North-South Wales Coast to Coast MTB

“Well I think I’d quite like it if he marched past me with no clothes on!” exclaimed Myfanwy, the village matriarch, much to mine and Paul’s amusement!

Later in the Week
Jon and Paul late in the day at Bwlch Nant yr Arian trail centre
© Paul Bonwick

It’s the second day of a week long mountain biking trip that friend Paul and I are undertaking and we’re sitting in a pub in Llan Ffestiniog sheltering from the interminable rain as Myfanwy entertains with an article in the local rag about the goings on of Britain’s somewhat infamous Naked Rambler in the local rag. Bedraggled and wet though (us, not the rambler) we’re drying off in the pub before setting off once again, into the deluge …

We plan to travel light, staying in B&Bs, pubs and small hotels which we’ve pre-booked. Our route, mainly off-road, follows much of the MBRUK route called the Sarn Helen, itself named after the Roman road of the same name and which part of the route is believed to follow. The trail is mostly single and double track with some stretches on quiet rural lanes. MBRUK call it ‘the most ambitious off-road ride in Britain’ … were we ready? I didn’t know!

DAY 1
Conwy to Penmachno, Clwyd – 25.9 miles, 3,353 feet of climbing
Accommodation: Glan Heulog B&B, Conwy, Clwyd and Eagle Guest House, Penmachno, Clwyd

Day 1
Paul & I in Conwy, at the start of our week long ride

Our trip began on a sunny Saturday in May 2014 in the town of Conwy after a lengthy railway journey with our mountain bikes and kit, the latter being contained entirely in our 20 litre backpacks. Our rail journey hadn’t started well after we were told “No bikes on this train, we’re full!” though luckily I had pre-booked a space for our bikes as well as us so our jobsworth conductor had to relent. Conwy is a pretty town, with a castle near which we had a pre-ride curry (vital) in a local tavern and Paul was served beer by a barman with a very impressive handlebar moustache. Our B&B was a lovely place with views toward Snowdonia National Park.

Day 1
Arriving in Conwy … possible Malt Loaf sponsorship opportunity

After a sunny start we begin climbing a very steep, long paved single track road in order to get us up in to Snowdonia … gosh it’s a slog! As I got to grips with a different set of gear ratios on what was a loan bike which I’d only ridden round a car-park (the servicing of mine was delayed so at the last minute the bike shop lent me a new Whyte T-129 S) we make it to to Coedty Reservoir near Dolgarrog and begin our first off-road section, with angry grey clouds beginning to amass above us. And then, the heavens open. And the gale force headwind starts. As we ride beside the Llyn Colwyd reservoir beneath impressive cliffs of browning bracken-coated grey rock it’s a struggle to keep the bikes upright or make any forward progress. Horizontal rain smashes into our faces, stinging with an appalling ferocity. This is brutal! The riding is at times technical with rock gaps and loose boulders to negotiate and I lose track of the number of times I’m blown off my bike as I attempt, in vain, to slow the bike, balance my weight and manoeuvre around the various obstacles.

Day 1
In gale force head winds and driving rain along Llyn Cowlyd reservoir

Mercifully we find a derelict barn in which to shelter from the onslaught. Eating lunch I start to get very cold and I begin to shiver … I’ve been in this situation before and know I need to act quickly for I’m wet through and getting dangerously cold. I put on every bit of clothing I have (not much … note the mention of 20 litre rucksacks above!) and thankfully, after a bit of foot-stomping to get the blood pumping, I’m fixed. And then, after a push up to the saddled snout at the foot of the reservoir, we begin a mind-blowing descent in the face of the full force of the frontal assault from the wind and rain, through deep peat hags, somehow hopping the bikes as we ride over the wet peat sections in order to keep moving. It’s utterly fantastic and stupendously exhilarating and topped off by our first (small) river fording. Just an hour before I had been shivering uncontrollably and wondering what on earth I was doing here!

