There was a bit of rain overnight and
it was cold and dull as I packed my tent away. The noisy passing
trains started quite early. I wheeled my bike through the railway
underpass then cycled along the cinder track to the outskirts of
Burnisland. It was before 7am as I cycled through the centre of
Burntisland and being a Saturday I wasn’t surprised that I didn’t
see a single person. When I reached the coast road there was a woman
waiting in bus stop and she was the first person I’d seen. After the
town I came to a monument by the road to
Alexander III who was the last Celtic Scottish King. He died
near the spot in 1286 apparently after falling from his horse while
riding alone.
I rode on through Kinghorn then out
onto the open road which was quite undulating. In the distance I
could see Kirkcaldy which is where I’d planned to catch to train
back to Edinburgh. Instead of going directly to the Railway Station
I decided to cycle along the front but it wasn’t as impressive as
I’d hoped. I turned back into the town and up to the Kirkaldy
Galleries. Everything was shut so I rode round to the front of the
railway station on the west side. It was the wrong side for the
Edinburgh trains so I had to take the lift down and up again to the
east side. A train was already waiting on the platform so I managed
to get on it and bought my ticket while on-board. It was the 07:40
and much earlier than my plan.
By the
sea at Kirkcaldy
It was £5.15 single but the woman
short changed me a pound from the £10 I gave her. I didn’t notice
until she’d started walking away so it was too late. I wasn’t
bothered as I was well ahead of schedule. It was nice to have a
wonderful view from the Forth Rail Bridge as we passed over. The
road bridge was out there across the water. The first stop was
Haymarket then a few minutes further on we were in Edinburgh
Waverley Station. The next train to Preston was the 08:51 and I had
plenty of time. Unfortunately when I bought my ticked they said the
first available bike reservation wasn’t until after 14:17.
The two
road bridges from the rail bridge
I bought a £25.70 ticket anyway and a
14:17 reservation. I went to the platform where the Virgin train was
waiting to leave for London Euston. The guard said there was space
for my bike. He also said there were already 4 bike reservations but
nobody turned up. So I was OK for my earlier journey back. I was
back in Preston for 11:15. I called at the Preston ticket window to
cancel my later bike reservation then had a nice cycle ride home in
the warm sunshine.
Return to
Whittle Wanderer
