Return Journey and Credits

As you can imagine I have had the best snooze in a while.

When I got up, a fresh – sunny – breezy morning was outside to meet me, like a clean slate waiting for the next adventure.

I took my time to make the last porridge of this trip..

.. packed my stuff and headed off, waving good-bye at my finishing land mark.

Yesterday I did have grand plans of maybe jumping on a ferry to Orkney and taking my bike over for a day. But I have decided that Orkney deserves better attention than of a slightly knackered bear, with one day to spare. Also I owe the north coast line of the mainland a visit on my bike, to complete the last section of the cycle route 7 through Lairg and Tongue (since I came here via east coast).

So I head to Thurso rail station. When I arrive there’s a three carriage train just waiting for me. Everyone has already boarded, and the conductor asks me if I’m coming on board. I jump on, and the doors close behind me. Perfect timing.

The train slowly makes it’s way through highlands, like a wee toy dwarfed by the scenery surrounding it. I do feel an urge to pedal, but to avoid confusing my fellow passengers keep my legs under control.

It’s pretty weird to see some of the places I’ve cycled through, zoom past me in minutes.

Road to Golspie

River Truim

Approaching the 1st Cairnorm Summit

Approaching Dalwhinnie

Somewhere along A9 and River Garry

Loch Garry

Along A9

Somewhere along A9 and River Garry

Well, the bear is home and has a fantastic stack of memories left from this trip.

Whenever I look at the UK map now, it just feels all local. But I know that even what I saw, and I saw a lot, it’s just a margin of what this beautiful island has to offer.

So, I’d like to thank all of my friends, family and colleagues for following, sponsoring and supporting me on this journey.

These nomadic wanderings around UK have helped to achieve a great deal of personal aims and has been a truly fantastic experience which has brought tons more ideas for future.

But the journey has served a very particular purpose too. From the very start I set out to raise some funds for a Glasgow based children’s charity Yorkhill Muscle Fund that specialises in providing improvements towards the mobility of children and young adults with neuromuscular disorders. The response has been fantastic and the figure is still growing.

The donations will be accepted through Just Giving website until 31st October 2013, so if any of you wish to add your name to the list of contributors please follow this link:

https://www.justgiving.com/rboab-lizard-dunnet

I’d like to thank Rosie Brawley at YMF for all her help, and congratulate her on doing a grand job running the charity in her spare time, whilst being a working mother of three children herself.

YORKHILL MUSCLE FUND | www.yorkhillmusclefund.org.uk

Another person that I would like to thank is Paul Bellard at the Service Point in Glasgow, who has kindly agreed to print all the fundraising leaflets free of charge.