2002 THE TON AND THE PARC

9/01/02

It was my first ride of the year, Nick had cycled up the Gospel Pass on New Year’s Day, but this was to be my first venture out on my bike. The weather had been very cold, but when I met Nick by the Ponthir House the weather was not too bad. It was 7.00pm, on a Wednesday, we had a pleasant ride up Candwr Lane, the stars were out as we carried on to Llandegfeth village. We started the severe ascent up the Ton Road, the lane was covered with mud and had been turned into a greasy ski slope, this made cycling very difficult, as we were slithering around like slithering things! We decided to push our bikes for a while, and then carried on pedalling past the cricket pitch near the top.

We quickly descended to Llangybi, where we took the familiar Parc road, which we have cycled on for the last 30 years, it was now a bit foggy and we thought this climb would never end, as we had lost all sense of where we were. We at last reached the top and dropped down onto the Coed y Paen road, where it was not foggy, we had views of the stars and my 15 watt lamp lit the lane up nicely.

It was not long before we were in Coed y Paen and we quickly cycled home to finish a short but good ride of 15 miles

3/02/02 THE FLOODS

After weeks of torrential rain, there was a break in the inclement weather, the whole country had been battered by gales and storms and of course we had our fair share. We met at the end of Treherbert road at 1.30pm it was a Sunday, the weather had turned almost spring like, we cycled to Newbridge on Usk the whole valley had flooded, so at the other side of the bridge we found it impassable. We talked briefly to cycling couple from Coleford, we put them on an alternative route back home, we then set off for Usk.

Here there were more floods, the road into Usk was several feet deep, a few cars had tried their luck at getting in to the town, but some of them had cut out, this made amusing viewing to onlookers, as the drivers jumped into the brown water to push their cars to dry land.

From Usk we followed the course of the river up toward Chain Bridge, the river was swollen all the way up. We crossed over the “chocolate” river and climbed to Goytre, the weather was turning, it looked like more rain. Here we descended to Glascoed, and then we cycled home via Semen world and New Inn.

25 MILES

17/02/02 NINEWELLS WOOD

After weeks of rain we finally had a dry day, it was a Sunday afternoon, quite cold but at least it was dry!

The week before we had an evening ride to Blaenafon, but this was a complete washout, so we abandoned it in Abersychan. This day however promised to be good for cycling, we met at 2.00pm at the “Blackout” junction near Newbridge on Usk. We cycled to Llantrisant, where we took the lane that mirrors Llewelyn’s Dingle; all was peaceful here as two large Buzzards circled in the sky.

The roads were almost completely dry now, but there were large patches of water here and there, as the land tried to dry up after the weeks of flood. We dropped into Llangwm and carried on up the climb toward Cobbler’s Plain, this was the first real ride of the year and we knew we were in for a treat as we hit the road to Trellech Grange.

We were to have a spectacular descent in the late afternoon down the valley to Tintern; tall trees heralded our descent to the village by the river Wye. Tintern is a very picturesque place, beautiful old buildings caught my eye, although I had been down this way many times before, I was today seeing it as a stranger for the first time, and was beheld by its beauty!

Even more wondrous sights were to fall in front of our eyes as the evening drew in, we climbed toward Cleddon bog, the climb is long but not hard and we quickly reached Ninewells wood. We then entered that other world which does not belong in reality, but lends it self more to J.R.R.Tolkien; we cycled through the wood on a secret lane only known to privileged few. It was now getting dark, the birds were singing in the trees and it felt like spring had arrived.

We left that world as quickly as we had entered it, we then took the lane to Trellech Cross and on to Llanishen, it was not long before we descended the Star pitch to Llansoy, my 10 watt Vistalite blazing, we quickly hit Usk. From here we took the “Traditional” route home via Prescoed, Coed y Paen and Treherbert road, we both punctured on this last stretch, we thought we might get caught in the rain but thankfully it held off, to allow us to get back to Croesyceiliog at 8.30pm, it had been a great evening out and was a good appetizer of things to come!

43 miles

3/3/02 PATRISHOW

It was a Sunday morning at 10.30am when I left the house, the forecast was cloudy but dry , my appointed task, was to meet Nick at the bridge over the river Usk near the Chart House Inn, a few miles from Llanfair Kilgeddin. I cycled up Jerusalem lane and then to Glascoed, where I turned up Rumble St. toward Goytre,

I then carried on down the lane to Chainbridge and then up the main road to our meeting place.

I had allowed one and a half hours to do this trip, but managed it in just over the hour, so I rode down a narrow lane to look at a church, as I cycled back twenty minutes later Nick was there, he was a bit surprised when he saw me coming from this direction, he did not tell me at the time, but he had been following my tracks all the way and that he fully expected to see me waiting there.

We wanted to avoid the scores of motorcycles, that hog the main roads of this area on a Sunday, so we set off up a quiet lane to Coed Morgan and then to a small village called Llandewi Rhyderch, with no map we were lost for a while, but all was quiet, except for the occasional dog barking. We eventually found our way to Abergavenny, where we stocked up with food and drink.

We then started the ascent into the heart of the Black Mountains, first Bettws and then Forest Coal Pit, where Nick remembered his school trips there many years ago. I have to admit I was not in good form and did do a bit of moaning about the seemingly never ending climb , Nick was having no such problems and I think I got on his nerves a bit.

