Day -1
June 9th - The journey to Inverness.

After the usual panic getting ready I put everything into the panniers and then decided to see exactly how much it all weighed. I climbed onto the bathroom scales then lifted the bike and it worked out as 31kg. I've never ridden with anything like that on the back before but I am pretty sure I need everything that is in there. I came out of the house in Torquay at 8.15am to find a beautiful sunny day, 71 degrees according to the bike computer. The first uphill bit didn't feel too bad but trying to stop on the first downhill was a lot trickier than I am used to. My train wasn't due to leave until 9am so I had plenty of time to ride the 5 miles to Newton Abbot. It was only when I was half way there that I realised that, if I got a puncture, then I was in trouble. Thankfully I got there with air in the tyres and the train was on time. With the bike in the rack the next stop for me would be Edinburgh. I spent the time watching the scenery go by and looking out for any hilly sections which I could avoid on the way back. Being on a train I probably got a distorted view of the landscape but most of it seemed flat.
At Newcastle an Edinburgh lass called Kirsten got on with a bike and I helped her get it into the rack. She turned out to be a former Isle of Skye resident and knew the north of Scotland like the back of her hand. Two minutes later we had the maps out and she was scribbling all over them in green pen. She pointed out all the places to avoid as well as those that are worth a detour to visit. My favourite bit was when she wrote "Dont even think about it" on the area just south of John O'Groats and advised me to head west and come down that coast instead. I hoped to get some route advice from locals along the way but I didn't expect it before the start ! Anyway it would be silly of me not to listen to her. She also suggested that I buy some better maps and a camping stove and also that I should try eating an oyster. The first two - maybe, but probably not the third ! We both got off at Edinburgh and she gave me the full guided tour before I headed back to the train station to get on the train to Inverness.
I should have known that it was all going too well and this is where the problems started. On my ticket it said that the train would get into Inverness at 9pm and I told the lady at the bed & breakfast to expect me soon after that. However, the first announcement on the train said that it was due into Inverness at 11.15. I checked with another passenger and it turned out that the time on my ticket was wrong. I then had to call the B&B and explain that I would be 2 hours later than planned. Fortunately they were fine about it. So here I am at the Eildon Guest House which seems very nice and tomorrow I should have time for a quick look around Inverness followed by a lovely, relaxing train ride up to Thurso and a 20 mile bike ride across to the youth hostel at John O'Groats ready for the start on Monday morning.