NBHD Pecha Kucha Night – Rory Hitchens – Hebrides

Words and 📷: Rory Hitchens 

The second running of Neighbourhood Gravel’s Pecha Kucha night was held on the 14th of October at the St Leonards church hall in Hove. A total of 6 people presented to a lively and enthusiastic crowd! Presentations were delivered with style, questionable questions were asked, facts were learned and the community built by Neighbourhood Gravel was there for all to see and enjoy. 

What is Pecha Kucha? PechaKucha (meaning “chit-chat” in Japanese) is a fast-paced presentation style created in Tokyo in 2003 by architects Astrid Klein and Mark Dytham. The format requires a speaker to show 20 slides that automatically advance every 20 seconds, resulting in a strict, non-stop presentation length of 6 minutes and 40 seconds (the 20×20 rule). Designed to cut out fluff and focus on visual storytelling, it is widely used in design, business, and education to keep audiences engaged.

This time we are sharing Rory Hitchens Presentation on his bike packing trip to the Outer Hebrides with his brother earlier this year.

1: Route

August 2026 and a chance to spend a week in a small tent with my brother Simon for the first since we were 11 yrs old. Was this going to be great, or a total disaster?

We both have amazing childhood memories of spending long summers in the Outer Hebrides as very young children in the 1970s. Our parents must have been quite adventurous as the islands were rarely visited by ‘mainlanders’ back then.

My last PechaKucha was about my MTB bike packing trip to Scotland in 1987.

That was the last time I travelled with bags on my bike! 

It’s only taken me 39 years!!!

What took me so long?

2: Ferry in Castlebay

Taking the train from Glasgow to Oban, then boarding the ‘Cal-Mac’ ferry to Barra, we arrive in Castlebay where the 1949 black and white classic, Whiskey Galore, was filmed.

3: Quiet singletrack roads

Arriving later afternoon we went in search of our first wild camp spot and headed South, Immediately onto classic singletrack roads and over the causeway to Vatersay. 

4: White beaches

The start of the Hebridean Way cycle route is where we camped at the end of this beach. Unique to the Outer Hebrides and some of the West coast of Ireland, this pure white is actually Crushed seashells pushed ashore by Atlantic gales, rather than typical quartz or rock-derived sand. Unique Machair grassland binds the sands into dunes.

5: Things you spot

In 1944 an RAF Catalina twin prop flying boat crashed on Vatersay, killing 3 crew. Engines and electronics were salvaged and the wings have buried under stones by the side of the road but has become uncovered over time.

6: Our Lady, Star of the Sea

Still on Barra, we hiked high up on Mt. Heaval to say hello to this marble statue, Our Lady, Star of the Sea, with the classic post card view of Castlebay. Not much Futher and you can summit with 360 views of the whole of Barra. I have vivid memories of this view from over four decades ago.

7: Riding on the runway 

Washed twice a day at high tide, 

Barra airport is actually a shallow beach full of shells firm enough to land on. Once the flight has taken off, the beach is re-opened and great fun to ride on.

8: Approach to Hoglan Bay

Taking the ferry from Ardmhòr to Eriskay on South Uist, we made good progress with a solid tailwind to our second beach camp spot. By the middle of the next day we reached Hoglan Bay, just off the Hebridean Way route. Abandoned farm machinery cars and old houses are everywhere on the islands.

This was the emotional point of the trip for me. For many years we stayed as a family in the small very basic cottage you can see in the distance.

It’s now lived in by Alasdair who is the nephew of the farmer siblings Roderick, Angus and Rachel who we would visit just behind where the photo was taken. Memories of long, slow, awkward pauses over tea and scones in a dark fly ridden kitchen. 

9: The Kettle Spout

Our parents were either very trusting or unaware of what their two little boys would get up to on those long summer days. We used to sneak off to the headland to visit this dramatic natural arch. Simon is a climber and tells me it’s 90 feet down! Big Atlantic swells in the winter crash into a long cave forcing water to shoot up high enough to be see from over a mile away.

Legend has it that if members of rival clans should marry, the arch bridge will collapse. At this moment in time I’m praying there is not a wedding going on!

10: Fuel in, Miles out

Mike Hall, the pioneer of Ultra Bike Packing races, is quoted saying they are basically an eating competition with some cycling thrown in. 

We travelled with a gas stove and two pans but we only actually cooked 3 meals in the week. There are of places to get food if you plan and we could have easily made do with carrying less. Highlights (in most cases) were:

​⁃​Phil’s smoked haddock, garlic mushrooms and avocado 🥑 😋. We stayed with my mate Phil in Glasgow and he made us this supreme breakfast so send us on our way. 

​⁃​“Famous” Cal-Mac & Cheese on the ferry to Barra. 🫤

​⁃​Haggis and fries in Benbecula Airport cafe. Looks like doggy do but actually pretty good with ketchup 😆

​⁃​Barra Island Stores in Castlebay. Egg and Ham roll…. Would you like sauce with that? Yes please, a little mustard! 😱

​⁃​Simple no-cook breakfast of kings, rice pudding and blueberries. Dunveagan Castle bay, Isle of Skye. 

​⁃​Talisker Distillery, Carbost, Isle of Skye. Maybe don’t try IRN-BRU with Talisker Single Malt Whisky 🥃….it’s a waste of good IRN-BRU 😂. 

11: South Harris moonscape 

Taking another ferry from Berneray to Leverburgh on Harris. This is where we split from the Hebridean Way, taking the more dramatic and quieter coast road to the East rather than the main road with all the famous beaches. 

