Dave T-S

Will be in Crickhowell over the weekend, and will probably take the MTB. Anywhere CLOSE to Crickhowell, preferably that I can cycle to, that I can take the bike off road and do a bit of mud bashing?

Obviously the Black Mountains are just up the road, but don't have an OS map of the area handy and can't see what tracks there might be - and besides I can't be arsed, easier to ask someone on here

TIA

Graz

Get a map. There's a shed load of legal trails in the Black Mountains though it's quite hilly and probably a bit boggy now given all the rain we've been having. I have ridden there although it's quite a while back. Last few visits I've been hiking.

I'm fairly sure you can ride up Sugar Loaf, which is really near to Crickhowell, seem to remember reading an article in MBR where that was part of one of their killer loops.

Anyway have fun

Dave T-S

Ta for that

We've got the Anquet OS map software at home, will print some stuff off this evening.

Can't be boggier than the swamps round our way LOL

ChrisB

You could start this one from Talybont-on-Usk Dave:

http://www.edinburghbicycle.com/rout...tb/brecon.html

Chip

Dont forget a bit of grub in the Skirrid Inn either,get there via Mynydd Pen Y Fal.



Chip

Dave T-S

Thanks for the suggestions guys. In the end, as Lesley has had a muddy and boggy ride to work every day for about three weeks now on her MTB and got a bit fed up with it we took the road bikes instead. She plotted us out a 46 mile loop of the Black Mountains round mostly quiet lanes and we did that instead. Tough? Bloody hell, we aren't use to hills like that in Suffolk which is why we wanted to do it in the first place. I'm a wimp and got a triple chainset on my bike and am fairly good on hills, but at one point up on the top of the moors it was so steep I had to get off and walk

Gluttons for punishment so we went out and walked 4 hours on the Beacons yesterday

Stayed in the Bear at Crickhowell, great place and excellent food. All in all, top weekend (apart from the roadworks on the M42/M5 etc ).

Scoobychick

iTrader: (1)

I love Wales, especially the Brecon Beacons. We were last there for Rally GB back in September and stayed a week in a fantastic house near Sennybridge that had stunning views towards the Black Mountains.

We drove everywhere though, that's wimpy

Fat Boy

Oi DTS,I didn't give you permission to go to my neck of the woods, but then you seem to have found the main hostelries anyway - If you go there again, the only one i'd have added to the Bear and the Skirrid would have been the Llanthony Abbey Hotel, but maybe you went past there anyway. There's a great road ride up the Llanthony valley past Capel Y Ffin and over Hay Bluff (as used by EVO) near Lord Hereford's **** (oerrr), and good off road stuff above the abbey along Offa's Dyke (also oeerr) which is Wales's version of Hadrian's wall, rather than a woman in dungarees and sensible shoes. Some brilliant gastro pubs within a 20 minute drive of there as well such as the Walnut Tree Inn above Abergavenny.

For a serious off road experience, you could also try the Cwmcarn set up just north of Newport, some great trails and lots of fresh air bends...http://www.mbwales.com/scripts/viewnews.asp?NewsID=54.

If you do fancy Cwmcarn let me know before you go as I know a great unofficial route from Newport, up the disused Brecon canal, and over the local mountain, Twmbarlwm, into the official Cwmcarn route network which adds some interesting "wrinkles". A little bit hilly though....

Dave T-S

FB

Guess what, that's exactly where we went Crickhowell, Stanton, Longtown, Hay Bluff, Tregoyd, Talgarth, Llangors, Cwmdu and back to Crickhowell. Capel-y-ffin was the killer

Our gentle walk on Sunday was up the Offas Dyke path

Bloody excellent weekend!

Fat Boy

I should have known that you'd never miss a ****. Capel y ffin and the bluff are bad in both directions...

Trivia alert. Next time you're in Crickhowell, count the arches in the bridge - different number on each side!