May Day Activity

This Bank Holiday weekend I'm taking a few short rides out trying to dodge the weather and traffic. Maybe a ride out to the Cotswolds early Monday we will see. But in the meantime the weekend will give me chance to do some more research on a future trip I have planned across to Southern Ireland and ride some of the Wild Atlantic Way. 

Always wanted to return to Southern Ireland having fond memories of a family Holiday over there when I was a mere twelve year old when my Dad and Uncle took their cars and drove me Mum and my brother across to the Dingle Peninsula for a week before driving up to County Mayo for another week to climb Croagh Patrick and do some Trout fishing in the lakes. Dad, a keen fisherman, kept a pub in the Irish part of Brum in the 70s, and some of the regulars introduced him to the idea of fishing the well stocked lakes there. The place was deserted back then with amazing sandy beaches and rugged coastline, and I think it is still quite isolated now and devoid of the levels of tourism we have come to put up with in other parts of Europe. My Dad often asks me why I don't tour the west coast of Ireland on my bike, I think he has a point. It would be good to pick up that Celtic theme while touring North West Spain a few years ago too.

We have been watching a great series on BBC Four called Wild Ireland: The Edge of the World where it's really cemented my desire to return. I have decided on the Fishguard to Rosslare crossing and the basic route I want to run, just need to decide on finer detail and accommodation. Looking at the scenes on TV I'm tempted to take my tent and simply 'get lost' in the wilderness but then maybe a simple pub/Inn affair might suit better where I can try some of that great seafood and of course the Guinness as it should be, and from what I remember live Irish folk music too. Hmm, yes, the more I research, the more I realise the West Coast of Ireland has to move up the bucket list of bike trips away. I enjoyed the west coast of Scotland so it seems the ruggedness of this part of Ireland will appeal to me for a bike trip away in the same way, and relatively shorter distance. Watch this space so any bike touring advice for Ireland 🇮🇪 gratefully received! 

St George's Day ride, across the border to find the Dragon

So today, St George's Day (Sunday), I went off on my 'make it up as you go' ride into Shropshire via Bridgnorth following a couple of characters on some irrelevant sports bikes with patches on their leathers looked like a couple of pikey's with hoodies is all I can use to describe them. A third came up behind me on a GSXR who made some crap manoeuvre on a bend near Alveley just to overtake me. So I couldn't resist flicking the wrist and blowing them off near the roundhouse. I could see the GSXR guy trying to catch me before the cafe at Quatt, but with me not stopping it was a case of .... "so long sucker !"

 

  

Out toward Craven Arms on the usual road just past Morley  I eventually took a right toward Church Stretton with a Bonamassa solo ringing in my ears (Dislocated Boy) - great track started to get the adrenaline pumping a bit and with a narrow country lane starting to get into the rythym of the ride with wonderful fragrant seas of rape seed fields all around as I came up along Sanders lane and in to Stretton.  I stopped at my usual cafe for an excellent small brekky. Sat in the cafe there was a couple of young Lycra clad girls out for a bicycle ride, so I sat outside and admired their bikes and watched them huff and puff up the Mynd later. What a lot of fun I thought.

 

 

 

Up and over the Mynd this time passing the Gliding club where the Shropshire countryside and the Welsh Marches opens out in front of you. Glorious! Good weather today too, a bit warmer than last weekend, not so many layers so a bit more comfortable on the bike.

 

Down through Lydbury North and onto Clun passing through Bishops Castle, the roads quiet and twisty down toward Ceri (Welsh) or Kerry (English) and along the Ridgeway where I stopped to admire the views from a dirt track leading up to a logging area. From here, you could see for 70 miles into Wales and Shropshire looking across to the great Cadair Idris mountain range. Afterwards, I really did start making it up, taking side roads and lanes I had never ridden before, visiting little remote villages with great names like 'Guilden Down' and passing by water mills and old hill forts. This part of the UK is so special, there is so much to see and very little traffic to contend with. Usually when out riding with others we skip past these hidden gems and tend to stick to the same 'biker' routes, so great to be out on my own and get the chance to do what I want and really 'explore !'

Stunning Views across Shropshire and Powys.

 

 

Cadair Idris  in the distance (I think !) 

 

On the return, listening to John Mayer through the headset keeping me company, I came back round near Clun again to pick up the road to Craven Arms a quick fuel stop before taking the Much Wenlock road back to Kinlet then over to Bewdley via Button Oak. A really good fun day out today, I have no idea of the exact route I took, nor how many miles I covered and I really don't care .. just out riding and enjoying the scenery, what could be better?

A ride down to Florida .... Strata Florida !

With Easter out the way now and Tuesday off work I decided to ride out into Mid-Wales and try and find Strata Florida. The plan was to ride via Monkland and Pembridge south of Leominster to the A44 and down to Kington with a stop at a famous Waterfall curiosuly named 'Water Break its Neck Falls' in New Radnor. It was a cool morning where the temperature didn't rise much above 10 degrees so by the time I reached the falls I had cold hands and needed the excuse to switch gloves. The Waterfall was just off the 44 and with a 10 minutes walk into the moss covered valley fairly easy to find..

 

 

 

 

The trees are thick with Moss and the waterfall amazing, my pictures don't do it justice. I had the whole valley to myself, apparaently legend has it a Dragon 🐉  lives down here, so I was careful not to wake it while clod hopping around in my bike boots ! 

   

Real Dragon breath!!

Later, I stopped off at the usual bikers cafe at Crossgates for a sausage sarny and got chatting to a nice old chap riding a Yamaha MT-09. At first I thought it was the smaller variant, MT-07 the bike press are raving about, and coincidentally Rob contacted me this week who expressed an interest where we may take one for a test ride in June I thought I'd quiz the guy about it. He likes the MT-09 but in his words said 'it's not a GS' and misses owning a GS for comfort and refinements, but he reckons the MT-07 would be better value and said you can't go wrong with one of those. The only downside was the screen, they are naff he said, and the soft panniers are made of a material that are hard to keep clean and not really waterproof. Perhaps with aftermarket screen and panniers it would rival if not beat other bikes of the same price range e.g. dare I say the V-Strom 650 - 😂 nah, surely not the Wee!

So, onwards from Crossgates I stopped by the Red Kite feeding centre but not for long, only wishing to find it and get a price for a visit later in the year, and then took a right just past Rhayader town into the Elan Valley. I dont think I've been here so early in the year and the valley seemed quite sparse and the grass was paler than usual. I didn't hang about through the valley and took that sublime road down to Devils Bridge and stopped for a cuppa at the Woodside cafe before taking the B4343 down to Tregaron. This road is just wonderful Welsh heaven, twisty, narrow and so picturesque as I approached Strata Florida Abbey where I stopped for a quick look at the church and the ruins. Worth stopping I'd say, to take in the history of the area and get a sense of the community based on Lead mines. Strata Florida means Vale of the flowers in Latin as I now understand.

 

 

Abbey Ruins.

 

 

 

Eventually, I ended up winding through Lampeter then on to Pumsaint and stopping at the cafe in Llandovery, a usual stop for other bikers and parked next to a nice looking Triumph Ace Cafe Thruxton Bonneville limited edition in black and white. Unfortunately I forgot to to take a picture, but I do like these bonnie variants, wouldn't mind one as a second bike I have to say 👍

Great day out, 'blatting' about Mid to South Wales, and with a smile back on my face again watching those Red Kites hovering about everywhere. Wonderful!