Route out – Gorebridge to Gore Glen to Carrington to Temple. For route map click here.
Route back – Temple to Castleton Farm to Halkerston Farm to Fushiebridge to Gorebridge. For route map click here.
- Weather – hot and sunny and hardly any wind.
- Distance travelled – 12.09 miles
- Riding time – 1 hour 22 minutes
- Maximum speed – 25.4 mph
- Average Speed – 8.6 mph
It was a lovely sunny evening so Dad and I went for a short cycle after tea on a circular route to Temple and back. Tonight we saw baby cows, baby horses, 1 tractor, 2 trains, only 3 cars but loads of bikes. For a change, we headed downhill out of Gorebridge and soon we were zooming down the steep slope into Gore Glen, where I reached my fastest speed of the day. After that, it was all uphill along a very quiet single track road until we reached the village of Carrington where we stopped at a bench to have a quick oatcake and a drink.
The road from Carrington to Temple is a proper road with a white line down the middle and you normally see a few cars on this section. Tonight, however, it was deserted because there was a sign saying “road closed” just at the edge of Carrington village. We decided to take a chance and ignored the sign and headed towards Temple anyway. As it turned out, the sign had lied and only one lane of the road was shut for roadworks for only about 100 yards.
The road into Temple is very rough and bumpy and also extremely steep but the village is really lovely so we stopped there for another oatcake. A mile or so after Temple, we bumped into Dad’s friend Scott from North Middleton, who was also out on his bike. Dad used to play in a band called Dropkick with Scott until he left the band a year and a half ago so that he could go cycling more often with me… I made Scott pose for a photo before he went on his way to Gladhouse Reservoir a few miles further along the road.
We headed in the opposite direction and when we reached Castleton Farm, we turned right onto a narrow road which took us gradually uphill to the highest point on the route at Halkerston Farm. This is a very quiet road and I don’t think I’ve ever seen another cyclist on it – maybe it’s our secret road. Near the bottom of the hill you get a really good view over the Pentland hills and near the top the view is even better: you can see Gorebridge, Edinburgh, the Firth of Forth and the Lomond Hills in Fife. After the farm it was downhill all the way to Fushiebridge and after another short uphill section, we were soon back home in Gorebridge.
Rowan's Recommended Riding Routes 