Having been delayed a fair bit due to the conditions we choose to forego two further off-road climbs up and over Cen Glas and Bwlch y Groes, opting instead for a road route via Betwys-y-Coed to our destination for the night at Penmachno … though not before stopping for a pub dinner in Betwys-y-Coed. I also took the chance to buy a new Camelbak bladder after problems with mine meant I had to switch to two plastic milk bottles lashed to my rucksack! A big day and suitably fitting for it was also my birthday. That night our room resembles a Chinese laundry, with wet clothing strung from every possible hook-like object … including the lampshade on the ceiling!

DAY 2
Penmachno to Coed-y-Brenin, Ganllwyd, Clywd
24.7 miles, 2,980 feet of climbing
Accommodation: Tyn-y-Groes Hotel, Ganllwyd, Clywd

Day 2
Cwm Penmachno valley in the rain

Rain, rain and more rain. It barely stopped raining today. From the moment we left Penmachno the heavens opened. At first we tried to ride up the loose quarry slate which festooned the path up the back of Cwm Penmachno toward the Manod Mawr quarries, but, it was in vain and we were pushing before long. I defy anyone to ride the whole way up, for its so steep, loose and protracted. Or maybe I just had too much for breakfast! Toward the top though there are some nice, rideable, technical sections through the woods and once over the pass we whiz down the tarmac road, strafing water from our tyres with a satisfying, accompanying high pitched buzz.

Day 2
Paul on ‘path’ out of Cwm Penmachno toward the Manod Mawr quarries

And then, we’re in the town of Llan Ffestiniog. Wanting to find a cafe to dry off, we come up short, but make up for it by adjourning to the pub where we’re met with fantastic hospitality and an offer to drape our wet clothes all around the pub’s radiators. And of course that’s where we were entertained by our friend Myfanwy. The slightly confused but very friendly barman takes our order for lunch, and we opt for the large roast dinner – apparently the small version was £7, and, the large version was … also £7! Really! He said he was new. Before long but with dry clothes we were off again, into the rain once more and toward Coed-y-Brenin forest.

Day 2
Jon above Cwm Penmachno toward the Manod Mawr quarries

Before long we rode another fantastically exhilarating section, this time on a steep gravel road which was virtually a mudslide. As we rode the slate-strewn ground beneath us was literally moving, as the rain continued to cannon down from above. Trees had fallen from recent storms and at times we rode bent over the cross-bar, our heads on the handlebars in order to clear their trunks! After another long day we made it to our hotel for the night. Sadly we found the drying room to be cold (although it did have a dehumidifier) such that we definitely didn’t dry anything in our room after being expressly told not to do so. No. At dinner, we met a couple of lads biking the nearby trail centre … when we explained our trip to them they doubted our ability to finish it, and we wondered whether, if the weather carried on like it had, we could too! It had been another epic day.

DAY 3
Coed-y-Brenin, Ganllwyd, Clywd to Machynlleth, Powys
36 miles, 4,530 feet of climbing
Accommodation: White Lion Hotel, Machynlleth, Powys

Day 3
Jon & Paul below Cadair Idris massif

That morning we load up on extra toast from breakfast, spreading it with a healthy dollop of jam and squirrelling it away under the table ready for lunch later. There was no shop nearby – not being too enamoured with the prospect of just cold toast for lunch, once under way we even stopped at a farm to see if they could sell us some food but to no avail. We decided to take a detour in to Dolgellau to find a shop. When we arrive I’m transfixed by the reams of food available in what is a fairly sizeable supermarket called Eurospar. Paul, ever the thrift-king spends a time seeking out the pasties and such like which are reduced to rock bottom prices due to their sell by date. Now fully stocked for lunch we set off into a dry but overcast day, only to find that Paul’s suspension bushings are creaking. On inspection there is play in the suspension which shouldn’t be there and could, if not addressed, lead to the bike becoming unrideable. Before we left for the trip he’d serviced the entire bike but had thought he had plenty of life left in the bushings. We ring the bike shops in the vicinity but none can help … so we decide to push in and keep an eye on the misbehaving bushings.

