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My track through Windy Gap and beside Lough Talt
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Waking several times during the night to preempt my alarm, I finally got up at 04:30, left home at 05:00 heading towards Dublin on my bike (40km). The first hour was in the dark, aided by my Black Diamond Sprinter 500 light set and supplementary rear facing red lights for good measure. But just before reaching my destination, Heuston station, I realised something was wrong with my back wheel - it felt, well... wobbly. On further inspection I diagnosed a flat tyre - it got me to Heuston just about before total collapse. I tried pumping it up to no avail. What does one do, stranded 40km from home at 7am? OK, I was equipped with a spare inner tube and basic tools, and the internet. The latter didn't actually lift a hand to do the work, but did inform me how easy it was to remove the rear wheel on a Trek 1.2 road bike. There wasn't time to do the necessary whilst waiting for the gate to open on my chosen service for Westport, stopping at Manulla Junction where I was to transfer to a two coach back and forth service to Ballina. And there wasn't room on the train to do the work, so I had to suffer the ignominy of a broken bike and the anxiety of travelling even further away from home not knowing for sure how things would turn out. Why anxiety? It was beyond my control, I just could not stop that little voice within saying"what if?".
Cyclists on a train get used to watching the bike rack like a hawk at every station to make sure one's own bike is not totally locked in by other bikes. Choosing a seat within sight of the rack I got to sit opposite to another cyclist whose bike was on top of mine but he was to exit before me so all OK. He turned out to be employed as a programmer in the 5G business and amongst other things we discussed 5G conspiracies and he agreed with me about the fragility of the internet as a whole and how the world has become too dependent on it, citing the scary example of remote surgery via the internet.
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| Always snap a shot before disassembling |
So, unable to fully enjoy the journey because of my little demon "what if?", we eventually arrived at Ballina where I requisitioned the plinth outside the station where I took my bike's rear end apart. A local cycler, who had also just disembarked, offered help which I declined but was very thankful for. Cyclists are a tight community. Anyway I finished the job and the new tyre remained inflated all the way home. But the repair must have cost me a precious half hour or so of my time allowance for the next segment of my journey which was to cycle up to Windy Gap in the Ox Mountains, then down along beautiful Lough Talt towards my destination Collooney just south of Sligo town (52.2km, elevation gain 377m). So now I had a double whammy - could I make it to the train station in Collooney in time to catch the one and only link to home - more anxiety but this time a tad more controllable as I had allowed for an extra hour in my planning. "Planning", when there is only one viable option, is a bit of an overstatement. My lunch break (cheese and Branston sarnies) was severely curtailed, but I made it with over a half hour to spare.
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| Ballina terminus station |
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| The salmon weir, Ballina |
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| From the footbridge across the Moy |
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| Windy Gap |
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| Lought Talt |
The route is single track with passing loops all the way until it converges into the Dublin area. My next whammy was at Edgeworthstown where the train sat for 20 minutes waiting for a down train running very late to pass. My train did make up maybe 10 minutes of time, but my itinerary (as recommended by Irish Rail itself) allowed just 4 minutes to make the connection at Drumcondra for Sallins-and-Naas so obviously I missed it. In the event the next service was only 20 minutes later so all was well, except...
I have already mentioned that, due to the diurnal shortening of daylight hours prevalent at this time of the year, I had had to cycle in darkness for the first hour or so of my Foray: I also knew that I would arrive back home in darkness, so that every additional delay meant more darkness. And I just had to stop for F&C along the way.
I sat on a bench in Naas to eat, but could not muster much enthusiasm - the prospect of a hot shower weighed more heavily than greasy chips. So, after cramming in few more mouthfuls, I set off again and arrived back home at 21:15. A long day out!
The morals?Always carry a spare inner tube and basic tools, be visible especially when it's dark, and don't give up and don't give in to your demons!
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| Collooney station |
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| Spot the glaring error! |