We arrived at Pont Escob in the late afternoon; we were at the crossroads for Llanthony, the Gospel Pass, the road back to the Skirrid Inn and our route toward Patrishow. I am not a keen on Llanthony, I think an old ruined abbey would be better off without a pub in it, I have not been to Patrishow and I was keen to see it. The road from here is steep and I was not coping well, but thankfully it is very short and we quickly ascended the climb of a mile or so to level out and then drop down into a small valley.

As soon as we cast our eyes on the church of Merthyr Issui all our efforts were worth while. It really is quite spectacular, this small mediaeval church clinging to the side of the Gader mountain range is a certainly a sight to please any weary traveller! Below the church is the secluded holy well of St. Issui ,as we approached, it was an eerie sight , there were many crosses made of twigs and branches hanging in the trees and well had bits of cloth over it. This place had been a pilgrimage point before Christianity and it held a certain sacred atmosphere. Issui was an early Christian priest, who lived near the well and gave hospitality to pilgrims; he was unfortunately murdered by an ungrateful traveller.

A house of worship has been on this site for over a thousand years; legend has it that a continental traveller was cured of leprosy here and left much gold to build the church. We looked around the quiet chapel, which has a good example of a rood screen; this building probably dates from the 13^th century. This location must have been remote in those days; the access to it now is pretty dreadful, it must have been a lot worse in those days.

After a drink and a blackberry and apple pie we started back, it was either the sanctity of the well or the fruit pie but I hit a sound pace on the road to Abergavenny, where we ate a kebab, which revitalized me even more! I was even able to lead out the sprint home along the main road to Llanelen and then on the tranquil lane to Croes Llanfair .It was now dark, I remarked to Nick that this had been a classic ride , he seemed to think this was funny , after my earlier moaning. We arrived in Goytre to take on drink from the shop, after that we cycled along the lane that follows the canal to Mamilhad .We then hit the main road to New Inn; we arrived back in Croesyceiliog at 7.30pm

60 miles

16/03/02 WENTWOOD

It was a fine Saturday evening as I cycled to Newport to meet Nick at 6.00pm outside the Fire Station in Maindee; we set off along the Nash road that took us out to the Moore of Goldcliff. These flat lanes were easy to ride as we went around Newport’s “city?” limits! We arrived in Magor, after negotiating the new one way system, Nick stopped for a bite to eat from the chip shop.

We then followed the lane toward the A 48, we were not used to these roads, unlike our usual routes in northern Gwent, and these were very busy with Saturday night traffic. However we were to quickly arrive in the small village of Llanvaches, just off the main A48 trunk road, after this, all was quiet as we ascended the quiet lane to Wentwood. We cycled the narrow wet lane alongside the reservoir; we noticed many toads in the road. We walked very slowly up the hill, our cycle lamps lit up these creatures, and Nick must have rescued about 20 toads from this lane, placing them gently off the road.

After the wetness of the road along side the reservoir, we hit the main climb over Wentwood. All was quiet and the air was still as we rode into the darkness of the night. At the top we viewed the illuminated towns of Pontypool, Cwmbran, Usk and of course Newport. They looked like model villages sprawled in front of us.

A rapid descent to Lllantrisent , we quickly cycled to Newbridge on Usk , the rain thankfully held off, we remembered the river in flood , which had only been a few weeks before , we were glad we were now going into Spring .

The night was calm, the lanes were lit by our lamps, yes this was cycling at it best! We cycled to the Treherbert road, and then quickly up to Dogan Heights, which is at the top of Candwr lane near Ponthir. Here we parted and I cycled home along Treherbert road to arrive back at 10.00pm

30 miles

31/03/02 THE THREE CASTLES

Easter is for us, the traditional time, to take toward the famous three castles of Gwent. The weather had been sunny on the Good Friday and the Saturday, but as I set of on the Easter Sunday, to meet Nick near my house, the weather was overcast at Midday and threatened rain. However it remained dry for the time being as we cycled to New Inn, then to Glascoed and up toward Goytre, here we took the lane to Chainbridge. The lanes were busy here as we had expected, but I had promised a quiet ride free from traffic, as we turned up the road toward Bettws Newydd, the traffic ceased, we hit the village of Bettws Newydd and climbed the hill to the ancient Iron Age fort of Coed Y Bwyndd.

This ancient fort is quite spectacular with its neat earth banks, it is owned by the National Trust, but is more or less ignored (thankfully) by tourists. Our traffic free ride was to continue as we cycled along the back road past Llanarth Court Hospital, it was now warming up so we stopped for a while to eat some rations , we viewed the old house that is now a psychiatric hospital, the sun tried to break out but was held back by the clouds.

I have often written about the wonderful cycling paradise of Northern Gwent and this day we were to find it truly is! I do not what it is about this area, but it lends a particularly friendly atmosphere to cyclists like our selves, our Uncle, Ron Jeffries used to cycle here before the war, he often wrote about these pleasant lanes and they do not seem to have changed much to this day!

At Llantilio Crossenny we were now in our shorts, we cycled up the rough road which is Offa’s Dyke to Whitecastle, from here we cycled along to Cross Ash and then on the serene back road to Grosmont. We viewed the castle here and took refreshment from the shop as it closed at 5.00pm. The village of Grosmont is truly beautiful; it is like a time capsule from a long gone age, that we can only look back at, with fond memories.

