Tayport

After a day being a tourist in Dundee I needed to stretch my legs and do a run. The weather was fine to hot and so I roughly planned a 'lollipop loop' across the Tay and just into Tentsmuir.

The initial section of the Fife Coastal Path was a tarmac cycle way and so progress was only limited by my energy. Beyond the mobile home park the path became gravel and then a soft forestry trail. It was lovely to run in except that every time I stopped I was mobbed by flies. There was some signage so I found my way to the ponds of Morton Lochs with few difficulties.

After Kirkton Barns I took an indicated footpath across a kilometre of fields. This maybe wasn't a great idea as the field margins were waist high grass and nettles. Then the path cut through tall grain. I could almost feel the insects biting in the hot summer sun.

As a futile gesture I brushed seeds, dust and corn flies off and ran on tarmac back to the bridge and the hotel. By the time I reached the hotel the urticaria had taken hold from ankles to thighs. I swallowed a second 'one-a-day' hayfever tablet before a cool shower. On inspection I found one tick that hadn't managed to take hold as yet and was easily picked off with a knife. That was lucky as I hadn't packed the tick tool.

The 22km was hard on my legs perhaps due to the high proportion of tarmac or simply lack of practice.