Day 3
Jon below Cadair Idris massif

After making our way along the Affon Mawddach estuary we climb sharply up on tarmac to the lower slopes of one of Wales’ highest peaks, Cadair Idris. Heading west, we’re treated to great views as we traverse above the estuary with the hulking grey buttressed ridge of the Cadair Idris massif to our left. Climbing steadily we hit gravel, some nice flowing doubletrack descents and the occasional bit of single track too. After a small navigation error we re-track slightly, passing a ruined house festooned with ivy. Up ahead a lamb follows us through a gate, appearing from nowhere and we spend time chasing it back through the gate to be reunited with a bleeting mum. Suffice to say that the theme tune to Benny Hill would have been appropriate for the chase, for the lamb was literally running rings around us most of the time! In the village of Bryncrug I buy a pint of milk from the shop and it comes in a glass bottle, the likes of which I haven’t seen for years following the demise of milk deliveries in much of the UK. We’re waaay out in rural west Wales and things feel different here, more local, more traditional.

Day 3
Looking toward Barmouth and Afon Mawddach estuary

Leaving town we climb up on gravel tracks, interspersed with tricky slabs of rock, often wet and which require a balance of deft and measured power input to clear. It’s exhilarating stuff once again, and the descent off the top of Bryn Dinas is a corker with slab drop-offs aplenty. At the bottom we both realise that we’ve accidentally done the entire 2 hour off-road section from Bryncrug with our suspension locked out! Old Skool. On the way in to Machynlleth we’re met by a self-confessed Gypsy who asks if we have the tools to repair his ailing bike. On inspection we don’t, and ask if there’s a bike shop in town. It used to have a couple but according to him has now become a ghost town in that respect. Once something of a mecca for mountain bikers it has apparently lost out to the formal Forestry Commission trail centres of Coed-y-Brenin to the north (from where we’d come) and Bwlch Nant yr Arian to to south (where we were heading tomorrow). That night we get a chance to wash the bikes which is much needed for they look like they’ve both been immersed in a bog. Thankfully Paul’s bushings (on his bike!) have held up too. And, I think there’s a trend developing here: another, great, day 🙂

DAY 4
Machynlleth, Powys to Devil’s Bridge, Ceredigion
28 miles, 3,545 feet of climbing
Accommodation: The Hafod Hotel, Devil’s Bridge, Ceredigion

Day 4
Looking down into Afon Dulas valley on massively steep climb up
© Paul Bonwick

After a lovely cooked breakfast with home-made bread we set off along the Afon Dulas valley, climbing gently on tarmac. It’s not long before we’re climbing more sharply, on gravel and then grass and finally more gravel toward the top of Foel Fadian. The climb is monumentally steep in places and toward the top we’re pushing for part of it – if my life depended on it I might have cleaned more of it but as it was we had a long way to go. As we head toward the Afon Hengwym valley the trail becomes somewhat intermittent and we’re on a compass bearing at times, intently checking the map when we stop. It’s satisfying, bush-whacking-style riding as we hop around rocks, attempt to power through bogs as our wheels sink above the drive-trains and occasionally have to man-handle bikes up shallow but steep ravines.

Day 4
Paul riding up beneath slopes of Foel Fadian

Following as we are an established route (or so we thought …) we ford the river as instructed, carrying bikes on our shoulders to do so, the cold swift-flowing waters dragging at our legs. At this point the path becomes very indistinct and our progress slows dramatically. The map says there’s a bridleway here but we certainly didn’t find one that looked like it had been used for a long time. We trudge on, pushing bikes across what feels more like a swamp. Eventually we make it to gravel but it’s getting late, such was the delay. In an attempt to make up time we put the hammer down on the tarmac toward the Bwlch Nant yr Arian trail centre and then do the same over the gravel through the trail centre – we risk losing the light if we don’t keep moving. At the Nantyrarian viewpoint we take the obligatory tourist shot of each other sitting in the giant wooden chair soaking up the fantastic view in what is now blazing sunshine. Aside from the occasional road cyclist, we meet our first biker here. A combination of poor weather and remoteness must have kept others away from much of our route until now.

Day 4
Paul beneath slopes of Foel Fadian again
© Paul Bonwick

We still have a fair way to go so we push onwards, dropping down and then up and over the upper flanks of Ffynnon Wen before dropping down again, this time losing height sharply through woods, to make it to the Afon Rheidol valley. It’s at this point that bravado gets the better of me as I try to ford the river whilst riding but lose my wheel to the current, promptly falling off much to Paul’s amusement! Finally, having rung ahead when we had coverage at the top of Nantyrarian we make it at around 9pm, just as the sun disappears entirely, to our hotel for the night. They’d kept the kitchen open just for us. After a long day we devour everything on the table and crash out, knackered, in what is a pretty spectacular setting atop the famous waterfalls.

