spiggie to scalloway

Yet again the roads were snow and iced over when I awoke and yet again I met Chris outside for coffee this time for the last time, loading the bike up with the packed panniers and bags takes a bit of time anyway, this would give the gritters and the sun some time to make the roads a bit safer for me, BTW I love the Scottish government APP for the gritters they all have mega cool names and you can check if your intended route has been gritted, I was sad to be leaving the spiggie the views are awesome what an excellent location for beaches and bird watching,

once on the go I was only up the road two or three mile when an irritating rubbing noise started? It turned out the front panniers must have been too heavy and had slid sown a wee bitty, sitting on the front mudguard which was now slightly rubbing the front tyre! I had to stop and make adjustments, just a quick fix involving a bungee, again, I had chosen the main road knowing it would be free of black ice by that time of day, the weather was excellent, I have been along this section of road around 200 times mostly by coach occasionally in a car, it’s so much more scenic on a bike I seen sights I had never seen before and was able to pay proper close inspection to stuff I had seen from windows previously thinking what was that as I flashed past,

the first photo stop was at the sixty degrees north sign, The sixtieth parallel marks a borderland between the northern and southern worlds. Wrapping itself around the lower reaches of Finland, Sweden, and Norway, it crosses the tip of Greenland and the southern coast of Alaska, and slices the great expanses of Russia and Canada in half. The parallel also passes through Shetland, there is wee signs for this invisible border into the northern world at both sides of the road, every cycle tourist I have seen stops to take photos here I was joining in on the fun and took loads of photos, plus a wee bit go pro footage playing and learning with all my stands poles and connectors for remote filming/ photo shooting,

I then had further stops firstly at a closed museum at cunningsburgh then at a shop called mackenzies where I bought a hot cup of soup and some juice they didn’t sell beer! After cycling through Quarf, I spotted a motorist heading in the opposite direction that I knew! It was tommy T, he acknowledged he had seen me by rolling down the window and putting his hand out with the thumbs up, I pulled up at the side of the road and waited thinking he would turn and come back for a chat but he never did!

It wasn’t far from Quarf to my destination it had been a 21-mile cycle from the spiggie hotel to easterhoull chalets Scalloway, I cycled over the brow off the hill to a glorious vista of a setting sun with clear skies Scalloway harbour and castle frames in a frosty sunset scene Braw,

These wee self-catered chalets where the recommendation mark had given me and it was an ace recommendation, I had phoned them up to book myself in for three nights the previous day, I was mega chuffed to see the sign for them right at the start of town, with fantastic views over the town harbour and castle I had to take a lot of care though as my chalet was down some steep slippery stairs, which I done in three trips for panniers & bags, then the daunder on the shoulder holding the railing with my mitts taking care due to slippy cycle shoes on! Right away I went for a walk into town to catch the shops I could cook myself dinner in the chalet with chilled ales this was glamping