St Fillans

Oh yes, long gone are the street names of Edinburgh; we're onto the far flung villages of Scotland as the cat and mouse / Tom and Jerry escapdes of Cigs the artist and Cigs the photographer go epic widescreen in their scope. 
And another train / bike combo. To Dunblane and then 7 miles to drop a couple of bottles of malt with the old man (it's *nearly* Father's Day after all) and the long slog up the Langside road to Comrie. Past various staging posts of my earlier life; the first Scout camp at Glenlichorn and then the lay by where we used to go and smoke spliffs after closing time; Annie Nightingale soundtracking our rambling stoner chat as unwittingly we become potential Tory leaders with our recreational drug use.
And the long descent into Comrie; the ex's best friend's house as you hit the village; the church where long time colleague Ian's wedding was. And a tail wind on the descents too. Not ideal cos having decided not to continue the loop back around Lochearnhead but instead accept the offer of lunch in the sleepy village I knew all that I had sped down would soon become an interminable grind back up.

And so to St Fillans; the furthest outpost of my teenage years; this was the last point that kids would come to the same high school as me; Tom B and Gavin C hailed from here - and beyond this the known world ended. Genteel and manicured; unruffled and calm. Not like common Lochearnhead on the wrong side of the tracks, with its' speedboats and day trippers, chips and ice cream. St Fillans is afternoon tea and botanical rarities. Village fetes and coffee mornings. A most unlikely setting for Cigs. In purple, no less!

And so I sat awhile on the bench just to the right of the tag. Gazing out across the loch; a solitary white sail gliding about. Grey skies, but warm. I picked the greenfly from my teeth and hair; took a few shots and pondered where next I might end up on this ridiculous but essential endeavour. 

The climb back out of Comrie is not to be recommended. The lunch in the sleepy village however is. 

If I were to offer requests - I've never been to Arran. The East Neuk offers plenty opportunities. The Moray Coast. Anywhere on the NC500, even Wick. Ardrossan, anyone? 

I think we need to ramp up the exposure and get all of Scotland searching high and low for the inevitable finds that must be out there somewhere. Undiscovered, await another ridiculous bike ride / train ride expedition.

Another 100km clocked up in the line of duty.