The Hebrides are formed from Lewisian Gneiss, originally a sedimentary rock but altered by intense heat and pressure. At 3 billion years old, this is some of the oldest rock anywhere in Europe! Glacial scraping and millions of years of Atlantic weathering has left a barren moonscape that’s like nothing else I’ve ever cycled through.

As we near the main town of Tarbet, we cycle the ‘Golden Road’, so called because it cost so much money to link all the isolated fishing and farming communities that could previously only travel by boat.

12: Honesty Boxes

Possibly encouraged by the popularity of the Hebridean Way walking and cycling routes, you come across quite a lot of these honesty boxes. Don’t always rely on them but they can make a welcome treat or even a re-supply in some cases. The CCTV was a good joke but we were told that eggs were going missing.

13: Callanish Stones 

Rejoining the route at Tarbet we took on the biggest climb of the trip to head North on main road before West to the World famous Callanish Stones. At 115km (71 miles) it was our longest day together.  

We planned it to arrive an hour before the Solar Eclipse but there was nothing to see past the heavy clouds. It was a a little difficult to find a camp spot that evening and we awoke to a sunshine day and the prospect of double bacon rolls and a nice toilet at the new Visitor Centre.

I would say it’s worth the ticket price to walk the education bit and then get right up amongst the stones. Erected 2900 – 2600 BC, they are thought to be up to 1000 years older than Stonehenge. Strategically placed as an astronomical observatory, they align with the winter solstice.

Being a sculptor working largely in stone, this part of our journey was very special for Simon and we spent a couple of hours there. I may have hugged a few stones too.

14: Pentland Road 

Based on available time and the prospect of a boring out and back to the Butt Of Lewis where the Hebridean Way finishes, we made absolutely a better choice by heading East along the 12 miles, totally remote Pentland Road. In 12 mile of wilderness we were passed by one car, saw one very lost sheep and spotted a Sea Eagle taking off no more than 100meters from us.

I chuckled at some of the signs that had been altered to Passing Peace.

15: Smidge Net

No trip to Scotland is complete without a midge moment. This was the closest we could have go to falling out. Top tip, always have a wee before you bed down, even if you don’t feel the need. 

We had chosen a pretty desperate camp spot in a disused quarry. There was really only one place to pitch but it was sheltered from a very windy day as we reproached Tarbet. Getting back in the tent after a wee allowed the dreaded midges in. THIS CAN NEVER HAPPEN AGAIN!!! and Simon was NOT best pleased! Next time piss your pants or have a spare bottle he grumbled. Charming.

Striking camp was no less pleasant but manageable with the ‘Smidge Net’, essential for any Scottish trip.

16: Anna Maria from Poland

Simon’s achilles had become very painful so it was to be a rest day for him as we rolled into Tarbet for breakfast at the excellent ‘The Deli’ which has a warm eating room. Tarbet also has public showers and since we had not taken a swim in the ocean for the last 6 days we needed it. 

With four hours to kill before the Ferry to Uig on the Isle of Skye, I ditched my bags and did a ‘bomb-it’ out and back to see some of the famous sand beaches on the West Coast of North Harris. 

Stopping for the view I met Polish bike packer Anna Maria with her fun jersey and bright lipstick (her trade mark she said).

When you cycle the Hebridean Way you’ll often meet up with the same cyclists but also new ones like Anna. There was a real mix and we saw more women than men touring on bikes, which is fantastic.

17: The Quiraing

Simon’s achilles had not improved after spending the night in the pub and Uig campsite. It’s possible on Skye to take your bike on some of the busses so he made his way to Armadale and the final ferry back to Mallaig on the mainland. I was to meet him two days later at a remote cottage where friends of his spend their Summer holidays.

This was time to step up the pace and tour the West of Skye aiming to visit the famous Dunvegan Castle that day. With a tailwind I was blown up to The Quiraing, famous for its dramatic landscape and a tourist destination on Skye. One day I will revisit and walk the trail into the ancient Rock formations, but for now I had to take it easy on the windy, sketchy descent.

The sun came out for a short while but I was met with my only mechanical of the trip and this one was a real first world problem. The CR2032 battery in my left shifter had died. I had to select a low gear that would optimise the long climbs to come, and snail pace myself 18 miles to Portree for a replacement. 

Annoyingly I’d bought some for the trip but left them at home. This idiot tax cost me the Castle visit, arriving just as it closed for the day.

18: Big wilderness 

This was to be my 7th and final day on the bike and my longest at 120k.

Heading East away from Talisker Distillery was my last big wilderness along the A863. All main roads now and the prospect of civilisation looming.

Cullin Hills (Mountains) are out of sight to the right of the picture but the scenery was no less dramatic.

19: Loch Sligachan

It wouldn’t be Scotland without a tidal Sea Loch photograph. Loch Sligachan was a special place to stop for a banana 🍌 snack and to contemplate the week behind me before speeding into Broadford and finding the best cake and coffee of the trip in a kiosk next to the 57 Degree Distillery.

Taking the old road, now a bike path, South to Armadale Ferry this was to be the exit from the islands as I crossed to the mainland at Mallaig.

20: Perfect Ending

A short pedal along remote coastline to Arisaig would reunite me with Simon and an evening of freshly caught crab and mackerel enjoyed with a small bottle of Talisker single malt I bought earlier that day.

It was a rare evening with a totally calm sea and stunning view across to mountains on the Isle of Rum. What a way to round off an amazing trip!

…..

7days

5 ferries

377 miles 

8,231 M ascent

1 mechanical (electrical)

Almost one argument 

Countless memories 

39 years in the making.

What took me so long?

Neighbourhood Gravel is an inspiration.

I’m ready for more.