DAY 5
Devil’s Bridge, Ceredigion to Elan Village, Powys
27 miles, 4,135 feet of climbing
Accommodation: Elan Valley Hotel, Elan Valley, Powys

Day 5
Entering Coed Bwylchgwallter woodland
© Paul Bonwick

With no shop in the Devil’s Bridge village, and, faced with a particularly remote day where we couldn’t see any obvious food shops en route not to mention that we were starting to get a bit tired of cold toast half-inched from breakfast we ask if the proprietor of the hotel if he can do us a packed lunch … suffice to say that with our appetites we asked for almost a loaf each, only to find that the cost was astronomical! Granted, the price of the bread for sandwiches that could could otherwise have been sold to other customers needed to be factored in but let’s just say Paul wasn’t too impressed when I told him the lunch bill!

Day 5
Open moorland between Coed Bwylchgwallter woodland and Elan Valley

Once we riding we then, to add insult to injury, get lost in the woods, confusing newly forged forestry tracks with old ones on the map. After a couple of hours of traipsing through the woods and up to nearby peaks in an attempt to relocate ourselves we resort – sadly – to GPS to double-check our position. Until now we’d been navigating purely with map and compass. Once back on the correct route we churn our way through some deep bogs as we leave to woods of Coed Bwylchgwallter before emerging on to open moorland on which we ride for hours on end, toward the Elan Valley reservoirs. I’m struck by just how remote it feels here and it occurs to me that often on this ride, ever since Conwy, we see no one else for hours on end. How on earth the local communities manage to survive when road access is so tortuously slow and rail virtually non-existent in many areas, I don’t know. Today we don’t meet another soul for almost 8 hours.

Day 5
Caban-coch reservoir
© Paul Bonwick

After a tarmac stint the track turns to jagged rock at which – oh no! – Paul’s tyre explodes! He’s shredded the sidewall. A patch up job with tyre boots ensues and after a few false starts we’re under way again. Steady as she goes. I like the Elan Valley with its certain kind of barren beauty, and have happy memories of rides here with friends back in the old days when I rode a rigid, cantilever-braked steel colossus. And so, for old times sake, I leave Paul to take some photos by the reservoirs and head up over Rhos y Gelynnen and then down the locally infamous ‘Black Run’ as I wonder at how on earth I managed the steep boulder-strewn descent back in the day on said old steed! Back together we ring ahead, for it’s getting late now, and check when the kitchen shuts … 8.45pm is the reply, and we up the speed along the final tarmac stretch making our hotel in time. Wow, this place is a find! Our room is sumptuous and as my head hits my pillow, ensconced in a sumptuous duvet, I drift off, and in to the arms of Morpheus.

DAY 6
Elan Village to Brecon, Powys
36 miles, 4,980 feet of climbing
Accommodation: Bridge Cafe, Brecon, Powys

Day 6
Open riding along grass and rocky sections above Caban-coch Reservoir

Unbelievably we’re the only people staying in what is a moderately sized hotel (in the Elan Village). I’m struck once again by the remoteness of central Wales, travelling as we are out of prime holiday season and mostly mid-week. How do hotels and B&Bs keep going year-round? It must be tough, with no business infill mid-week it seems, in many of the places we stay during this trip. At breakfast we discretely load up on toast for, ahem, lunch (“Goodness you do have big appetites don’t you?!”) and attempt to buy a mountain bike tyre from the proprietor, in order to replace Paul’s. Sadly, no dice. We also consider changing route to go to the nearest town which we know has a bike shop, Rhayader but after a bit of discussion, and armed with some improvised new tyre boot in the form of laminated menus kindly donated by the proprietress we decide to stick with our plan to head off once more in to the wilds.

