The day was gloriously sunny, with only a few clouds. As soon as I got out of Edinburgh and into Musselburgh, the path took me right next to the water and you could smell the salty air and see the expansive mud flats at low tide. These areas were teaming with mussels and other invertebrates that attracted many coastal birds, including the very majestic mute swan. I was enjoying the scenery so much -which transitioned from the seaside to charming countryside lanes, roadside wildflowers and fields of red poppies- and I was taking so many pictures that I had a feeling that I wasn't biking fast enough. I planned Dunbar to be my lunch spot since it was roughly half way to Berwick and was a bit annoyed with myself when I instead got there at 2pm. But alas, I thought, I'm on vacation! It shouldn't take that long to bike the last 30-35 miles, right?! Well, about 3 miles outside Dunbar I got my first flat tire. No biggie, I thought. In fact, since I knew it was likely to happen at some point on the trip, I was glad to get the first one out of the way so it wouldn't seem like a big deal. It took me some time, but i finally patched the front tire and was on my way again. I felt proud of myself until about 5 miles later, when the tire was flat again. This is annoying, I thought. But I was riding over some thistle so perhaps it was just bad luck. Found the puncture, patched it up - faster this time- and kept riding. Then a third flat another 5 miles down. At this point I'm getting tired, and the countryside - though beautiful- is starting to lose it's allure. I figured I needed to replace the tube. So fixed the flat again, looking at the tire if there was a visible thorn. Nothing. Kept riding. The terrain started sloping down steeply and i got some amazing views of the coast. As i was climbing the moor on the other side, gazing at the cattle and sheep pastures, i get a fourth flat! I was fed up at this point and decided to just keep pumping up the tire to keep going. The climb was a killer! Especially since my front tire kept going flat. So I was making very slow progress and was worried I had made a wrong turn since I wasn't seeing many signs. The clouds had rolled in at this point so it seemed darker at 6pm than I expected. I was getting nervous that I wasn't going to make it to Berwick! I started thinking of a change of plans, including possibly nestling for the night in one of the sheep pastures- the temp doesn't drop much at night here, right?! I finally made it up the moor and saw a sign to verify my whereabouts. I go a little further until my tire flats out again, pump it up and check my map. Another 10 miles to go! How am I going to ride like this for another 10 miles?! I'm at an intersection and I've stopped beside the only cottage I've seen close to the road for miles. The map shows a good couple miles before I even come to another intersection and there's no guarantee there will be people nearby.
I nervously looked at the house, mustered up some courage, and knocked on the door. I'm sure they were surprised to be visited by a tired and filthy cyclist with a flat tire! Luckily, the young family, who raised sheep and cattle on their farm, didn't seem too startled seeing a stinky, frightened animal like myself. William answered the door and was amazingly understanding, helpful and generous. He ended up driving me and my bike the rest of the way to Berwick!! He even stopped at the England/Scotland border and took my picture! What nice people are the Scots :) (Thank you again, William!)
I stayed that night at the Backpacker's hostel in Berwick - a luxuriously clean and friendly place - a welcome contrast to the place I stayed at in Edinburgh and after a tiring day on the bike. I met many nice travellers at the hostel, including Jane from Colorado and Matt from Oregon. After a shower and a drink at a nearby pub with Jane and Matt, I nestled into a cozy bed - thankfully not a sheep pasture - for a long night's sleep.
Today, I had originally planned to bike to Alnwick, but decided instead to take my bike to the bike shop (only a block away from the hostel!) and figure out what was wrong with the tire. Turned out there was a cleverly hidden piece of glass embedded in the tire. After replacing both tubes with special tubes that contain a self-sealing green 'slime', I walked the streets of Berwick and chilled out. Tomorrow I plan to continue my bike journey to Alnwick and then take a train the next day from nearby Alnmouth to Newcastle to avoid the craziness of biking into a major city. Well, I think that's all for now folks! I'm having a great time and am truly thankful to meet such wonderful people along the way. Life isn't about the destination, it's about the journey. I hope some of you are still thinking of joining me at some point on the trip - it's been an inspiring experience!
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