Footprints on Ice.

Today couldn't be more different to yesterday. My morning bike ride starts off a little icy. It looked a little sketchy cycling on the Seafield Moor Rd, so I decide to avoid the Auchencorth Moor Rd to West Linton going to Auchendinny and cycling up to Howgate. As I do so the temperature, which was about 2deg C gets closer to 0. On the way up, I get a good shot of the Pentlands, Penicuik and a sheep, Extra.

For the next few miles, it stays just about above 0. However as I descend in to Romannobridge from Lamanca, the temperature drops below 0, and I begin to wonder if taking the Moor Rd back to Penicuik is a good idea.

I needn't of worried. As I climb towards Bogsbank, the cloud clear and the sun comes out. The temperature climbs to 4 deg C pretty quickly. There is a dusting of snow on the grass at West Linton, but the road is clear. Its looking good as I climb out of Whitfield.

There's more snow. At the top, I stop and put by bike to one side. Even the road is icy up here, but I can see a way though. A nearby pond has iced over, and on top, there are the footprints of an animal.

I get back on my bike. I follow a rut in the snow and ice along the road. The ice and snow finishes where the trees end, and the road is clear. Where cars have driven through puddles, there's some residual ice, but its not bad. The worse bit, where I was very careful, was on the descent off the Moor Rd to Ravensneuk. The road hadn't been gritted, and was ice right across. Fortunately the road surface is very rough, and I took it carefully to the A701. From here, it was a fast descent in to Penicuik, a quite fast ride through Penicuik, and then a fast ride backalong the Seafield Moor Rd, which was, by now, totally free of ice.

In the afternoon, my partner and I went down to the Biscuit Factory to visit a craft and food market. The cheese was nice (three bought, one with chilli, one with pepper and one with orange and whisky, the latter surprisingly sweet). We then visited the few charity shops that were open on Leith Walk, then went off in search of coffee. One the way, we passed the Wee Leith Shop, Extra.

A nice Sunday. :-)