RBR Wales - long.

Set off BH Monday lunchtime, and trundled through London, out to the
M40. Simple enough journey past Oxford, then up to Traitor's Ford,
where the "incident" happened.

Linda did the sensible thing, and got off. Muggins, in a fit of
artistic bent, decided the photo would look best with the Wing parked
"in" the Ford, not next to it. So I walked it in, and the front just
washed out, no warning. Bang. I got off as it went down, and was left
stood in an inch or two of water, with a GoldWing at 45deg to the
vertical. Hmmm.

Two substantial bodies proved adequate for the lift, and there was no
hint of slippage, which was weird. I started it, stuck it in gear, and
"walked" it out of the ford.

Scraping the mud and gloop off the crash bars showed no sign of
damage. Well done, Mr Honda.

Photo taken, it was off down some windy little roads, to Teddington
Hands, to get a photo of the Fingerpost. Easy, that, even if the
surroundings were a little overgrown.

Next on the list was Grosmont castle. Linda is apparently of the
opinion that one hasn't visited a castle until one's been into every
ruined tower, and up every rickety staircase. Chalk up another 20
points.

Final call of the day, was "Water-breaks-its-neck" waterfall, near
Radnor. Cue marriage straining incident #1.

Having missed the turning, due the sign being obscured by the bushes,
we turned around, and then made our way up the gravel strewn track to
the carpark for the waterfall. Whilst I was retrieving the landmark
card, and camera, her ladyship sets off up the trail. Photo taken, I'm
about to track after her when a car hoves into view.

To cut a long story short, the occupants informed me that the
waterfall was about 200m down the hill, turn left, and follow the
stream, for another 200m.

I set off to retrieve Linda. And fail. Until she reaches the crest of
the climb, some 500m into the woods, up a very steep hill. We continue
along the trail, until it crosses the stream (no sign of any
waterfall), and descend the other side of the valley. How we didn't
fall, on the wet mud is still a mystery.

As we slither and slide to the base of the hill, we're confronted with
the legend "Waterfall: 200m". Oops.

It really is a nice waterfall, and well worth a 200m walk. Whether
it's worth a 1700m cross country trek is a different matter entirely.

On the way back down the main road, we saw a sight that lifted the
spirits, somewhat. In the field to our left, was a herd of cows. among
their number were about ten calves. As we went past, they set off in
what seemed to be a race. Full gallop, down the field, round the
"bend" at the end, and up the side. Quite peculiar, it was, and rather
comical.

From the waterfall, we set off towards the next landmark, in hope of
finding lodgings for the night. The Fforest Inn, on the junction of
the A44/481, proved more than adequate. Good food, decent ale, and a
comfy bed. Pity our jackets didn't fully dry out overnight.

4 landmarks, 70 points, and 225 miles.

Tuesday dawned bright and sunny. After breakfast, we set off to find
Devil's Staircase. Oh, what fun. A one in four hill, with about four
switchbacks, two up, on a Wing, is definitely a challenge. Especially
when you realise you've gone too far, and have to turn round and
descend again. Further challenged by the fact that the Wing wouldn't
remain stationary, even in gear, when parked, I let Linda get off to
take the photo. The good news was then compounded by the discovery
that the route to the next landmark was back up the hill.

A very nervous nine-point turn was negotiated *before* Linda deigned
to remount, and a clutch busting pull away was executed.

Going down the other side, I decided to save the brakes, and rely on
engine braking - 1st gear, 1:4 descent, 21mph. Quite impressive, I
guess. Anyway, the road from Devil's Staircase to Llandovery around
the Llyn Brianne reservoir is well worth the effort. Glorious scenery,
and our first (of many) sightings of red kites, soaring on thermals,
looking for a tasty snack. What an impressive looking bird.

The run down to Gower was otherwise dull, and the landmark itself (a
"restored" lime kiln) was hidden away in the midst of a scout camp.
Behind a padlocked gate. Grrr.

Retracing our route out of Gower took us to Pendine Sands - erstwhile
home of land speed record attempts. The museum there, which was the
landmark, was closing in 20 minutes, so we didn't go in, which was a
pity.

Braving the coastal gales, and ridiculously steep roads, we set off in
search of Llawhaden castle. Piece of cake, this one, though some of
the roads are a bit narrow. The castle itself is better preserved than
most, and I leave Linda to charge all around it while I man the
camera, and refreshments.

