It’s the day after my holiday. I got back yesterday lunchtime and the holiday blues have set in, wishing I was still there but what did Mid-Wales teach me?
The Scenery
The scenery and views around Mid-Wales are simply stunning. Better than I expected to be honest. Having been to Canada, Scotland and around the Elan Valley, Builth Wells and Rhayader before, I think I’m quietly qualified to comment. The only difference is size. Canada is vast. Mind-blowingly big of a size it’s difficult to articulate to people in the UK. Scotland is still big and beautiful. Wales competes easily on views but not on size. Wherever you go it’s over too soon but that’s not to say there isn’t plenty to see and why it appears to be a mecca for motorcyclists. It’s an amazing place to get away from the crowds if that’s your thing and it’s only 2hrs from home!
Never mind the Weather
Going to Wales and expecting no rain is like going to the coast and expecting not to see the sea. They go hand in hand. Prepare for it and embrace it or you’ll sit inside miserable all day. I got lucky with the weather at the start of my week but later on we had showers and wind. It didn’t stop me riding, in fact it didn’t stop us doing anything, it just made my rides and our drives more challenging at times.
Taking the right kit is important too. I nearly got caught out a couple of times. The Cambrian Mountains may not be the Alps or Pyrenees but the same rules apply. At height the temperature dips and the weather can change pretty quickly. If you’re riding solo, be sensible.
Quiet
It’s a peaceful place where the pace of life slows down considerably. It’s something us townies may struggle to adjust to. In my research I made sure there was a pub within walking distance and even then it wasn’t open 7 days and only opened in the evenings through the week. We did have a small, local shop too but if we wanted a supermarket or a takeaway maybe, thats 8 miles and a 20 min drive away. We take it for granted where we live but here you need to plan a bit. That kind of take myself away from it all was exactly what I wanted. Switch off from work and enjoy the headspace. Worked a treat.
Low gears
If you plan cycling around mid-Wales, super low gears are highly recommended. There are famously steep climbs to tackle but there are also loads of other short, sharp gradients to keep you busy. I don’t think there was any road locally that didn’t have something 15%+ on it somewhere. My lowest gear was 32/34 and was perfect to just twiddle away low n slow and enjoy the views when I needed to. If you try and push too hard you just burn matches really quickly and a pleasant ride can easily become pretty tough.
Patchy mobile
It may be stating the obvious but the mobile signal is pretty patchy so don’t rely on it to get you out of a jam if you have a mechanical or something worse. With this in mind I definitely didn’t take any unnecessary risks. I took every blind corner carefully and eased up on every steep descent as you just don’t know what’s coming. You can get complacent when the roads are so quiet. It could be as simple as a lamb following it’s mom across the road, a patch of gravel or a massive logging truck bombing along at you as they do. Seriously, they don’t give a fuck! In fact, something I did learn from the Cambrian Mountains Gravel Epic is you can register your phone so you can send emergency SMS’s when phone signal is poor. Do it if you haven’t. Text ‘Register’ to 112, wait for the reply, read it in full then reply with ‘Yes’. Highly recommended and I’d also recommend downloading the what3words app to help pinpoint where you are at any point. Emergency services use it and it’s free
What is what3words?
The surface of the world is divided into 3 metre squares and each square has been given a unique combination of three words. The app will locate you using GPS and put you in a square. Use it’s unique three word combo to share where you are.
It’s been an amazing week off. Sally came along and worked from the cottage while I trundled around the lanes for a few hours. PM we would go off and do something before dinner at the pub in the evening. Perfect! The surprise bingo night made my week.
Back to the grind tomorrow 😦
Adios
PS we stayed in a small annexe to an old coaching house
36x25 
You seemed to have a ball and really made the most of it 🙂
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