Lon Las Cymru - Now its your turn!

I did it! My way!? Solo, through the Mountains with friends joining me on the New Years Eve leg to pedal the Taff Trail over the Brecon Beacons; Carried too much, in four panniers and rack top luggage - two panniers of which were emergency/camping gear; I took the toughest trail options, sticking to the rough mountain forest tracks and slow tiny winding, up & down lanes; Decided on using a lightweight bike without suspension – just fatter road tyres; Planned on doing the whole thing and the leg to Gloucestershire over the old Severn Bridge in just five and a half days; To cycle it over Christmas, mid-Winter, with an Easterly off the Russian Steppes, ice covered lanes and darkness falling after 4.30 pm! Got the idea? Yes, it was to be tough!

Having now done it, climbed mountain passes from sea level or been struggling over a mountain heavily laden in the dark, overly reliant on an earlier compass bearing, with the Easterly being channeled by the mountains into a chill Force 10 and knowing I have several hours of darkness left before I could drop down into a valley to find a B&B - After some nine to ten hours in the saddle! I can say - Yes, that only having the emergency gear gave me the confidence to do it! The knowing that I could make a warm basha camp on the mountain if lost, frozen, exhausted or in-trouble.

I would not now recommend doing this ride Solo-&-heavily-laden without limiting the daily mileage to 20-25 miles or having a support vehicle and a satellite emergency beacon. Cycling and navigating the trail, alone when tired in the dark, under icy and chill Winter conditions increased the danger of a mishap to too great a degree. Although, it would be fun to do it on a Mountain Bike unladen with a group of friends, limiting the mileage in the mountains to say 30-35 miles a day - especially so, if we enjoyed those sunny clear Winter mornings.

The beauty of the trail through Snowdonia, the Cambrian Mountains and then the Brecon Beacons when joined by Daffy & Neil made it all worth while. The sunny warm mornings, causing you to dawdle a little in enjoyment of so many scenic moments! Before the wind stiffened and the chill damp afternoon cold forced up-your-pace to ensure you arrived at a destination before 7-8 pm.

It was great and sometimes it wasn't, it was challenging and it was fun! Winter was a good time to do it and yet it wasn't........ Confused feelings about it? No, it was GREAT and you must try it.

I kept a Blog with Slide Shows, made a few friends and spent a little time with ones I loved. Here is a list of my main Lon Las Cymru Blog Postings:

Lon Las Cymru - Gogledd
27.12.08 Llanfairpwllgwyngyllgogerychwryndrobwllllantisilio...
28.12.08 A Hard Ride to Dolgellau @ 96 miles
29.12.08 The Dragon Rocks......
30.12.08 All My Yesterday's
31.12.08 New Years Eve, Inspirational Company and Snow?
01.01.09 The Taff Trail Across The Brecon Beacons in Pictur...
01.01.09 New Year's Day 2009 - A Long Last Leg East
02.01.09 Exhaustion and Recovery