From here we sped off on the deserted “main” road to Skenfrith, which is one of my favourite rides, after looking at the third castle of the day we took the ascent up to Hilston Park, how the rain held off I do not know, but thankfully it remained dry .From here we carried on with the “tranquil” theme, we took the quiet undulating lanes to Newcastle, Hendre, Tregare and Raglan. The lanes were nice and peaceful but it was hard to get a rhythm going, as they were quite steep and I suffered a bit toward Usk. Nick had sprinted off to order food from the Chinese in Usk, we quickly ate this and carried on to Newbridge on Usk where we parted, Nick cycled home via Caerleon, while I cycled home via the Treherbert road, as I finished off the last miles of the day the first rain drizzled, but I did not hang about and arrived home at 10.30pm

60 miles

4/4/02 THE TEST RIDE

My Mercian was more or less ready for the road, so we decide to do a short test ride. I met Nick at the usual place near Newbridge on Usk. The bike was nice, light and responsive but the gears were not working well, I had switched from my Dura Ace double to an Ultegra triple, I do not know what it is with triple STI ‘s but I cannot seem to get them quite right ! However the evening was fairly warm and we had a good ride to Usk via the flood route and then cycled back the “””traditional”””” through Llanbadoc, Prescoed and Coed y Paen

20 miles

7/4/02 THE BRITISH AGAIN

I met Nick in Croesyceiliog, it was 5.00pm on Sunday evening, the weather was still dry and sunny. We made off against a strong head wind to New Inn. We sought shelter along the cycle track to Pontypool, where we cycled along the old road to Hafodryns, here we took the steep lane that climbs up to the Star pub and then over the common to the start of the mountain road to the British.

The Sun was blazing its last rays of the day as we viewed the Brecon Beacons once again. Just before the junction for Llanhileth, we met the strong wind again, it tried to make life hard, but we assailed it easily.

Once again at the top we felt like we were on top of the world, the views were splendid as usual, but the wind made it a different atmosphere to the usual calm we experience on top of this ‘sacred’ mountain (well it would be if it was not for all the rubbish dumped there!)

We took a slow descent down the mountain, as the road as become very rough over the last few years, before long we were back in Croesyceilog as it was going dark.

22 miles

4/02 APRIL

We spent most of this month doing very short rides of 20 miles or so, mostly on our favourite rides around the lanes of Usk. On one occasion as I waited for Nick at the ‘Blackout’ junction near Newbridge on Usk, he arrived driving his car! He said that his tyre had blown off the rim of his bike and he was unable to repair it in time, so he spent the rest of the evening following me, taking photos! Nick was yet to get his Longstaff out on the road yet, his new Shimano Dura Ace triple STI levers were completely useless, they had to be sent back to the dealers. I also had experienced a lot of problems with the Ultegra STI so much so, that I took them off and replaced them with my old Dura Ace STI for the rear gears and a down tube lever for working the triple front changer.

This system was working very well, the rear gears slipped easily over the 13-25 Ultegra cassette and the front changed very smoothly indeed. I now had nearly my perfect setup, except for the Exage triple cranks which were to be up graded soon. Argos Racing Cycles of Bristol had worked wonders doing up my bike ,it was now giving me the ride of my life, my new Mavic open pro ceramic rims were giving good braking and it was nice to get on my Brooks titanium railed leather saddle , which is the most comfortable saddle I have used . We were now getting ready for the summer? Hopefully we will get some decent rides in!

12/5/02 USK AND AROUND

May had many fine days, so we took advantage on this Sunday evening to take a short sojourn out in the country. We met in Croesyceiliog, from here we cycled along the old road to New Inn, we then rode up the familiar Jerusalem lane and then out into the country proper. We dropped down to Glascoed, I waited for Nick by the cricket pitch in Monkswood, this was truly a summer scene as I viewed the match in progress.

Unbeknown to Me Nic had been attacked by a dog and had gone to seek revenge on this vile beast, but unfortunately he could not track it down, as it had sought refuge in its owner’s house. From here we set off at a fast pace on the main road to Usk, the sky had darkened a bit and the wind was against us. We stopped in the square for a while, there were many Birmingham City Football supporters, arriving to eat in this pleasant town. Their team had just played at the Millennium Stadium in Cardiff and I suppose Usk seemed a popular break on the way back home.

From Usk we hit the wind toward Llantisant and then on toward Caerleon, where we followed the meandering river Usk, past the Celtic Manor golf course and many beautiful looking houses. It was now dark as we parted in Caerleon. I cycled on the main road home through Ponthir, which was for some reason very quiet, Nick also cycled home to Newport City on the main road; we were both to arrive home at around 10.00pm

25 miles

1/06/02 BACK IN THE GOOD COUNTRY

Summer seemed to have really arrived as we met at 7.00pm on that Saturday evening. The sun shone brightly, the birds were singing, yes all that! We were near Llanfair Kilgeddin, a few miles from Usk, Nick was sporting his new Carradice bag and it looked quite useful. We cycled on well used lanes to Llanarth, past the cricket pitch as a match was in progress and then upward, on the gentle climb to Llantilio Croessenny. Nick had just come back from Spain; he had cycled there on a charity ride with the Fire Service. The route they had taken went through good scenery in France, but he remarked none of it compared with the beautiful golden lanes of northern Gwent.

We were in no hurry as we arrived near Llantilio, we decided to take the road to Abergavenny, this is a bit of an up and downer, but before long, we were eating kebabs from the Abergavenny kebab house. It was nearing 10.00pm as we cycled on the main road to Llanover; here we took our usual quiet route to Nantyderry. The dark had brought out the aromas of the country, as we cycled we smelt them as if we were trying a new wine!

