Stockbridge in the countryside

The area where I live in Edinburgh is known as Stockbridge, after the old bridge crossing the Water of Leith.  Originally it was a hamlet, just up the river from the Dean Village where there were lots of mills.  Now Stockbridge is considered one of the trendier parts of Edinburgh and it benefits from a great location (only 10 minutes' walk both to Princes St and the Royal Botanic Gardens) and lots of wee independent shops and bars/restaurants.  The walking/cycling paths along the Water of Leith are also very accessible from here.

Today I cycled through another Stockbridge, but this one is a much smaller settlement.  It is really only a small group of houses and a nursery business, situated just outside Dunblane off the main road leading west to Doune.  It was a very wet morning but by early afternoon it cleared up enough to justify donning the waterproofs and setting off on the bikes.

We cycled first through the town and past the cathedral and over the Allan water (on a very steep, curved bridge which is still too much of a challenge for my skills!) Once we had left the town there was a short section on the main road and then we turned off on the road past the Stockbridge Nursery.  We carried on for a bit on a good tarmac road and spotted this small church on the horizon.

When we checked the map later I saw that it is Kilbryde Chapel and it looks likely to be connected with the nearby Kilbryde Castle.  

The road continues past a few isolated houses and climbs up a fair bit although there were not too many steep gradients.  There were nice views towards Doune and in the other direction we could see the summit of Dumyat hill near Bridge of Allan.  Eventually we stopped and turned back once we had passed a cattle grid and the road had begun to become more rough and felt more private.  We met a wee girl on a pony being led by her mother and they told us that it was possible to carry on further but essentially it was a dead end.

The whole trip took around one and a half hours and was about 12 miles.  It was interesting to cycle on quiet roads in another area close to the town and we decided that next time we will take the map and carry on along the old railway line to Doune as would be a loop rather than the same route there and back (although freewheeling was fun on the return!)

First country cycle ride of the year!

The weather this holiday period has been mild but very wet and windy so it has not been a good  time to do much cycling which is a shame as usually there isn't much opportunity to cycle in daylight at this time of the year.

I had originally planned a longer city trip with a friend on Friday but we had to cancel as it was much too nasty outside to be enjoyable. No bikes yesterday when I met a friend in South Queensferry for lunch and a walk through the Dalmeny estate along the coast of the Firth of Forth.  It was muddy underfoot but the path is mostly under the shelter of trees so it was good to get some exercise and a chance to catch up. 

By the time we returned to the town it was dark but it was the right time to take an atmospheric shot of the first Forth (railway) Bridge.  The cafe where we had eaten had framed newspaper reports of the opening of the Forth Road bridge in 1964 - I am just old enough to remember what a big event that was as it replaced a ferry and quickened the road journey from Fife to Edinburgh.  My friend's husband is currently working on the project to build a the second Forth road bridge which will take some of the pressure off the increase in vehicle numbers on the existing one.

But today I did get out on my mountain bike and we did a longish ride from Dunblane, along the Glen Road and through the woods towards Bridge of Allan and back.  Rather drizzly and misty so no photos to prove it!  We've done the Dunblane-Bridge of Allan circuit a few times on different roads.

This time it was via the golf course which required a long hill climb and the lowest gears for me - although it was much easier on the way back down I felt my stamina was faltering.  However I was pleased to see that I can now negotiate the rough patches in the road in the woods which had thrown me off the bike last year - I feel much more in control of the bike now.  Whilst wearing my helmet I didn't really notice the rain and it was a real pleasure to come back to a lovely cosy house and dry off with a cup of tea in front of a wood fire and feeling much better and brighter for the exercise and fresh air.