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Bicycle Touring Scotland: Kielder Forest To Edinburgh On This Day 11th September 2014 | Travelsonabike2

Travelsonabike2 this day 11th September 2014 Garry McGivern with his bicycle by a rock with Scotland written on it

Cycling Scotland on This Day in 2014

My on this day bicycle touring blog post comes from Scotland on the 11th of September 2014. I remember this day well, mainly because of what happened at the end of the day. It was very frustrating.

Thursday, 11th September 2014, Kielder Forest to Edinburgh. 68 miles.

Bloody midges were up early today. As soon as it was light, they were there. Apparently, it’s the carbon monoxide we breathe out that attracts them. Or so some other camper told me this morning. Perhaps I’ll stop breathing then!

Very foggy again this morning. Visibility was down to about 100 metres, which was a real shame. I’m sure that the scenery would have been pretty breathtaking climbing up the 1370m ascent to Carter Bar—the border between England and Scotland. As I descended from Carter Bar, the fog started to lift. And it certainly was breathtaking, pine forests dotted around with big mountains as a backdrop. Despite the beauty, it was bloody cold coming downhill. I even put my fleece on for the first time on this trip.

Ruins of an Abbey
Jedburgh Abbey

It remained hilly for the rest of the day. And I had another big climb of 1200m later on in the day.

I arrived in Edinburgh at around 4 o’clock, and as per usual, stopped at the first hotel I found. Only to find it was full. No problem, I thought there must be 100’s of hotels in Edinburgh. I’ll just try another one. The next hotel was also full, and the next and the next and so on. Even the chain hotels that had sister hotels in the area were full.

I’ve eventually found a faceless international hotel that isn’t worth the money they charge. But at least I’ve got a bed for the night. Hopefully, I’ll be camping again tomorrow.

Don’t Forget It’s Sepsis Awareness Month: Learn The Signs

September is Sepsis Awareness Month, as it is every year. And as a sepsis survivor myself, I want to promote it as much as possible. So, people recognise the signs, and we can save as many lives as possible. It takes 5 minutes to learn the signs of sepsis.

Slurred speech or confusion

Extreme shivering or muscle pain, fever

Passing no urine all day

Severe breathlessness

It feels like you’re going to die

Skin mottled or discoloured

Please learn the signs. It’s really important as it could save a life. 1 in 5 people don’t know the signs. Don’t be that person. Learn the symptoms, and spread the word as much as possible so others can be as lucky as I was.

Explore More Of My Ride To Scotland

Follow & Support Garry’s Bicycle Touring Adventures

(proof that there is life after sepsis)

If you’re enjoying the ride and want to fuel my next mile, you can always support me by buying me a beer. And, of course, you can always follow me on social media: Facebook, Bluesky, Threads, X, Instagram, YouTube and Pinterest. I’m also on Flickr, where you’ll find pictures from all my tours, along with regular photo updates that I generally publish each month.

If you want to find out if I’m away touring at the moment and check my location, visit the Where’s Garry page. For an insight into the gear and logistics behind this ride, see my Life at 10mph Guide.

Follow Garry on his travels

Subscribe to my email and follow me on my travels

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Travelsonabike2 Bicycle Touring Photos August 2026

Garry McGivern bicycle touring photo fishing boat moored up next to a pub on a sunny day

Garry McGivern’s Bicycle Touring Photos

Photos from my bicycle touring exploits around the world, which I’ve added to the website over the past month (August 2026). This month’s photos come from bicycle tours in Georgia, Portugal, Kazakhstan and France.

Finally, for the first time this year I’ve been out and about cycling far enough from home that I’ve been able to create a Flickr album. I’ve only been cycling around Sussex and Hampshire, but it’s a big improvement on what I’ve achieved so far this year.

You can also find photos on my social media channels: Facebook, Threads, Instagram, and Pinterest, which you can view without subscribing. But if you already subscribe to social media, why not give me a follow, and follow me as I travel around on my bike? I also share photos on my Buy Me A Coffee page.

Bicycle Touring Photos Added To The Website

(Pictures added to the website this month)

The rather modern looking border crossing from Turkey to Georgia
Statue of King Ayelet, near Kobuleti City
What sign? I thought it meant I was allowed to cycle?!?
Fishing hooks on a roundabout in Santa Cruz
I have no idea why this truck was on a pedastal
The view from my hotel
Passepartout at the campsite in Sees
The impressive cathedral (aren’t they all in France) in Sees
Out and about on the first cloudy day in months
Heading off on another ride
A kind lady offered to take my picture when I was in Brighton
Fishing boat moored up in Old Portsmouth

More Photographs In My Flickr Album

(Click on the photo to view)

Garry McGivern (Travelsonabike2): August 2026 Bicycle Touring Photos

Don’t Forget It’s Sepsis Awareness Month: Learn The Signs

September is Sepsis Awareness Month, as it is every year. And as a sepsis survivor myself, I want to promote it as much as possible. So, people recognise the signs, and we can save as many lives as possible. It takes 5 minutes to learn the signs of sepsis.

