that should take 5 hours. Take a little bit of time to ride around the loch, souvenirs and Urquhart Castle.

Leave Lochness and head to Stonehaven using the A939 almost all of the way. Ride time about 3 hours. Stay the night at Stonehaven.

Day 3, Saturday:

Leave Stonehaven and go to Sunderland by using the highway that runs along the coast above and below Edinburgh. Ride time about six hours and stay the night in Sunderland.

Day 4, Sunday:

Sunderland to home using the A1 until the A14 and hit country roads at Cambridge. Ride time about 5 hours. Get home, collapse into bed and try to go to work the next day

That about sums up the route. Unfortunately a good percentage of it will be on the highway but we just do not have much choice in that matter. My buddy and I definitely want to get to Lochness and we also want to hit some country roads through the highlands to get back to the eastern coast. That is the best that I could map this out so that we could achieve what we wanted to and squeeze all of this in on a three day weekend. If I had more time then I definitely would plan it a lot differently but at least I am getting to make this run. Any advice you could share or if you think I am a little out of sync with this plan then please let me know. Like I said, I'm just a Yank on a Triumph and have never even been to Scotland

I can't wait to make this run though, it will be something I will be talking about for a long, long time...

superfour · 08-18-2009, 07:13 PM

I worry some of the riding times are a bit short,but I do wish I was going.Have a great time,and post your story when you return.