My Petzl l.e.d. head torch was a good innovation stuck on my helmet, I could look all around not just in front , my 10 watt Vistalite lit the lane well and coupled with Nick’s Lumicycle lamp, it was not far from nearing daylight vision. We quickly arrived in Goytre , then down the lane to Monkswood and up to Glascoed village. From here we cycled up to the Semen world farm and then onto Jerusalem lane, here we saw Venus , which seemed to shine unusually brightly in the sky. It was then a short ride to New Inn and home at 11.30pm

40 miles

19/06/02 GAERLLYWD

The weather had not been very June like , with heavy rain most of the time, but as we met on that Wednesday evening all was calm. In fact it was sunny as we cycled from Newbridge on Usk, as we rode out into the evening it was really like Summer . We cycled to Llantrisant and then on the road toward Kentwood. I was looking for a lane to cut out a section of the climb up to Wentwood ,we took a narrow steep lane that looked promising, but this was a dead end .After a quick backtrack to the main road , we found the track I was looking for which was even more severe than the last route we were on. However it quickly brought us out on the top road . We cycled along this pleasant lane to Gaerllywd, from here it was a fast descent to Usk where I took on rations from the Chinese Takeaway.

The evening was really pleasant and we had a good fast ride along our traditional route home via Prescoed, Coed y Paen and the Trehebert road.

30 miles

21/06/02 THE SOLSTICE

This was mid Summer’s eve, but it looked more like mid Winter’s eve, as I rode out to Newbridge on Usk to meet Nick. The rain was quite heavy but, it was not going to beat us on that fine Friday evening . I arrived at 8.00pm, Nick was looking a bit reluctant to carry on , but we shrugged off any despondent feelings we had and cycled off into the night air.

We were promptly on the climb up Llewyllyn’s Dingle, the rain had brought out all the odours of the country , the hedges, the trees, the road all smelt sweetly as we cycled along these pleasant lanes. We dropped down into Llangwm and then a quick sprint to Usk. Here we took on drink from the garage. We were now completely oblivious to the wet ,we rode along the traditional as if it were dry, Nick said it was the best “trad” he had ever done and it was quite atmospheric in the dark with our lamps picking out the features of the countryside. Before long we were home, after this short ride another Mid Summer was over , we were wondering when or if the Summer was really going to start!

22 miles

26/06/02 BLAENAFON

We had heard a rumour that the cycle track to Blaenafon had been extended, so we set off at 7.00pm on that Wednesday evening to find out for ourselves. The day had been very warm and sunny , so we hoped for a pleasant evening. However, rain threatened as we set off from Croesyceiliog, to join the cycle track to Pontypool and then on to Blaenafon.

The track was quite busy with cyclists and walkers, after all it was a light June evening ,but the weather did not look up to much . The cycle path follows an old railway , its gradient is shallow but the ascent is quite stealthy , the climbing did not let up till we arrived at the top of the valley . We had magnificent views of the Lasgarn woods on the other side of the vale , before long we were above Blaenafon , to find the track had only been surfaced for a few hundred metres to Forgeside.

By now the weather was closing in , so we decided to cycle back down the valley on the main road. We had a good burn up, hitting speeds of 40mph as we carried on to Cwmafon and Abersychan. From here we cycled along the quiet Limekiln Road, which worms its way through the houses to Pontypool. We rejoined the cycle track to arrive back in Croesyceiliog at 10.00pm.

22 miles

29/06/02 ORGANY REVISITED

We met at the “Blackout” junction, the weather had looked promising that Saturday ,but when we met at 6.30pm it had clouded over and looked like rain . However it remained dry as we cycled on the steep lane that climbs over to Llangwm. From here we took our usual route on the very quiet road to Cobbler’s plain.

As we approached Trellech Grange, the sun shone for a while as we tasted the ‘champagne’ air. All was well as we climbed the steep and narrow lane to Organy Pool.

We stopped for a while by this small pond , all was quiet that evening, even more so than usual, we sauntered along to Trellech cross . We gathered up speed on the main road to Llanishen and we dropped down the Star pitch like birds of prey , homing in on their kill!

It was quiet in Usk as we sat down for a drink of lucazade outside the shop, it was now 10.30pm and it had just got dark. We had another good ride on our by now famous ‘traditional’ route home, we stooped briefly in Coed Y Paen before heading off to arrive back in Croesyceiliog at 11.45pm

40 miles

20/07/02 THE APPLE FIELDS

The weather had not been great in July , in fact it was one of the wettest on record. A few short rides had been the norm that “summer”. However we met up at the “blackout” , it was a Saturday 7.00pm the weather was dry , but there was a wind that could only be described as a bit “wintry”.

We were glad to be out in the open country ,as all the usual odours were present as we cycled to the picturesque village of Llandenny. Before long we were in Raglan and then on to the quiet lane to Tregare.

From here we explored the mythical lanes of Gwent, all was quiet as we cycled along these narrow lanes past a remote Caravan Club site for members only , then we saw the vast cider orchards ,bursting with their fruit which soon was to be harvested in the Autumn .

Into Llantilio Croessenny ,we then viewed the old Tudor remains, we climbed the gentle hill to Whitecastle which has become our favourite landmark in north Gwent, as Organy Pool is, in the South. We then hit a brisk pace to Llanarth and then on to Croes Llanfair , we both had our turns at out sprinting each other , each taking it in turns to “lead out” ,this warmed us up, as it had now turned dark.

