Swansea Bay to Kinmel Bay

[TheDoctor]

A raging Hero with a destiny of steel, With glory overcomes a Mighty Quest concealed!
Rain stopped play, at least for the morning.
Plans for a ride were abandoned, but my sister and I did have breakfast.
Somehow a quick breakfast lasted for four hours.
We talked a lot about people - happy times with our dad, our fractured, broken relationship with our mother.
Both people we should have been able to rely on, who should have supported us.
One now couldn't, the other just wouldn't. And never really had.
The sun came out in the afternoon, and I slowly ambled round to Mumbles.
I watched a boat passing through the River Tawe barrage - the big sea lock into the marina


and then stopped to look across the bay.


At Mumbles, I left my bike snuggled up to Claudine's Kaffenback, and we went to the pub.
Beer was drunk. Pretty soon we were drunk.

Yvonne, Claudine and Your Valiant Hero, being photobombed by the landlady.
Some relationships sustain us, support us, raise us up.
We should cherish them.
By now it was well past OMFG-is-that-the-time.
Riding back to Swansea, I resolved not to leave it another eight years before coming here again.
28.7 km ridden today.

 

[TheDoctor]

Ride! To the far away mountains. Fight! Many goblins and trolls.
Today I left Swansea, to begin my Epic Quest to the far North.
I stopped for breakfast near Castle Square - welsh cakes, chocolate orange rocky road, flat white.

Last night, someone had mentioned a rally in Castle Square, and I decided to go.
I shan't mention politics - I'd have to ban myself...
I'd met a few of Claudines friends last night, but not all stayed for long.
One of them heard of my recent loss, and came along specifically to hug me and give me a Pride flag to wear.
I was quite touched.
Speeches were made, and I even heard some of them. Good times.
We've all got a choice about how we respond to the other in society.
The victims, the people who've risked and lost everything, from lands ravaged by war, by economics.
Choose kindness. Choose tolerance. Choose to be on the right side of history.
By now it was getting late. And hot. And I set off rather later than was ideal.
The first part up past Pontadawe was on Sustrans trails, Pretty flat, and reasonably direct.
I followed the river Tawe quite closely.

Eventually, the river fizzled out, and the hills got a bit serious.

Yes, I was heading that way. The Beacons were beckoning.

Up I went. The Swytch electric kit was starting to earn its keep today.
At the top of the Vale of Neath, the views were none too shabby.

The view from the pub patio was lovely.

After dinner and a pint, an early night beckons.
I feckin' love Claudine, but if I spend too many evenings with her my liver needs some time off.
64km ridden today.

 

[TheDoctor]

And you may ask yourself, "Well, how did I get here?"
Today was the first full day of Lumpy Stuff.
I set off from Sennybridge a bit earlier than I might have liked,
After a degree of Cartographical Chaos, I decided to let Googe Maps choose the route. Because I couldn't.
An intricate maze of small roads, surely Google could solve this?
Off I went. The early stages went well, and all was good.



I found some coffee and snacks
Honesty cafes, they're a thing, apparently.
At a pound for coffee and Cheddars I'm in favour.

And I found a station, on the Heart of Wales line.
I was chastened to realise I could have got here from Swansea in little over an hour.


Right about then, Google threw a spanner in.
I should have been looking at the cycleroute NC8.
This obviously isn't it.

I even walked up for a few minutes, to see if it got better. It didn't.
I retraced my tracks, and discovered a road out.
A few miles along, was the NC8. I'd been on the wrong side of a ridge.
I arrived at my lodgings, and rehydrated.

What with navigational shenanigans, I'd picked up an extra 12.4 km.
66,5 km ridden today.

 

[TheDoctor]

Today was easier.
Claudine had worked out I was in Rhayader, by the logo on my beer glass.
She told me "the St Harmon road to Llanidloes is very nice IIRC. It's a good place for a lunch stop with nice hippie cafés. The views down the Dylife Gorge after Llanidloes are fantastic, but it's a bastard climb up there! The payoff is that you get something like a 6-mile descent into Machynlleth."
And so it turned out. It was a drizzly afternoon, so hard to get any decent photos.
An absolutely cracking descent though.

53.6 km ridden today
https://www.visitmidwales.co.uk/thi...lleth-via-llyn-clywedog-scenic-drive-p1739541

 

[Chislenko]

Today was easier.
Claudine had worked out I was in Rhayader, by the logo on my beer glass.
She told me "the St Harmon road to Llanidloes is very nice IIRC. It's a good place for a lunch stop with nice hippie cafés. The views down the Dylife Gorge after Llanidloes are fantastic, but it's a bastard climb up there! The payoff is that you get something like a 6-mile descent into Machynlleth."
And so it turned out. It was a drizzly afternoon, so hard to get any decent photos.
An absolutely cracking descent though.

53.6 km ridden today
https://www.visitmidwales.co.uk/thi...lleth-via-llyn-clywedog-scenic-drive-p1739541

Be sure to visit our spiritual leaders Parliament building whilst you are in Machynlleth.

 

[TheDoctor]

Will do. I'm having a rest day today, so I'll try and find it before my train to Barmouth.
If not, I'll be back another time.
I really want to do the Centre for Alternative Technology, but that's a full-day job in its own right.

 

[Chislenko]

Will do. I'm having a rest day today, so I'll try and find it before my train to Barmouth.
If not, I'll be back another time.
I really want to do the Centre for Alternative Technology, but that's a full-day job in its own right.

Somewhere in the back of my mind I am sure I read that the Centre for Alternative Technology was closing to the General Public, could be wrong, but it rang a bell when you posted.

 

[TheDoctor]

...the Centre for Alternative Technology was closing to the General Public...

So it has. They plan to re-open when funding permits.
I'll be back when it does.

 

[TheDoctor]

We have stayed at the White Lion, breakfast is excellent, rooms are a bit dated but it is an old building. The Goat is just a pub, about a two minute walk from the Lion. The Goat you will find is very much a Welsh language pub used by locals, the Bull, just up the road the other way is more bilingual.

Enjoy your trip.

Went to the Bull. Good and cheap beer, sound place.

 

[TheDoctor]

Now in The Goat. Ditto

 

[TheDoctor]

The daily reports have got a bit interrupted by life. They'll turn up. I am fecking loving Wales.

 

[Chislenko]

Where to tomorrow?

 

[TheDoctor]

Mochdre, where my aunt lives. I'm very fond of her.
I'll get to Betwys y Coed, then get the train, blat straight down the A road, or do the B road on the other side of the river Conwy

 

[Grant Fondo]

Mochdre, where my aunt lives. I'm very fond of her.
I'll get to Betwys y Coed, then get the train, blat straight down the A road, or do the B road on the other side of the river Conwy

Nearly there then. Not sure whats in Kinmel bay, but i had a nice eccles cake in a cafe up the road in Rhuddlan on monday?

 

[theclaud]

Claudine had worked out I was in Rhayader, by the logo on my beer glass.

You're overselling my detective powers here, seeing as you'd already mentioned you would stop in Rhayader.