Metal work along the canal

Day 33 Edinburgh - Falkirk. 32.57 miles

I left Edinburgh in brilliant sunshine with Richard who kindly escorted me through the city to the start of the canal. It seemed hard to believe that this tow path would take me for 30 miles all the way to Falkirk.

For the first six miles the surface was tarmac with lots of people walking and cycling, but form then on it was more of a rough track, sometimes wide enough for two bikes to pass and at other times scarcely room for one.

Richard had told me that the only place where I might get a coffee would be at  a pub in Ratho about 10 miles along the tow path. So despite it hardly being open, the chairs were still on the tables, I stopped and was glad I did as it was another 15 miles before there was anywhere else.

Shortly after leaving Ratho I met Mary from Australia who had just started touring and was cycling route 1. I wish her luck in finding the way as she had already found out that the signs are not always what they should be, but at least she had GPS.

Cycling 30 miles along a flat tow path did at times become very boring, on the rough ground it wasn't possible to do more than 6 miles per hour and I went for long periods without seeing a soul. There were very few boats and the only excitement came when going under the bridges, many of which had uneven cobbled surfaces. After about 22 miles there was a Tearoom, however it was on the other side of the canal, there was a bridge but no way up to it. A little further on a small path had been worn through obviously by other people with the same intent as me in need of a cup of tea.

Once refreshed it was back to the tow path for the last eight miles. I and been told by Cath, my host for the night that I would come to a tunnel and once through she only lived minutes away. The tunnel is about a third of a mile long and cyclists are told to walk through it. I could see another cyclist coming through so waited before entering. She soon emerged. It was Fiona and she reassured me that it was possible to cycle through and quite safe as although the surface was cobbled and wet there was a rail between me and canal. I started off very nervously but soon gained confidence. It felt great when I finally reach the end I got off my bike and shouted back into the tunnel "l DID IT". So thank you Fiona and enjoy your trip.

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