Day 45 – Glen Ey

Wednesday 9th June

Fittingly, today was one of the best bike rides of the journey. Yesterday along the Dee and up to Geldie Lodge had been in a wide and wild valley, but today gained more height more quickly, more water in the river, and much more green around. The strong wind was still there, making the trip up the valley much tougher, but the return almost a sail down. There was mist and light rai, which grew heavier the further up the Glen I got. The only people I met were a couple about my age who had camped higher up. They had planned to return this morning over the hills to the north, but it was much wetter underfoot than they had expected.

Braemar itself is not my sort of place. The ‘royalty’ tag spreads here from Balmoral, and most of the visitors are in the area because of that. Staying out in the Dee valley is a much better option.