Day 4: Ga’an hame, with Yan, in the rain.

Pitlochly to Aberdour (65 Miles)

The pitter patter of raindrops on the roof of the tent proved to be the perfect remedy for me to fall asleep last night, it also proved to be foreshadowing for the day ahead. After a great night’s sleep, I packed up the tent and headed back into town. There, I met Fiona, who kindly paid for our breakfast and Iain, a good school friend who would be joining me on today’s cycle. The destination, my home village of Aberdour.

They had driven over an hour to meet me in Pitlochry, and after a few miles, I’m pretty sure Iain wished they hadn’t bothered. It’s difficult to remember a time today when it wasn’t raining, although the rain did at least alter in strength throughout the day to keep things interesting. Iain may not have enjoyed cycling in the rain, but I certainly enjoyed the company. We were riding at a good speed, on a mixture of small country roads and cycle paths and before long we had Perth in our sights. Lunch in Perth provided a welcome break from the rain, but our short break only seemed to anger the rain gods further, who then responded with the heaviest shower yet.

Shortly after Perth was the small village of Bridge of Earn, which also provided the starting point for the day’s main hill climb. Iain left me in his dust (he did kindly wait for me at the top), although there was little time for celebrating at the summit because we were both now very wet. The next milestone of the day was my glorious return to the kingdom of Fife, Iain didn’t seem quite as excited about this, but I could tell he was.

A few more pedals, a few more miles and we were soon entering into Aberdour, arriving home at the exact same time as the Granny, who was visiting for dinner. Also visiting was my sister and a few family friends which made for a very enjoyable evening. Good to be back home, good to get everything dried out and great to have some company for the days riding.