The benefits of hitting this fast pace meant we were quickly back in Croesyceiliog at Midnight via Goytre , Glascoed and New Inn.

45 miles

4/08/02 LAMMAS

This was the old pagan festival of Lammas , so we decided to celebrate this, not with corn dollies ,as they did long ago, but with a ride to Tintern. I met Nick in Tredunnoc , the small village that overlooks the Usk valley, it was 1600 on a Sunday. From here we took our usual route to Llantrisant village and then over the quiet lane to Llangwm.

The weather was very hot and sunny , it made a change from the usual inclement weather. We then started the climb to Cobbler’s Plain , Nick had set a fast pace, but I was not so quick ,but I enjoyed the ascent, as it had fine views of the Brecon Beacons and the Black Mountains.

We basked in the blazing Sun , before setting off for Trellech Grange and the fast descent to Tintern ,down the Angiddy valley. We cycled through Tintern , the Abbey was behind us as we set off to buy a drink from the shop. Unfortunately it was shut so we set off up the climb to Cleddon bog with no drink. We made a rapid ascent and stopped briefly to view the magnificent trees at the Whitestone picnic area.

We then hit our rapid pace through Ninewells wood and then to Llanishen . We had no time to stop as we plummeted down the hill to Llansoy, we found a drink in Usk from our favourite shop , we then cycled on the main road toward Caerleon, where we parted at the end of the Trehebert road . About half way up it started raining , I was thankful I had my rain jacket and mudguards to fend off the wet stuff. I made short work of the ride home , with my lights cutting through the rain ,but I must admit I was a bit tired when I arrived home at 22.00

50 miles

8/08/02 THE CWM GLYN

We were now getting ready for our weekend tour, this meant some rough roads in Mid Wales .Nick had a new Tange training frame from St John Street cycles, which he had converted in to a tour bike, like my own. He had however the addition of a front rack to carry gear.

We decided to test the bikes up a forest track near our home which is similar to the tracks up country. Nick had fitted his bike with some Continental 28mm touring tyres, while I had the old classic 28mm Michelin World Tour tyres. We cycled to Pontypool on the cycle track and then on the old road to Hafodryns, it was hard going as we were used to our light Audax wheels.

We then got on the forest track that steeply climbs the side of the valley and then makes it way back to Pontypool; this is commonly known as the Cwm Glyn. Here the big tyres came into their own ironing out the rough track with ease, of course this would be nothing to any mountain biker, but it made a complete change for us.

The route we took gives good views of the Brecon Beacons and was not a bad evening , we descended down the valley , from here we cycled on the main road to Pontypool, we were certain now that we were ready for the mountains!

22 miles

16/08/02 The Teifi Pools

Day one

Our customary weekend jaunts consist of one day riding to get into the heart of country, a day of enjoyable explorative cycling and the last day is usually a trudge back home. This year we decided that we would be dropped off by our Dad in Rhayader; this meant that we could start the gratifying riding straight away!

Again this year as we had our usual thoughts of, ‘oh no!’ and ‘my God what are we letting ourselves in for!’ But we quickly settled in to a gentle pace away from the noise of Rhayader and up the Elan valley. A good cycle track leads to the first dam, on the way we talked to a pleasant couple who were riding a Longstaff tandem.

We cycled the 8 miles to the Claerwen dam quite quickly and stopped to eat a pasty at around 2.00pm. The Sun was shining and it looked as if we were to be blessed by good weather. There were a few people out and about, but we knew we would be leaving them all behind as we looked at the rough track that heads north, along the east side of this massive reservoir.

I had wondered if we would be able to cycle this trail, but we handled it easily, taking our time to avoid the big pot holes in the track. There are two farms up this path, other than this it is completely isolated, it winds it self along the shore of the lake in and out of inlets and then taking us up and over the mountain. We had a brief conversation with a lone mountain biker, near the isolated Claerwen farm. From here there was a wooden bridge that led to about a mile of real rough terrain .We cycled over this and then through and over rusty coloured streams that came from the peat bogs.

It was truly awesome cycling, a Red Kite flew over low in the sky, the sun blazed down and it was early evening as we reached the Teifi lakes. These half a dozen lakes are positively spectacular, set 460 metres up in the mountains, with views all around; it had been really worth cycling all this way just to set our eyes on them!

This location is, thankfully very quiet, there are no attractions here to bring masses of people, just the lakes and the mountains. It was a sharp descent down the hill to Ffair Rhos , from here we cycled on the main road to Pontrhydfendigaid , we called in the shop to stock up with drink, this was the last stop before we were to set off in to the wilderness again. This year we both had small butane stoves to cook our food, so we could set up camp and rest and eat at the same time.

After talking to a local character, we cycled along the road past the ancient Strata Florida abbey, from here we carried on in to the forest. It was 7.30pm, we had to stop soon to make camp, but as we cycled along this unmade forestry access road, we were to find no decent pitch for our tents. We climbed up and up, past massive piles of logs, until we reached a clearing high up in a valley overlooking the great Tregaron bog.

As we pitched our tents we were attacked by hoards of midges! We thought that we were not going to be able to cook. I sprayed some insect repellent and by some miracle they disappeared .We then settled down to warm up our tins of Chilli and Curry and rice before setting down for a much earned rest at around 9.30pm.

