I just caught up on this thread; the last time I looked at it was shortly after I wrote my blog post and linked to the reddit thread. I have a few comments to make on various things that have been said.
One was regarding Parsons' clothing indicating a possible intention to leave the bike for a walk, e.g. the walking boots. I think this is pretty unremarkable: these boots are merely waterproof and coupled with his camo trousers (also probably waterproof) would be a cheap way to get some protection from the elements in Scotland where it rains all the time. I doubt an infrequent cyclist (a guess - given how overweight he was) without the best gear for a long distance cycle (not a road bike, a backpack instead of panniers, apparently some low quality lights) would invest in proper waterproof cycling gear - especially for charity. Also on the charity angle: a likely reluctance to pay for a hotel room, especially the £100-odd you'd have to pay on the West Highland Way.
Did someone say his light was faulty? How do we know this? No police report mentions this as far as I know.
I doubt the hotel staff sent him over the bridge at Bridge of Orchy and along the opposite side of the river. They are eastern European but they're not malicious. And they know enough to know how to get to Tyndrum, and that doesn't involve crossing that bridge. It seems like any discussion he might have had with them would have been over the next closest hotels or hostels, which would without a doubt have been Tyndrum.
Someone said there are many B&Bs in Bridge of Orchy. There are not. There were at the time and still are two, one near the hotel and the other up the hill. They only have one or two bedrooms, and during this time of year perhaps the owners may already have stopped doing business for the off-season. And, at 11:30pm the lights will have probably been off, as no B&B owner expects people to show up so late looking for a room. They would have looked thoroughly uninviting. The hostel at the station is not well signed from the road so he may not have known it was there, plus again the lights might have been out, the owners asleep, full, etc.
Another thing, probably not a big deal but worth saying: if he was exhausted by the time he got to Bridge of Orchy, having arrived either by the A82 or the military road from Glen Coe, and looking for a cheap hotel in Tyndrum 6 miles away - he might have looked at his two paths towards Tyndrum - A82 and West Highland Way - and seen that from the Bridge of Orchy Hotel the A82 is a long gradual downward slope whereas the West Highland Way begins with an uphill slog for 100-200 m - he might have picked the former to avoid the extra climb. Since he was apparently sighted 0.5 miles along the A82, this seems more likely so I don't really believe he went onto the West Highland Way at Bridge of Orchy. He might have done it at Auch though.
The lorry driver sighting 0.5 miles along the A82 towards Tyndrum - if believed - probably tells us he stuck out like a sore thumb in his high-vis vest, weird attire and inappropriate equipment. Traffic will not have been so quiet that someone else didn't pass him by car if he was still cycling along the A82 if he stayed on it for long enough. There are some forests along the road to Tyndrum (e.g. at the top of the hill above Tyndrum where the West Highland Way, train line and A82 all go down to Tyndrum in the same narrow valley). My best guess so far is that he might have gone into some trees somewhere in the 6 miles between Bridge of Orchy and Tyndrum to get some cover from the elements and try to sleep - but died for some reason. Were these areas ever searched?
I still find the Glen Orchy route hypotheses unlikely. Standing on the A82 looking down into Glen Orchy you would see nothing but darkness. Nothing on the signpost suggests this is the correct route home or to Tyndrum, so the only reason he'd choose to go that way would be if his destination was not intended to be Tyndrum or anywhere near home - rather Dalmally or a village further along. If his lights were faulty (how do we know that?) then it would have been obvious to any normal person that it would have been better to stay on the A82 with the good surface and occasional light from cars showing where to go, or even possibility of a lift, if he didn't consider it cheating by that point. That said, someone surely would have noticed a 63 year old overweight guy wearing strange clothes on a mountain bike in the middle of the night, which is why it's still so confusing he went missing.
Another thing about the timing: he started on a Friday and was not reported missing for a few days. Perhaps he intended to take the whole weekend, sleeping rough in the wilderness along the way, and told his family and friends such, so they weren't concerned until he didn't show up on Sunday? That would explain his incredibly late start at Fort William too.
The fact this was for charity and the clothing Parsons was wearing makes me think he just intended to prop up against a tree and slog it out until morning instead of sleeping in hotels/hostels. It gets cold in the night in September but - ok, I'm really pushing it here - he was probably not bothered by cold sea breezes from his Navy days. I originally suggested hypothermia in my blog post but I now find this unlikely given the time of year and available cover from strong wind and rain (forests etc.). I think a big guy like Parsons could lay down in a forest and make it through the night without too much discomfort. I suggest searching the forests along the A82 before Tyndrum if that wasn't already done.
