The cycling begins.

The first night on Barra degenerated a little after having left the pub early. It was decided to head black to bunkhouse and have a nightcap and head to bed at a reasonable time and be fresh for cycling. There was a braw fire warming the sitting room and we made ourselves comfortable. Guy had taken the sensible option and went to bed so 5 glasses were acquired from the kitchen and Kenny's bottle of Shakelton whisky was opened. The nightcap was had but unfortunately the bottle wasn't put away, there was actually an agenda here for Kenny, he had no intention of carrying th weight of this bottle in his panniers, so the bottle was duly passed around again, and then again til it was finished. This did however ensure a good night sleep. Alarms were set for 7am, the forecast was good so we were keen to get up early and make the most of the day, it was also a bit of a unknown as to how the cycling kit, and distance would go. It was therefor a major disappointment to wake up to a very overcast day and fairly heavy rain. However, we have all the kit of all weathers and waterproofs we're domned and we finally set off at 8.40. The cycle round to Vatersay and the start of the Hebridean way went well, although Kenny was having some lower gear issues on the steeper climbs. It was cold and driech for feet and hands as it is impossible to keep the extremities dry. After obligatory photos at the start of the route, we turned around and cycled the few miles back over the causeway and up the very steep hill we had happily freewheeled down earlier, this saw a couple of the group off and pushing. The wee cafe opposite the school was welcome sanctuary of warmth and also our place for our late breakfast