From Llawhaden, it was along the Cardigan Bay coast, then inland at
Aberystwyth, taking the A44 to Ponterwyd. Second fill-up of the day
here, before setting off to Nant-y-moch reservoir. In the car park by
the dam is a plaque commemorating Owain Glyndwr's victory over the
English in 1411. Talk about bearing a grudge. They're as bad as the
Scots. Agincourt is different, of course.

Photo taken, we continued along the little reservoir road, before
settling in to the White Lion in Machynnleth for the night.
Unremarkable pub, iffy grub, not cheap.

5 landmarks, 130 points, 266 miles.

Another sunny day on Wednesday, and it began with a short jaunt up the
A487/494 to Rhydymain, to find the memorial to the crew of a crashed
Mosquito. The memorial itself is the remnants of one of the Merlin
engines, and, judging by the state of it, it spent some time driving
TOG's mower.

From there it was back up into the mountains, to find Eidda's Well. It
might be a well, but you wouldn't catch me drinking out of it.

Next stage was the long haul out to Anglesey, to find a standing stone
(Fadog Frech) in a field. Simple. On the way back Linda decided it
would be a good idea to pay a surprise visit to her brother in Bangor.
The GPS guided us right to the door.

A cup of coffee later, and it was another long slog along the A55 to
find the OLD castle at Hawarden. On the way, I thought I saw a wind
farm out in the sea. Is that right? I presume it's off the end of the
Wirral.

Anyway, the old castle is in the grounds of the new one, which is a
country park. Another park up, and trudge through a cow field, then.
In the sunshine. Oh joy. The castle itself is hidden behind trees,
with no obvious path leading up to it. I opted for the arty shot
through the trees.

From there it was to the ford at World's End, via Horseshoe Pass,
which was very scenic. The ford itself was quite grippy, and I *did*
get the shot with bike in the water.

Back on the bike, and contemplating the ride home, I knew the next,
and last, two were "on the way", so, despite having found no
references to them on the web, we set off anyway.

Finding the totem pole at Gledrid was as easy as falling off a log,
and the "Roadside cross or memorial , Nr Nesscliffe", is rather more
"near" than the clue might suggest. Well, the one I saw is.

From there it was a steady charge down the A5/M54/M6/M1/A1. One stop
for fuel, and another to ease aching arses, and we were home by 10:15.

Top marks to the bloke in the Smart car which held a steady 85-90 for
the entire length of the M54. "powered by Mercedes-Benz" indeed. I bet
Coulthard and Raikkonnen would like an engine that could run that
long.

7 landmarks, 150 points, 417 miles.

So, the whole of Wales in two and a half days. Top fun.

I guess the Wing deserves a clean, now. And a new front tyre, by the
look of it. Especially as it's done >17.5k miles. Good stuff, these
Bridgestones.

16 landmarks, 350 points, and 908 miles in all.

Only Scotland, the North, East Anglia and the West Country to go,
then. Ho hum. Oh, and Hants & Sussex.
--
| ___ Salad Dodger
|/ \
_/_____\_ GL1500SEV/CBR1100XXX/KH500A8/TS250C
|_\_____/_| ..66073../..15556.../..3157./.19406
(>|_|_|<) TPPFATUICG#7 DIAABTCOD#9 YTC#4 PM#5
|__|_|__| BOTAFOT #70 BOTAFOF #09 two#11 WG*
\ |^| / IbW#0 & KotIbW# BotTOS#6 GP#4
\|^|/ ANORAK#17
'^' RBR-Visited:35 Pts: 705 Miles:2429

 

Excellent reading - as usual.

 

Salad Dodger says...

<snip epic journey>

Excellent work, up to your usual high standard. Glad you had fun and no-
one got hurt when the Wing decided it wanted a bath.

You managed to find all that is good about Wales in 2 1/2 days. So why
do people choose to spend their whole lives there?

 

I'm with Linda on this one. I still cant believe that Ive just spent
six days in Ireland and didnt get to visit one castle. Andy just got
me out of grumpy mode by finding an ancient ruined monastery.

--
Adie
(replace spam with nickname to reply)

UKRM FAQ: http://www.ukrm.net/faq/

Triumph 955iSS / GSF600 bandit
MRO#11 BOTAFOF#7 BOTAFOT#130 DIAABTCOD#17 MIB#24 YTC#16 BOB#15 ex-UKRMMA#22

 

I wouldn't think you'd need to travel that far to find something ancient
and ruined.

