Friday 11th July

Last night we discussed our final push for John O’Groats. Considering that we were all tiring and the cycling had become less pleasant we decided to do the final miles in one direct push up the north east coast. When we made our usual early start, it was not raining but we had to contend with head winds. As all cyclists know one of the most frustrating aspects of cycling into a head wind is that you do not get the full benefit of the down hill bits when you can rest. We travelled up The A9, which was now quieter, up the coast to Helmsdale where we had our first rest stop. The caravan had been left at Dornoch for the team to return to at the end of the day. After this rest we had a long hard climb just north of Helmsdale which together with the head wind and our fatigue made for some hard cycling. A further climb was encountered at Berriedale. Shortly after this we made an uneventful ride on the A99 to John O’Groats. The celebratory champagne was drunk and photos taken. Geoff & Marian then went on their way for a one week holiday in the north of Scotland whilst the rest of the party returned for the final overnight stop at Dornoch. They would then travel home during Saturday.
Miles today = 79.5 These were hard miles too!