Slurred speech or confusion

Extreme shivering or muscle pain, fever

Passing no urine all day

Severe breathlessness

It feels like you’re going to die

Skin mottled or discoloured

Please learn the signs. It’s really important as it could save a life. 1 in 5 people don’t know the signs. Don’t be that person. Learn the symptoms, and spread the word as much as possible so others can be as lucky as I was.

Follow & Support Garry’s Bicycle Touring Adventures

If you’re enjoying the ride and want to fuel my next mile, you can always support me by buying me a beer. And of course you can always follow me on social media: Facebook, Bluesky, Threads, X, Instagram, YouTube and Pinterest. I’m also on Flickr, where you’ll find pictures from all my tours, along with regular photo updates that I generally publish each month.

If you want to find out if I’m away touring at the moment and check my location, visit the Where’s Garry page. And for an insight into the gear and logistics that keep me on the road, see my Life at 10mph Guide.

Follow Garry on his travels

Subscribe to my email and follow me on my travels

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Cycling The World: Istanbul, Turkey, to Atyrau, Kazakhstan On This Day 4th September 2012 | Travelsonabike2

This day 4th September 2012 Travelsonabike2

World Bicycle Tour: Turkey to Kazakhstan

My on this day bicycle touring blog post comes from Turkey and Kazakhstan on the 4th of September 2012. After a mix-up with my visa, I had to leave Kazakhstan. And the nearest country that I could fly to, without having to get another visa, was Turkey, where I’d been for the past four days. It was quite an enjoyable time. After staying in the same hotel four times now, I’d made quite a few friends in Istanbul. I even started to regard Istanbul as my second home, as I’d spent more time there in the past eleven months than I had at my real home.

Tuesday, 4th September 2012, Istanbul, Turkey, to Atyrau, Kazakhstan by plane.

The day started with a leisurely breakfast. After all, there was no rush. My flight back to Kazakhstan wasn’t until midday. After saying goodbye to the hotel staff, once again! I left for the airport. Check-in was a little less chaotic than when I’d left Atyrau. But then I suppose İstanbul Havalimanı is somewhat bigger and more international than the tiny airport in Atyrau.

Check-in was relatively smooth apart from one brief moment. The man at the check-in desk looked at my visa and said he’s never seen one like it before and wasn’t sure if it was a genuine visa! Great, my heart sank. Not only were they not going to let me back into the country, but I’d left my bike and all my gear there. And that would be the end of my ride!

Thankfully, there was no need to panic; I’d gotten a little ahead of myself. After asking a colleague, he said it was fine, and I was allowed through to the airport side. Hopefully, this will be my last flight before my flight home in a couple of months.

Bicycle in hotel foyer
Thankfully my bike was still at the hotel

The flight back to Kazakhstan seemed a lot shorter, and in no time, I was back on the ground in Kazakhstan, hoping they’d let me back into the country. Which they did without any problem, and even better, my bike was still at the hotel. I’ve just got to see if I need another stamp from the police tomorrow, then I can get back on my bike and continue on my way to China.

Don’t Forget It’s Sepsis Awareness Month: Learn The Signs

September is Sepsis Awareness Month, as it is every year. And as a sepsis survivor myself, I want to promote it as much as possible. So, people recognise the signs, and we can save as many lives as possible. It takes 5 minutes to learn the signs of sepsis.

Slurred speech or confusion

Extreme shivering or muscle pain, fever

Passing no urine all day

Severe breathlessness

It feels like you’re going to die

Skin mottled or discoloured

Please learn the signs. It’s really important as it could save a life. 1 in 5 people don’t know the signs. Don’t be that person. Learn the symptoms, and spread the word as much as possible so others can be as lucky as I was.

Explore More Of My Ride Around The World

Watch My YouTube Video From Kazakhstan

Follow & Support Garry’s Bicycle Touring Adventures

If you’re enjoying the ride and want to fuel my next mile, you can always support me by buying me a beer. And, of course, you can always follow me on social media: Facebook, Bluesky, Threads, X, Instagram, YouTube and Pinterest. I’m also on Flickr, where you’ll find pictures from all my tours, along with regular photo updates that I generally publish each month.