26 miles

Day two

The wind had blown all night, making the nearby trees groan and crash. But however, we were well rested after spending the night in our Jack Wolfskin one man tents and lying on our Thermo rest mattresses. The only problem was our sleeping bags; mine was rated at +7 degrees, but was to flimsy to spend a night on a mountain! I had brought Nick’s old bag, which I used as a second layer, this did the job, but carrying two bags is not the best idea. Nick had bought a new bag, but it was not adequate, it looked like next year we would have to look in to this, as these were the only bits of camping equipment that let us down.

I warmed up my tin of all day breakfast, while Nick warmed up the biggest tin of stew I had ever seen! After this, we set off up the mountain on the forestry road. This year I had an E Trek GPS (satellite navigation), I was determined we were not going to get lost, as we did two years ago!

The weather was now brilliant, the forest track was hard but good going, and it was designed for trucks so it was wide but very dusty. Next to where we camped was a very old narrow trail, it intersected the newer track we were on. This was probably the old Monk’s way to Strata Florida; it was an ancient road that connected the remote abbeys of Wales in olden times. Legend has it, that the Holy Grail was brought along this route, from Glastonbury for safe keeping in the Abbey of Strata Florida.

There were no worries about traffic up here , just one farmer and a forestry worker, we kept getting glimpses of the old Monks way ,near the summit, it headed off on its own course in to the remoteness. There was an small lake here which looked strange almost suspended on the marshy ground between the trees. The climbing had ended at 548metres , we then dropped down the other side , we quickly descended to the surfaced road that goes from Abergwesyn to Trergaron . There were a couple of cars here with people wandering around ,this is still quite a remote spot but we felt we had reached some sort of civilization .

We then cycled down to the chapel of Soar y Myndd , which stands at the top of the lake caused by the Llyn Brianne dam. We saw a few people here , but we quickly got on the forest track that climbs steeply to 440 metres . After consulting the GPS a few times we descended toward Llyn Brianne, with spectacular views of the deep black water glinting in the afternoon sun.

After directing a family on mountain bikes to Soar y Myndd , we passed a solitary house in the forest overlooking the reservoir , I remembered years ago this was an abandoned farm , which had been used as a Forestry Commission store , but in recent years it had been renovated to a nice dwelling. On arriving at the dam at 2.00pm ,we ate some food from Albo’s snack bar .A bolt from my rack had come loose and it fell off ,but Nick had a spare bolt and quickly fitted it, he expressed some doubts on the strength of the rack and I had to agree with him. After this we cycled along the public road to The Towy Bridge Inn, from here we strolled gently along the west side of the river through the pleasant village of Cilycwm to Llandovery.

We stocked up with food and drink and then set off at 5.30pm on the road that was to take us on to the Roman road to Trecastle. Llandovery was busy and noisy as it was on the main A40, but only a100 yards out on the lane it was quiet again. This surfaced road climbs steeply up the mountain, then takes a straight line following the old Roman road‘s course for 4 miles. We talked to a farmer on quad bike who informed us we were on the right road, he then looked a bit perplexed when we said we were camping on the mountain.

The asphalt fizzled out by a farm, we climbed over a gate we were now on the rough track that is the Roman road, and evidence of the old paving is clearly visible. We talked to an American gentleman who was out walking, he had camped rough before in Scotland and said that by the old fort was the best place to stop . As we climbed up Nick checked out a spot, yes he had picked a good pitch for our tents in the middle of the Roman fort. We were 400 metres up and it was very windy, we cooked in a dip in the ground out of the wind. Our idea of cooking at our camps had proved more favourable than stopping for takeaways in the towns, as it gave us greater freedom on where to stop. We settled down as the views to the north turned to darkness.

28 miles

day three

Torrential rain kept us awake in the night it rained and rained all night long, we were also disturbed by sheep as we seemed to be camped on one of their tracks! I was in a deep sleep when Nick woke me at 8.00am, it was still raining so we decided to stay in our dry tents and wait for it to stop.

We thought it was not going to stop but at around 10.00am it did, we had a quick cup of coffee and set off on the mountain track past the old Roman camp. The Roman road had been turned into wet bog with massive ruts left by off road vehicles. This made interesting cycling, to the south we had a good view of the Usk reservoir which is the source of the river Usk, the sun was trying to break out and we were glad we were dry. The track got better as we neared a gate and then descended three miles on a surfaced road in to Trecastle.

After using the amenities in Trecastle , it started raining, as we cycled on the main A40 road it stopped raining and the Sun started to shine. We made good time cycling the 16 miles to Brecon; here we had food in the Kebab house. We then decided to cycle back on the canal towpath. The Brecon and Monmouthshire canal ends in Newport, but is only navigable to Cwmbran, some 36 miles away. We were to cycle 32 miles to Panteg . Our route took us through all the interesting villages on the way; we went past locks bridges and many boats.

The condition of the path goes from very good around the villages, to absolute appalling. Near Crickhowell I hit a tree root and my rack split in half, Nick screamed ‘I knew this would happen!’, but I blamed him for going to fast! However I patched it by tying my saddle bag straps around it. It was to last all the way home, nearing Pontypool I put on a sprint to get us home quicker. We cycled the last few miles through New Inn and then on the old road to arrive in Croesyceiliog at 7.00pm

52 miles

This year had been a change, we definitely agreed that cycle touring on the rough trails is a lot better than the road, also taking food and cooking it, adds a more authentic camping feel. I definitely needed a new rack; we hoped that we could now turn our bikes in to dedicated tour machines for next year!

