Fuel consumption was 31.25 mpg. No oil used. One problem, a connection to the starter came adrift, which was soon fixed.
All in all a very good trip.
Oily Hand's Life with MGs |
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An uneventful day travelling roads we were more familiar with. The Northumberland coast is quite spectacular. We passed Budle bay. Banburgh Castle Beadnell Bay where we took a short walk on the beach. Then on to the lovely Druridge Bay where we ate lunch. Still heading south we passed through Whitley Bay and Tynemouth before finding the Tyne Tunnel and the road to South Shields. This was quite busy but we were soon through it and onto relatively clear roads down through Blackhall, Hartlepool and Seaton Carew before arriving at the Transporter Bridge which was our original finish point. We covered 161 miles today. The total mileage to this point was 1654 of which 294 was travelling to Fort William on day one. The coastal miles that we didn't travel in the summer were 1360.
Fuel consumption was 31.25 mpg. No oil used. One problem, a connection to the starter came adrift, which was soon fixed. All in all a very good trip.
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We deliberately planned a light driving day today as we wanted time to visit the Jim Clark Rooms. This is dedicated to the late great Jim Clark and we've wanted to visit each time we've been in the area but never made it. The first part of the day was finding the Forth Road Bridge which we did after a couple of missed turns. We found the Edinburgh by-pass and sailed round in light traffic and headed towards North Berwick. On the way we saw a sign for the Myreton Motor Museum so we made a detour to visit. Quite a good selection of exhibits. After a pleasant 45 minutes or so we headed off for Duns and navigated a poorly signposted diversion to get there. The Jim Clark Room was well worth the visit but no photos as they're not allowed. We eventually left just before closing time and headed for our B&B a few miles away. Just 123 miles today but a lot of enjoyable time spent at Myreton and the Jim Clark Rooms.
After breakfast we took a stroll round the area to see what there was. Leaving Fraserburgh we headed on to Peterhead and then to Aberdeen. The ring road round Aberdeen was very busy and it took quite a while to get round. The wind had picked up and we were pleased to be in a closed car. Stonehaven was next then on to Montrose. We rook a white road down to Lunan where we stopped for lunch and a short stroll on the beach. Onwards down the coast through Dundee & St Andrews then round to Crail and Leven. Easy going till we hit Kirkaldy where traffic was heavier, speed limit was 20mph and there were speed bumps everywhere. Our arrival at the B&B in North Queensferry gave us our first and only problem with the car. We misread the signs and pulled up in the wrong driveway. When we left the car wouldn't start. Lights were working but there was no action from the starter motor. It turned out to be a wire had come adrift from the starter. There are two connections it could have fitted and it took a couple of goes to get the right one. I was laid on my side working by feel. That's my excuse anyway. Once we found the right place, it was amazing. The cottage was over 200 years old and the Forth Rail Bridge had been built over the top of it. The old & new road bridges were right in front of it. A steady 193 miles today.
We woke up to a very chilly day and a car covered in frost. Before we set off I took a quick shot of the sunrise. It was an amazing morning travelling along the mist shrouded Cromarty Firth. Lunch was taken just outside Ardersier and the mist finally cleared. We headed on to Lossiemouth where we met a great Australian Father & son team who were free camping round Scotland on a mission to visit old family haunts. We followed the coast road to Macduff then took a poorly signed diversion due to a problem in Pennan, but we made it OK and had a straightforward run to Fraserburgh. The sun was still being a nuisance for driving. Our B&B was pretty basic and lacked the lovely views we'd become used to. An easy 183 miles today.
It was a steady away drive on almost deserted roads across the top of Scotland. Great views as normal. We took a short excursion up to Dunnet Head, the most northerly point of mainland Britain. Then it was a short run to John O Groats where we had lunch in the car park and got the obligatory photo by the signpost. Heading south now, towards home. The sun was very bright in a blue sky and was a bit of a pain for driving, even with sunglasses on. Pam had trouble reading the map as it was so much in shadow in the car. We eventually arrived at our B&B in Kildary. It was a beautiful place. 221 miles today
This was the day I'd been looking forward to the most. Applecross Pass was on the route and what a super drive it was. The views out of the side window weren't to be sneezed at. We took the white road round the coast to rejoin the A896 From there it was onto the A835 to Ullapool then took the B869 round the coastline. This was another narrow road in places and a challenging drive but the scenery made the effort worthwhile. Arriving at our B&B in Kinlochbervie we found we had covered 230 miles.
We left Fort William and travelled across the top of Loch Linnhe and along the other side. Narrow rough(ish) roads but great fun with a lovely view of Fort William across the loch. We travelled north again and up to Mallaig and back. Lunch was al fresco at Glen Mordant Onwards up the A82 & A87 and across the Skye Bridge, just to say we'd done it. We arrived at our B&B in Lochcarron and found we didn't have a room, we had a chalet. Wow! talk about an upgrade. Wherever we go in this part of Scotland there are stunning views. The 248 miles today showed plenty. Following the unplanned early finish of the Numbum Round Britain tour, there were some roads we hadn't travelled. We decided that we had to do them so we set off in the BGT. Numbum was broken so couldn't go and it was a bit too cold for us anyway. With oil, water & tyre pressures checked and a full tank of fuel we headed off across the A66 and onwards up the M6, A74M and A82. We stopped for coffee & cake at Loch Lomond. From there it was northwards though the beautiful Glen Coe. A largely uneventful run from there brought us to our B&B in Fort William. One interesting thing about our satnav is it asks for a house number as well as a postcode. We didn't have a house number so put in the Number 1. As we approached Fort William it said 'Arriving at destination on left'. That wasn't much good as on our left was Loch Linnhe. It would have been a damp night if we'd stopped there. We found the B&B easily though and the view from our room window was superb. An easy 284 miles and that was just to the start of our journey.
We were taking the TA for a weekend away, meeting Bill & Sally Silcock for the presentation of the Montague Burton Trophy which we were awarded for our exploits on the Numbum Round Britain trip. We set off in high spirits but about 60 miles into the journey we suffered a rear suspension failure. The left rear spring mounting broke completely away and the wheel ended up right inside the rear wing. We were going nowhere. I called Sally and cancelled the trip and saved them a long journey for nothing. We got Numbum recovered home. Once Numbum was back in the garage, safe & sound we grabbed a bite to eat, loaded up the MG3, now called TYO (The Yellow One) and headed off for our planned night stop. The plan was now to travel down to Bill & Sally's place for the presentation which we duly did the next morning. We had a great time meeting Bill & Sally and enjoyed some great chat, lovely coffee and super ginger cake. Thanks Sally! We then headed outside for the presentation in front of a row of MGs. Pity Numbum wasn't there but that's life. Photos to follow. While we were in that neck of the woods we drove across to the delightful village of Woburn where we spent an hour or so before heading back home. The stunning trophy is now with us for a while.
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AuthorHi, I'm Owen and I've been having fun with MGs since 1970, starting with my 1937 MGTA. Since then I've had three Y types and a couple of Z Magnettes. I now have a 1971 MGB GT along with the TA and my wife and I are still having fun Archives
September 2020
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