If you want to find out if I’m away touring at the moment and check my location, visit the Where’s Garry page. For an insight into the gear and logistics behind this ride, see my Life at 10mph Guide.

Follow Garry on his travels

Subscribe to my email and follow me on my travels

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Cycling Further Afield, Sad News & Work | Garry McGivern: August 2026 Update

Garry McGivern out and about cycling in Brighton by the beach and Pace Pier

Monthly Update From Garry McGivern

My latest monthly update for August 2026, and as last month, I continue to cycle more and more, and further and further. And I even managed to cut right down on my painkillers, although that didn’t last long. I managed to do a couple of hours work! And it’s been a rather sad month in one way or another.

I’ve had rides out to Brighton, Portsmouth and everywhere in between this month. And I’m now reaching the stage where I’m starting to get bored with cycling the same routes. And as the school holidays are drawing to a close, I’m wondering if I should go away camping. It would only be to some of my regular haunts, ie: the New Forest, Swanage or the Isle of Wight. While I don’t think the cycling would be too much of a problem (he says, with fingers crossed), the camping side of things could be a problem.

That Could Be A Different Story

Although camping may not be hard work, it certainly requires more effort than being at home. Apart from putting the tent up, which I always find painful at the best of times. Simple things like going to the bathroom, especially in the middle of the night (it’s an age thing) is a major effort. Finding my headtorch, unzipping the sleeping bag, putting on some clothes, crawling out of the tent, slipping on some shoes/flipflops and then walking to however far away the toilet block is. At home I just have to fall out of bed, and the toilet is there.

I did wonder about loading my bike up and heading out for a day ride, cycling a decent amount of miles. Then return home, pitch the tent in the garden, and just use my house as a toilet block. Basically trying to mimic what I would be doing if I was away touring. Unfortunately, I’m not very good at trying things or rather practising. I’d rather do things for real, then I wouldn’t have a choice but to do it.

Garry McGivern out and about cycling on his pub bike on a quiet lane surrounded by harvested wheat fields
Heading off for another ride on the pub bike

Maybe I Should Cycle Around The World Then

While I’ve been out cycling a lot more, I’ve been able to cut right down on my painkillers, which is a really good sign. I remember when I set off to cycle around the world, I was taking a lot of medication for my sciatica. But by the time I’d reached Istanbul, approximately 2000 miles away, I’d managed to stop taking all of them. Mind you, that might have had something to do with having to; I couldn’t carry enough tablets to last me for a year. And of course I have my myelopathy to contend with these days, which I have started to feel when I’ve cut down my pain relief. But I suppose there’s only one way to truly find out!

As I was feeling a lot better and fitter, I decided to try my hand at a spot of work. And with hindsight, perhaps I should have taken some pain relief before starting. I ended up in a lot of pain and back on a lot of painkillers. And it seems to have taken nearly a week to recover. And the worst part about it is that I can never seem to work out what is causing me so much pain. Is it my neck or back?

Sad News

I don’t know why I thought the death of Dolly Parton was so sad, I don’t even like country music. But for some reason, I felt sadder for her than I usually would when a star dies. Maybe it was because I just remember some of her songs. Or maybe it was just because she was a good person; either way, my heart goes out to her family and friends. And the best quote I heard from her was: “If I have any more facelifts, I’ll have a beard!” That made me laugh.

The Trishuli river.
The Trishuli River.

The terrible floods along the Trishuli River in Nepal are truly horrific; again, they made me feel really sad, especially when I realised that I had cycled beside that river in 2016. In fact, the short video on the header of my website was filmed along the road that ran beside the river, which I fear may no longer be there. I hope all the friendly people who I met and helped me when I was cycling in Nepal are safe and well. My heart goes out to the whole nation, and everyone affected.

Read my previous update from June

Follow & Support My Bicycle Touring Adventures

If you’re enjoying the ride and want to fuel my next mile, you can always support me by buying me a beer. And of course you can always follow me on social media: Facebook, Bluesky, Threads, X, Instagram, YouTube and Pinterest. I’m also on Flickr, where you’ll find pictures from all my tours, along with regular photo updates that I generally publish each month.

If you want to find out if I’m away touring at the moment and check my location, visit the Where’s Garry page. And for an insight into the gear and logistics that keep me on the road, see my Life at 10mph Guide.

Follow Garry on his travels

Subscribe to my email and follow me on my travels