20/08/02 LLANDENNY

We decided to have a warm down , after our excursions in the mountains, we met at the ‘blackout’ near Newbridge on Usk. It was a Tuesday at 7.30pm , it was warm and sunny . We cycled to Usk , our Audax bikes felt as light as feathers after being lumbered with camping equipment on our other machines.

We turned up the main road by the Three Salmons Hotel, which winds its way along the side of the river Usk. A couple of miles up we turned up an unknown lane , this took us on a gentle climb to Llandenny. Hot air balloons went over our heads , it must have some sought of a meeting in the area .

From Llandenny we cycled back to Usk as it turned dark . We decided that we would sprint back down the main road to Caerleon. With our cycle lamps blazing we took it in turns to ‘lead out’. It took just over twenty minutes to travel the 7 miles to Caerleon, from here we went on our separate ways back home

32 miles

14/09/02 THE GOSPEL PASS

It was as Saturday afternoon when we met at Croes Llanfair , we had made our separate journeys there, battling against a strong head wind. However the wind died down a bit and it was like a Summer’s day as we cycled to Abergavenny. From here we rode out to Maerdy and then had a pleasant saunter up the Llanthony valley .We stopped and joked at the scene of my crash the year before, it all looked different now and I was a bit happier ! The ascent up to the highest road in Wales is deceiving , in that it takes long flat bits and in between a series of steep ‘hops’ up the valley . Near Capel y Ffin we talked to a young farmer about all manner of things. We seemed to be there for a while.

I also had a puncture , strangely it had turned dark quickly in this steep valley. It was now 800pm as we started to burn our lamps up the mountain. After the main steep climb from Capel y Ffin, we were on the open mountainside, as the half moon shone in the sky. The earlier traffic of day trippers had now stopped and we had the mountain all to our selves . Although it was dark, the Black Mountains were still there to be seen in all their splendour. Their eerie silhouettes stood calmly in the night.

As we climbed over the top at 544 metres, the air was still, giving a mysterious feel to these rugged uplands. We quickly descended down the from the hills, we were glad to leave them for the night , we said that it would have been good to camp there, as we were starting to feel a bit tired. But we only had our light weight bikes, so all we could do was to cycle home! The road to Talgarth is quiet and flat , by now I was very hungry. As we arrived in Talgarth my prayers were answered , there was a Chinese Takeaway. Here we ate some much needed food , after this we felt a bit better although we had turned cold.

We were soon to warm up , climbing on the quiet lane over the big hill, that would take us down to the main road to Crickhowell. We cycled along the principal road to Abergavenny and then back to Croes Llanfair , from here the route was:- Goytre and then home via the New Inn by-pass. I arrived home at 1.30am with 75 miles to my credit , while Nick had to cycle to Newport City, completing 90 miles.

28/09/02 MYNDD GARN CLOCHDY

We met in Croesyceiliog at 4.00pm on a Saturday; we were to cycle out on our touring bikes in search of some rough terrain. I had new Continental top touring tyres on my bike, I wanted to try them out along with my new low ratio cassette, with a 32 teeth ring. We needed somewhere steep and they do not get much steeper than the Garn Clochdy!

We quietly rode out to New Inn and then on to Glascoed, the weather was warm and sunny, as were all the September days this year. Glascoed always seems to me like it is stuck in a 1940s time warp, with its small farms with Nissen huts and the nearby Ordinance factory. We cycled to Goytre and then to Croes Llanfair. A hot air balloon went over in the calm sky and made its way to our destination, the foreboding twin radio masts on top of the Garn Clochdy.

We cycled along the main A4042 road for a hundred yards or so, we then started the climb, which took us over the canal. We remembered last year, that a farmer had stopped us from going any further, because of the supposed foot and mouth ‘epidemic’? This year we were free from all that nonsense, we climbed up this beautiful, secluded valley the Sun shone through the leaves and the bark of the tall trees seemed to glow a bright orange.

After a fork in the road , we hit what we call the ‘Ewes and the Lambs’ climb , a few years ago we met a farmer muttering about some ewes and lambs he had lost in the snow and this has been our name for it since then! This climb is through a tunnel of trees and is very rough and steep, there seems to be no end to it, once you think it has finished it just gets steeper and steeper. Nick sprinted off up in front ,while I took my time in the low gears, however I enjoyed it and caught up with Nick ,who was waiting at the unusually large viewing area on this narrow lane, as it goes out on to the open mountainside.

We could now see the twin masts as darkness fell; the views were spectacular in the darkness, a half moon shone as we made our way to the summit with our lights burning. The air was calm here as we quite often have experienced at the top of mountains, however as we cycled down toward Blaenavon hit a strong head wind. But this did not stop us and before long we were in Pontypool joining the cycle track to New Inn and home at 9.00pm

30miles

19/10/02 HUNTER’S MOON

I set off at 6.30pm on a Saturday to meet Nick outside the Greyhound pub in Christchurch just outside the city of Newport. The weather was turning cold , but was dry , my route took me through Ponthir and Caerleon. The river Usk was high as the tide was coming in , as I cycled alongside the river many houses had sandbags outside as flooding threatened.

