Miles and Miles away

[stinkwheel]

That's where I have been this weekend with some guys from a bike club I know.

Set-off from Cumbria on Friday on the new (old) GPZ500s (picked up the previous night) and drove up to a campsite near Dalwhinnie, more to get the run started so we were on interesting roads for the rest of the weekend. Cut up the A82 to Inverness which is a fast but comparativley busy road (for the Highlands, lots of tourists), had to stop en-route to get one of the guys exhaust welded back on when it split through the header pipe.

From Inverness we went back over to Ullapool along the A835, a high speed road, lots of sweepers and no corners that could catch you out by tightening suddenly. Really started to get the hang of the GPZ again, I had one previously but this one has a 16" front wheel which I was wary of, no need, BT45 tyres stuck it to the road like glue.



At Ullapool we stopped for fuel and there was a great air of excitement in the group anticipating the next stage of the run up to Durness on the northen coast of Scotland. The scenery was turning into the trditional hills, moor and areas of damp scree reflecting in the sunshine, Scotland showing us its best with everything green and the road dry under a blue sky. The road to Durness takes in the A837, A894 and the A838 and is 67 miles long.

With the possible exception of the Applecross road, this is THE BEST biking road in the country, there is virtually no traffic on it, the road surface is one piece of perfectly smooth, level tarmac and in an excellent state of repair. Every corner does exactly what it says on the tin as you go into it, cambered perfectly and there is nothing but corners. The lack of trees and fencing means the view of the road ahead is complete, you can see for miles and there is not a car on it so the whole width of the is there to play with.

The lead bikes in the group were a GSXR1100 with Harris everything and a piped up R1 streetfighter. Didn't see the Harris again until Durness (he had his tent half up by the time I got there), landed up sticking with an FZR750, learned a lot because the guy has a lot more experience than me. My riding has improved markedly from trying to keep him in sight on a much slower bike.

Camped at Durness and had a coal fire down on the beach, lots of beer. Next morning headed back along the road again, a bit slower this time due to occasional showers but nothing that needed waterproofs. We then went down the west coast to a spot near Sheil Bridge where we had a brilliant campfire in a wooded area near an iron age Broch (which I slept in) before cutting accross to Sterling for the boring whang down the motorway back to Cumbria. Saw 130 on the clocks of the fully laden GPZ500s at one point which ain't bad for a 14 year old bike I payed under a grand for. The front tyre is now totally knackered, most of the tread round the edges has worn smooth and there is some serious melting action going on in what is left of the grooves, a 16" wheel works the front end really hard!

850 miles of flat-out thrashing in total, I think my purchase was a good one, not a drop of oil burned.

Thoroughly good time was had which is why the post is so long, I am still totally pumped from going along that Durness road at silly mph, never had a GPZ so far over and didn't drop out of the power all the way except to stop and take some piccys. There was one point where there is a bridge over a ravine about 300yds long and it has a 90mph sweeper actually on the bridge. Totally nailed it round, huge grin, cackling to oneself inside helmet etc.
____________________
“Rule one: Always stick around for one more drink. That's when things happen. That's when you find out everything you want to know.”
I did the 2010 Round Britain Rally on my 350 Bullet. 89 landmarks, 3 months, 9,500 miles.

[loply]

That looks awesome.

[Fallen Angel]

Excellent post Stinky!!!

You sound like you had a blast. I used to live in Ullapool and the roads around there are just fantastic, I can't wait until I have a bigger bike to go and explore them!

____________________
I have an asshole tolerance level of -10
www.cliqueyclanmcc.co.uk
www.bebo.com/fallenangelfran

[yambabe]

But only green with envy.....

Next year we WILL do some touring in Scotland!
____________________
Sod falling in love, I wanna fall in chocolate.

[JonB]

Scotland is one of those places that you can't avoid visiting and I won't, even though I live about 500 miles from the border.
____________________
Be careful whose advice you buy, but, be patient with those who supply it. Advice is a form of nostalgia, dispensing it is a way of fishing the past from the disposal, wiping it off, painting over the ugly parts and recycling it for more than it?s worth.

[map]