Saturday Morning Bike Ride

On the road for 7am. At this stage I still had lots to do for the family celebration we were having on Sunday, but it was very nice to escape the house and the cleaning/tidying for a few hours.

A hazy morning (I had been hoping for one of the lovely golden mornings you can get in August, but it wasn't to be).

Crow on hawthorn.

A view of fields over a brambly hedge.

Seagull on telegraph pole.

Favourite fence post and golden field.

And again.

A different fence post and field, a few miles further on.

This is a good route for golden fields at this time of year. Sometimes though I feel reluctant to head out this way, especially if I'd not been cycling as often as I'd like to and am feeling a little unfit. It's downhill to begin with, which is nice, except that on the way home (when I'm not quite so fresh and the old legs are tired) I have to finish the ride with a steep uphill climb. Ughhhh.

A much zoomed shot of the view of distant Glasgow tower blocks.

Curious cows, I like the expression of the one with the eye patches.

Three black cows are lined up further to the right, here I like the shape of their ears.

Ooooh, bales, I do like taking photos of bales (not sad, honest!). 

I decide to take the road past the Formakin Estate, quite a few of the lovely buildings are easily visible from the road.

The buildings are designed to look old but only date from the early 1900's.

Instead of gate posts there are little stone gate towers around the estate. This one has a rather ferny topping.

It's been a while since I've been along this road and I'd forgotten how pretty the views are.

All the estate buildings are now private dwellings.

Lovely countryside, and look, blue sky.

Umbellifers. In general, there aren't as many wildflowers along these roads as there are along the ones I've been frequenting recently.

A last set of stone gate supports.

More fields of bales.

A little red barn in the distance (for Mrs Micawber)

Now a view over the Clyde as it widens from a river to a firth.

A very green field dotted with cows and contrasting nicely with the rosebay willowherb in front. Some decorative stonework also included.

I faff around for a couple of minutes trying to get a decent shot of the gates nearby. I turn to look across to the other side of the road and...

...realise I'm causing a mini stampede.

The biggest cow line-up yet. Just a shame the hedge is a little too high to see them all clearly.

On again, more Clyde views but sadly the mountains to the north are obscured by the haze.

Up a steep hill, taking a photo of this little tin roofed building is a good excuse to stop for breath.

I like the colours of the roof. It's hard to see in the photo, but the rusting orange matches the colour of the rowan berries in the trees behind.

Harebells.

Almost at the top.

This is the view to my left. The sun is starting to shine more strongly now and it's turning out to be a gorgeous morning.

And this is the view to my right.

Now I'm at the top. It's a wonderful feeling and the views are marvellous (though difficult to capture on camera). After this point I cycle the remaining ten miles or so back home without taking many more photos. I've taken enough and it's good to just enjoy the cycling. I stop in one of the villages I pass through to visit their charity shop (one I've not been to for a while) and must put my jacket back on to make space in my rack bag for a Meakin casserole dish and lid (a not-to-be-missed bargain at £2). By the time I reach the dreaded hill before home I'm feeling a little hot.

Just before the hill I pass the tree at the corner, which always calls for a photo. And I get up the hill without too much puffing at all so I'll fear it less next time I'm out.