INDIAN SUMMER - A Ride in the Wye Valley

5/09/04

This Saturday had been a cycling event for Newport City; it had held a stage of the Tour of Britain cycle race. As a result of this, there were many cyclists wandering around as I set off to meet Nick in Newbridge on Usk at 16.30. The weather had been quite poor in August, but today the sun was blistering. There is no iron curtain on the first of September that cuts off summer and turns it into autumn and I was blissfully aware of that as I cycled in the beautiful sunshine, along the sweet smelling lanes that I have ridden since I was a boy. Nick and I set off along the narrow track that would take us over to the ascent to Cobbler’s Plain one of our favourite climbs. Before long we had reached the Trellech Plateau, we descended through the wooded slopes of the River Wye valley before long we were in the picturesque village of Tintern. We cycled along the main road that follows the river Wye which is the border between Wales and England. A few miles of cycling through this beautiful valley brought us to the village of Llandogo, where we stocked up with supplies from the local shop, which seemed to use their front room as a restaurant! That evening was a night of aromas. I could smell food being cooked in pubs, houses and inns, as we carried up the valley into the trees; we left the sweet smelling gardens of the village for the more robust odour of the forest that covers the side of this valley. A few miles on up the climb out of the valley we arrived at the Whitestones picnic area, this is always recognisable by its massive trees that surround the area. Our lamps lit the lane that headed for Trellech, Nick had cycled ahead, I saw him stopped on the side of the road, a mist had appeared from nowhere and seemed to envelope us. We were along side the famous Cleddon bog. We looked over and saw a mist rising out of the bog; it was an eerie site and looked like a living thing! However in a couple of minutes it went down and settled a few feet above the bog. Nick has always held Cleddon bog as a special place and from this nights display I can see why! There was now nothing to do but to cycle home in the dark along the warm lanes through Trellech and Llanishen. Here we stopped for a while on top of the plateau viewing a brilliant show of stars. We then cycled home via Usk, Prescoed, Coed-y-Paen and the Trehebert road....50 miles.

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