Before long we’re on the locally dubbed ‘Puke Hill’ (yes it’s steep!) followed by some great flowing, open riding along grass and rocky sections above Caban-coch Reservoir. And then, it begins. As with Day 4, I’ll be damned if the bridleway which shows on the map has been used in earnest even remotely recently. As on Day 4 we’re on a compass bearing, this time over the top of Cnaprau’r Ferlen through endless, heavily hummocked tussock grass. We’re pushing for hours and it’s exhausting! Coming off the top and now back in the saddle the descent is stupendously steep through thick bracken and I’ve barely got my fingertips on the grips of my handlebars in an attempt to keep my posterior way back over the rear wheel for fear of somersaulting bike and I down the slope! Paul and I weave our way down through more hummocky, boggy ground, still with no clear path in sight.

Day 6
Pen y Crug at sunset looking toward Brecon Beacons

Eventually once on to the road we up the speed to reach Builth Wells, for we’ve been badly delayed with our big push. Outside the Co-op supermarket we resupply for what is going to be another ride in to the evening. After a quick chat about whether we should still try for our planned route, off-road, up and over the slopes of Banc y Celyn, including briefly considering one of us going the quicker route by road and the other going over Banc y Celyn, we opt to stick together. In order to save weight we’ve pared tools and spares right down, only carrying one of many items between us. As we ride off I get a puncture straight away (my first) which, we both reflect, seems to be an indication that we made the right decision! Even though we’re on tarmac it’s a slog to Brecon. As I crest the top of Pen y Crug just outside town, with the sun setting beautifully over the Brecon Beacons, I’m beat. It’s been a huge day, despite the road detour and we have a celebratory curry before retiring to our lodgings for the night.

DAY 7
Brecon, Powys to Cardiff Bay, Cardiff
51 miles, 3,303 feet of climbing by bike
Cardiff to Bristol / Bath by train
Approx. 50 miles, 2 hours

Day 7
On slopes of Cefn y Ystrad looking toward Talybont reservoir

And so we come to the final day of our (mainly) off-road trip from the north coast to the south coast of Wales. Our fantastic accommodation for the night (possibly topping the Elan Valley Hotel for me) left us nicely rested, if still somewhat weary after 6 days of hard riding and long days. We first pick up the Taff Trail, before heading up into the Brecon Beacons, climbing via the route of the old Brinore Tramroad. Back in the 19th century the tramroad plied limestone from the quarries high up in the hills and sometimes the old stone sleepers can still be seen embedded in the path. Toward the top the riding becomes a bog-jumping extravaganza. I’ve been up here many times before and never known it this wet, which just goes to show what a wet week (early on at least) and winter in general it’s been.

Day 7
Trailside repair novelty … having run out of tyre boots improvising On slopes of Cefn y Ystrad with laminated menu after Paul’s tyre splits again!
© Paul Bonwick

As we crest out on to slopes of Cefn y Ystrad we have fantastic views north and south over the valleys. The descent is a heady mix of swooping, pacey singletrack, and short, tight tecchie climbs. I may have whooped. And then, after a couple of days of holding out, Paul’s tyre blows again. By now we’re down to the laminated menu from our friendly hotel proprietress in the Elan Village and we please ourselves with our initiative. Once again though, we’re delayed in the process and push on to make the 40 miles or so left. We gun it along the cycle track of the Taff Trail. We skirt the large towns of Merthyr Tydfil and Pontypridd and pass some poor areas, decimated by the disappearance of the mining industry in the region.

Day 7
Cardiff Bay and the sea … the end! In the dark!
© Paul Bonwick

At one point we have to pull off the path and on to the verge as an unaccompanied and slightly emaciated looking horse trots toward and then past us! Not withstanding accidentally doing two circuits of a local park, plus Paul’s tyre going flat another two times, we finally make it, in the dark, to Cardiff Bay and the sea. It takes an age to weave our way through Cardiff and our meeting with the sea is somewhat anti-climactic since we’re blocked from actually touching the water, perched as we are about 10 vertical feet up on a walkway! Coast-to-coast (almost!). It’s been a stunning week, I’ve had a great companion in Paul and I’ve seen wild, rugged parts of Wales that I never knew existed, and connected with the Wales of childhood holidays and that of my Welsh grandmother and half-Welsh mother. Hwyl fawr am nawr! (thanks also to Steve for the route maps)