There is a very steep lane from Caerleon to Christchurch, I went up it and before long I was waiting for Nick by the cross in Christchurch. I was looking at the nearly full moon, on his arrival Nick informed me that this was the Hunter’s moon. We set off toward Cats Ash , the temperature had now plummeted to below freezing and my legs seemed very cold in deed!

We decided we wanted to keep this ride short and sweet as the biting cold did not make things very pleasant. But at least it was dry, we rode on the rough lane from Abernant council yard to Llantrisant village. I had put a new chain on ,but it was not performing well so I could not extract all the power form my legs, well that was my excuse anyway!

Nick tried a bit of a sprint from Usk to Caerleon ,but my legs were having none of it!

Going faster just meant having more cold air blown over me!

In Caerleon we parted , I was glad to cycle the few miles to get back home to Croesyceiliog, as I was freezing cold!

30 miles

24/10/02 THE FLOOD ROUTE ON FIXED WHEEL!

I met Nick at 7.30pm, it was a Thursday evening, it was quite mild now as it had clouded over. Nick had converted his Bianchi racing bike into a fixed wheel machine, with intent to use it during the winter months. He had a 48T front ring with a 19T ring at the rear.

We were to do a short ride to test out his machine. I rode my touring bike, Nick said there is only one way to ride fixed and that is, basically, flat out! Nick seemed to take to the bike very well as he shot up the hill out of Llantrisant village.

The warmer weather made agreeable cycling, our combined Vista and Lumicycle lights illuminated the lane nicely in the dark.

We went to Llanllowel and then on the flood route to Usk. We stopped in the square for a while. We were listening to the bell ringing coming from the church, at first we remarked it was a pleasant sound, but after a few minutes we had to get away from the infernal racket! We then took the main road to Glascoed. We cycled up the dark quiet lane to the village of Glascoed, here Nick suffered an attack of the ‘bonk’, blaming it on his fixed wheel machine.

He rammed a few chocolate bars down him to get over it; we were then quickly on our way. The last climb up to the Semen World farm is steep, Nick handled it easily, as I caught up with him up the top he had punctured on the back. With no spanner to take off the rear wheel, he rode it flat to my home in Croesyceiliog and then borrowed my bike to get home to the city of Newport.

22 miles

7/11/02 WENTWOOD

We met at 7.30pm by the Greyhound pub in Christchurch on the outskirts of Newport City. The weather was dry but still a bit cold. A few fireworks lit up the starry sky as we rode out along the lane that passes the Celtic Manor Golf Club. Nick was still on his fixed wheel machine, while I was on my racing bike, which I have converted into a winter machine, with clip on mudguards and some smaller rings, on the Stronglight chain set.

We cycled over to the main A48 Chepstow road, from here we took a rough track that extends it self to the bottom of the forestry of Wentwood. We went past a couple of secluded houses, here the surfaced road ended and had turned into what could only be described as a river! We thought we had made a mistake coming up here, but we were able to carry our machines a few hundred yards to some dry land.

The water had washed down from the uplands of Wentwood and made cycling difficult on the muddy forestry road. Nick, as he was riding fixed, had to take the ascent by storm, while I could gently climb on my 32T front ring with a 25T on the rear cassette. I also had some new Continental Gator Skin 23mm tyres , which are claimed to be highly puncture resistant , they also give a good ride, as they stand tall in the rim giving a big air chamber to soak up the bumps.

The rough road dried up near the top, our tyres were covered in pine needles, but we had no punctures! From here we had views of the Severn Bridge and over to Bristol, we cycled on to a narrow public road that climbs over the last hill over Wentwood and then goes down steeply toward Llantrisant near Usk. I freewheeled down the hill while Nick’s legs had turned into a blur on his fixed wheel machine!

At the bottom of the hill he started moaning, I felt all was not right with his bike’s setup. But however we enjoyed a pleasant ride along the river Usk taking us to the Bull moor road that ends up in Caerleon. Here we parted our ways. Nick cycled to Newport, while I rode the six miles home to Croesyceiliog through Ponthir and Llanfrechfa.

30miles

19/12/02 YULE MOON

With the bad weather, a touch of not feeling well, the Fire-fighter’s strike and general apathy, ride’s were getting scarcer than rocking horse manure! However I did venture out to meet Nick in Caerleon, it was 6.30pm and the temperature had dropped below zero. I took a roundabout route to Caerleon; I rode along the Treherbert road, the moon shone down making it easy to see in the cold still night air.

I then took the short climb up to the Dogan Heights; I had to be careful as the lane was a sheet of ice. My bike was performing well, the light aluminium frame was good for these steep climbs, but it gave an unforgiving ride. I met nick at7.00pm; he had given up his fixed wheel in favour of some proper gears, so he could now ride properly instead of like a relic from the 1940s!

The road to Newbridge on Usk had been shut due to a landslip, so we decided to explore, a few miles up the lane, the mud bank had descended on the road, the council were trying to clear it, but it was easily navigable for us on our bikes. The road to Usk seemed to be never ending for me; a bitter easterly wind was blowing, making it very cold. We stopped for a while by the Christmas tree in Usk square; it was very cold for me as I struggled along the main road to Caerleon. We had pleasant views of the lights in Llangybi and the Cwrt Bleddyn Hotel, but I could still not get going, Nick was alright though not showing any signs of not cycling for a while.

I managed to push on to Caerleon, (for a couple of miles only) from here we went our separate way home Nick the 3 miles to Newport City , while I had a uphill ride of 6 miles to Croesyceiliog, to arrive at 10.30pm.

30miles