- Joined
- Sep 27, 2013
- Messages
- 4,512
- Reaction score
- 766
- Location
- Wellinton, WC
- Bike
- BMW R1200GS Adventure
They say Africa is not for sissies...after this weekend I would take African dirt/sand with a smile!
We decided to join Nick Plumb and his team from Touratech UK for one last weekend ride before winter really hits Wales. Nothing serious, just a leisurely cruise through magnificent mountains with breathtaking scenery. For the most part, Wales delivered on that promise.
We were to meet at TT HQ at 9:00 on Saturday and decided to leave Bicester at 14:00 on Friday afternoon. According to Google maps, Waze and Garmin, the 140 mile route through the Cotswolds should take about 3 hours. 6 hours later we arrive at the Castle Hotel in Neath. Bad weather, Weekend traffic and accidents blocking the road clearly plays havoc on route planning. The newly renovated hotel was a welcome surprise at £55 for a luxury suite, safe parking and breakfast included.
A quick change and we sat down for beers and pizza across the road before settling in for the night. I’m still curious about the local population given the two bulky bouncers at the door of the pizzeria.
After breakfast on Saturday we rode the 20 minutes to TT HQ, met the team and fellow riders, dropped our gear at the overnight accommodation and headed out. Before leaving I was warned about the friction defying quality of dead leaves, moss and pine needles that accumulate along the country lanes in autumn.
The pace was leisurely and the scenery absolutely breathtaking. The country lanes are mostly tarred but barely wide enough for one vehicle. Every few minutes I’d round a bend and meet a green Land Rover with wide eyed occupants coming the opposite direction. Slowing down is difficult, stopping, near impossible but we settled into a comfortable rhythm and enjoyed the ride.
About an hour into the ride we turned left into a side road with a covering of the dreaded Welsch mulch across the entrance. I momentarily lost the front wheel, recovered by bring the bike upright only to hit a worse patch with the rear and before I knew what happened I was on my back watching the bike sliding along the tar with Lereze’s laugh over the intercom. I do love my wife!! Not many pillions will find this funny and considering a week ago she could barely walk and still struggles to get on the bike, I think she’s one tough girl.
Apart from a severely bent ego and a few bruises we were OK and after refitting the side stand spring we were off again. The rest of the day delivered even more spectacular scenery but I couldn’t relax. I’d lost confidence in my ability, the bike and the tyres and spent the rest of the morning focussed on not falling over again.
We had lunch at the Owls Nest Tea Room and Diner, a favourite stop for motorcycles. They are famous for their burgers and items like the bacon mountain, a bread roll loaded with 8 slices of thick Welsh bacon.
It started raining over lunch and within minutes of leaving we were in the middle of a storm navigating a narrow mountain pass with visibility limited to the bike in front’s rear light. The wind kept threatening to push the bikes off the road but we managed without further incident and arrived safely to beers and chilly after a hot shower.
It was raining for most of the return trip on Sunday. I spent all day trying to ignore the throbbing pain in my knee and making sure we get home safe. The weekend left me with some food for thought. We will however return in summer to see more of this beautiful region.
We decided to join Nick Plumb and his team from Touratech UK for one last weekend ride before winter really hits Wales. Nothing serious, just a leisurely cruise through magnificent mountains with breathtaking scenery. For the most part, Wales delivered on that promise.
We were to meet at TT HQ at 9:00 on Saturday and decided to leave Bicester at 14:00 on Friday afternoon. According to Google maps, Waze and Garmin, the 140 mile route through the Cotswolds should take about 3 hours. 6 hours later we arrive at the Castle Hotel in Neath. Bad weather, Weekend traffic and accidents blocking the road clearly plays havoc on route planning. The newly renovated hotel was a welcome surprise at £55 for a luxury suite, safe parking and breakfast included.
A quick change and we sat down for beers and pizza across the road before settling in for the night. I’m still curious about the local population given the two bulky bouncers at the door of the pizzeria.
After breakfast on Saturday we rode the 20 minutes to TT HQ, met the team and fellow riders, dropped our gear at the overnight accommodation and headed out. Before leaving I was warned about the friction defying quality of dead leaves, moss and pine needles that accumulate along the country lanes in autumn.
The pace was leisurely and the scenery absolutely breathtaking. The country lanes are mostly tarred but barely wide enough for one vehicle. Every few minutes I’d round a bend and meet a green Land Rover with wide eyed occupants coming the opposite direction. Slowing down is difficult, stopping, near impossible but we settled into a comfortable rhythm and enjoyed the ride.
About an hour into the ride we turned left into a side road with a covering of the dreaded Welsch mulch across the entrance. I momentarily lost the front wheel, recovered by bring the bike upright only to hit a worse patch with the rear and before I knew what happened I was on my back watching the bike sliding along the tar with Lereze’s laugh over the intercom. I do love my wife!! Not many pillions will find this funny and considering a week ago she could barely walk and still struggles to get on the bike, I think she’s one tough girl.
Apart from a severely bent ego and a few bruises we were OK and after refitting the side stand spring we were off again. The rest of the day delivered even more spectacular scenery but I couldn’t relax. I’d lost confidence in my ability, the bike and the tyres and spent the rest of the morning focussed on not falling over again.
We had lunch at the Owls Nest Tea Room and Diner, a favourite stop for motorcycles. They are famous for their burgers and items like the bacon mountain, a bread roll loaded with 8 slices of thick Welsh bacon.
It started raining over lunch and within minutes of leaving we were in the middle of a storm navigating a narrow mountain pass with visibility limited to the bike in front’s rear light. The wind kept threatening to push the bikes off the road but we managed without further incident and arrived safely to beers and chilly after a hot shower.
It was raining for most of the return trip on Sunday. I spent all day trying to ignore the throbbing pain in my knee and making sure we get home safe. The weekend left me with some food for thought. We will however return in summer to see more of this beautiful region.
