Galloway Cycling Holidays offer guided rides along the beautiful south west coast of Scotland, the mesmerizing uplands of Galloway and a series of inspiring rides from their hub in the artists’ town of Kirkcudbright.
We found time to go to the man made Sand Martin home near Tongland. It had been busy just a few weeks ago with birds flying in and out. Now there are none, which came as a surprise. They are often the first of the Hirundinidae to get here and though we pay less attention to it, the first to leave. So, I guess that I lit the fire last night and passing thought about turning on the heating means that summer is fading.
But there are good things and wonderful things about this time of the year. Berries and mushrooms for two. Walking the quiet lanes of Galloway would be great, but takes too much time, which is where the bike wins. Slow enough to glimpse the field full of mushrooms near Palnackie and fast enough not to take all day over it.
We have biked to a particular wood 4 times now to gather Chanterelle, which are early this year. Not once have we found them, but you still get a nice bike ride. So you have to be open to failure. I asked a hunter we met in the USA about coming home empty handed and he had a great response, ” If you knew you were going to get something it would be called shopping “.
Many of the bike rides at the moment are slower affairs often with the intention of noting where the good patches of Sloes are for a few weeks time, or picking Brambles. They are both destined to turn a poor gin into something magical. So, I guess I am not talking about a route to bike or a destination but more about just getting out.
A few days ago we knew we needed to get out early as we had things to do. Just 7’c and the first ride with long fingered gloves as we set off on the bikes at just gone 7.00am to go ‘ shroomin ‘. Low sun casting the first long shadows since spring and the world still in bed on this Saturday morning.
The great thing about now is that to get that first person out of bed feeling you do not need to be up stupidly early. It is a feeling that can set you up for the day with enough of a feeling of smugness to put a spring in your step well into the afternoon.
Over the bridge at Bridge of Dee, with the river high once more and moving with some purpose to Kirkcudbright. Threave Castle is catching the first sun. This is the best side to view the castle and early morning the best time of day. Not a breath of wind. We turn right then left at Glenlochar, by the bridge where you first see the Sand Martins in Spring.
The River Dee here is perfection, the landscape in a quiet way, as beautiful as any in Scotland. We have the sun behind us and are chasing our shadows along the quiet lane. We ride into Ken-Dee Marshes reserve and can hear ducks on the loch to our right. This is a special place and little visited. We heard the years first Cuckoo here which feels like yesterday and years ago.
The track is bumpy. I have been here on a road bike on knife like tyres but this is easy on the wide rubber of the gravel bikes. Some of the best trees in Galloway line the track further on and the river as it becomes The Black Water of Dee does a good imitation of a Highland stream as it flows over rocks. It is wonderfully Guinness Black, which I guess is where it got the name Black.
The wood we are here to visit is on the left. We park the bikes and send up a dozen Corvids. The Ravens are not happy that we have stopped. Now it is time to search under the Beech trees. There are many mushrooms all but one beyond our limited knowledge. Not a sign of Chanterelle. But just before we give in, there is the most perfect Boletus.
We wrap it in a coat and it goes in the big bag under the saddle. That will do for the morning. We are back home before 9.00 having had a small adventure and seen Galloway at its best, with dew on the grass and golden and warming to a new day.
Meet Warren & Esther of Galloway Cycling Holidays
If you have ever stood next to either of us at a party, … you will already know we are nuts about bikes. If you share the love, let us show you the quiet roads of Scotland’s hidden gem.
For more than 20 years now we have been doing increasingly ambitious things on bicycles. We started with short tours on unsuitable bikes and dressed like tramps. We made every possible mistake, but still had fun.
Now, we have a shed full of bikes from the exotic to the practical and have done well over 100,000 miles. We have ridden short and appallingly fast sportives, numbingly long endurance events and a 4 year trip twice around the world on loaded touring bikes.
It’s now time to pass on the passion. We love the place where we live, its people, landscape and wildlife and we know where to get the best coffee and cake and which way the wind blows.
