Port Edgar & Charlestown to Alloa (with Inner Forth Bus Hop-on Hop-off)

Join Aba-Sah on a ride to Port Edgar (South Queensferry) to catch the Inner Forth Bike Bus to Charlestown. Following a brief visit to Charlestown Harbour and the limekilns, the ride will be one way to Alloa, via Tulliallan Castle and Gartmorn Dam, completing the southern section of the inner Forth loop on the bus.
Please turn up at 08:00 for a briefing before the start at 08:05 prompt - the bus departs Port Edgar at 09:25.

DIFFICULTY/DISTANCE Intermediate, predominantly traffic free paths and cycle-friendly B roads. While a relatively relaxed ride, less experienced cyclists will need also good handling skills or experience cycling on trails and through woodland. Distance ~20-22mi Charlestown - Alloa; ~8mi each way Edinburgh - Port Edgar.
Route map Charlestown to Alloa to be provided closer to the date.

ROUTE - Note that you may join at the start - Craigleith Junction on the Edinburgh North cycle network (08:00), at Borrowman Sq (near Dalmeny Train St ~08:45) or at Port Edgar (09:10). Please indicate your choice when signing up.
You may also catch the train back from Alloa if you want a shorter return journey home.

Once off the bus we'll cycle down to Charlestown Harbour for a brief visit to the limekilns, then join the Fife Coastal Path heading west. We'll take another brief stop at Culross, with the option to walk to the end of Culross Pier if the tide is out. We'll then continue on the FCP to Kincardine, where we'll divert to Tulliallan Castle to explore its garden and grounds.
We'll then carry on along the Round the Forth route toward Alloa, where we'll branch off to Gartmorn Dam for our lunch stop. You can either relax along its shore or circumnavigate the loch. Please bring a picnic lunch with you, the café may be open.
We'll return to Alloa via a woodland path and reconnect with the Round the Forth route toward Alloa Tower. If we've time we'll visit Alloa Dock before heading to the train station, where'll we'll hop back onto the bus to complete the anti-clockwise loop back to Port Edgar, then cycle back to Craigleith Junction.

Please sign up ONLY if you are certain you will attend. While the bus service itself is free, taking a group on the bus needs extra coordination and notification so they're ready for a group. Late cancellations and no shows will be a bigger problem than usual.
Please note also, a group booking will be made for everyone signed up by end 12th Oct. You must book a place on the bus yourself if you sign up after that, or risk not getting on if it's busy.

TYPE OF BIKE NEEDED Gravel or hybrid. No road/ skinny tyres.

SURFACE The route has a mixture of paved roads and shared pavement, packed dirt and gravel, mud if recent rain - which is why skinny tyres will not be suitable.

TOILETS At Port Edgar, Charlestown and Alloa.

OTHER STUFF We recommend not having anything on directly afterwards, just in case we’re held up for any reason.

RSVPs will open on Sun, 05 Oct. If there is a forecast for atrocious weather, the ride will be cancelled or amended. Please check the Meetup site the evening before!

If you have a place or are on the waiting list, PLEASE do update your RSVP to let us know if you can no longer make it, and so others on the waiting list get reasonable notice.

WHAT TO BRING ON THE RIDE
• Two spare inner tubes (right size for your tyres)
• Water (plus extra)
• Snacks for the ride, a packed lunch and money / card
• Waterproofs, gloves and layers
• Sun screen/sunglasses
• Any medication you might need (e.g. an inhaler or epi-pen), if you wish to let the ride leaders know by DM or on the day See you there 👋

DONATIONS

Belles is a completely volunteer-run group, but we do have running costs of approximately £400 a year. Please consider donating either directly to our bank account:

Account name: BELLES ON BIKES EDINBURGH

Sort Code: 83-18-25

Account Number: 18849509

Or through this link -
ko-fi.com/bellesonbikes

By chipping in, you’ll be able to help us power future rides across Edinburgh and the Lothians.