 

He must have blended into the scenery quite well, then ;-)

--
| ___ Salad Dodger
|/ \
_/_____\_ GL1500SEV/CBR1100XXX/KH500A8/TS250C
|_\_____/_| ..66073../..15556.../..3157./.19406
(>|_|_|<) TPPFATUICG#7 DIAABTCOD#9 YTC#4 PM#5
|__|_|__| BOTAFOT #70 BOTAFOF #09 two#11 WG*
\ |^| / IbW#0 & KotIbW# BotTOS#6 GP#4
\|^|/ ANORAK#17
'^' RBR-Visited:35 Pts: 705 Miles:2429

 

I forgot: we had lunch at the caffi at
Llanfairpwllgwyngyllgogerychwyrndrobwllllantysiliogogogoch, just
because we could.

Best fish and chips I've had in *years*.
--
| ___ Salad Dodger
|/ \
_/_____\_ GL1500SEV/CBR1100XXX/KH500A8/TS250C
|_\_____/_| ..66073../..15556.../..3157./.19406
(>|_|_|<) TPPFATUICG#7 DIAABTCOD#9 YTC#4 PM#5
|__|_|__| BOTAFOT #70 BOTAFOF #09 two#11 WG*
\ |^| / IbW#0 & KotIbW# BotTOS#6 GP#4
\|^|/ ANORAK#17
'^' RBR-Visited:35 Pts: 705 Miles:2429

 

Champ wrote in

It's not uncommon in young cattle, horses & deer.

 

Salad Dodger wrote in

Grosmont area is lovely. Had a bimble through there last weekend

A481 from Fforest inn to Builth Wells is one of my favourites

Heh. I have not taken GPZ/Steve H etc along there, yet. I'm looking
forward to the conversations after I sneak it in.

Agreed. A very pleasant loop around the reservoir. If you get the
chance, the road through to Tregaron is worth the ride too. There's a
red kite centre at Tregaron where dozens of the buggers appear for the
feeding frenzy.

Nant-y-moch. I got a puncture last time I rode around there. Lovely
road. Riding 8 miles on a semi inflated tyre to Ponterwyd was
interesting.
As others have said, an interesting account.

 

We did it ourselves a couple of Sundays ago....

Linked brakes <shudder>

 

The Wing's got linked brakes.

Shut the throttle, if you're that concerned.
--
| ___ Salad Dodger
|/ \
_/_____\_ GL1500SEV/CBR1100XXX/KH500A8/TS250C
|_\_____/_| ..66073../..15556.../..3157./.19406
(>|_|_|<) TPPFATUICG#7 DIAABTCOD#9 YTC#4 PM#5
|__|_|__| BOTAFOT #70 BOTAFOF #09 two#11 WG*
\ |^| / IbW#0 & KotIbW# BotTOS#6 GP#4
\|^|/ ANORAK#17
'^' RBR-Visited:35 Pts: 705 Miles:2429

 

SteveH wrote in

Rider <rubbish>

 

One of my favourite trailriding routes. If you follow the trail West
towards Dolau, you eventually come to a natural bowl at the end of a
valley - http://homepage.ntlworld.com/preston.kemp/Image9.jpg. The pic
doesn't do it justice - it's huge. I used to have hours of fun trying to
get that R80GS up the side!

There's supposed to be the remains of a Wellington bomber somewhere
around there, but I've been trailriding in that area for 30 years and
never found it.

A few hundred yards down from the Fforest Inn is the church where I got
married, next to the Red Lion pub. The Red Lion used to be run by a top
chef & the food was stunning. Unfortunately he sold up & it's shit now
:-(

 

It was somewhere around Barstow, on the edge of the desert, when the
drugs began to take hold. I remember Salad Dodger

Nice read.

--

Dave

GS 850 x2 / SE 6a
SbS#6 DIAABTCOD#16 APOSTLE#6 FUB#3
FUB KotL OSOS#12? UKRMMA#19 COSOC#10

 

It was somewhere around Barstow, on the edge of the desert, when the
drugs began to take hold. I remember Adrienne M Jenn

They're all over the shop. Next time you're over, have a look at Kells
Priory for something a bit different from the ordinary castley-type
thing. I wandered around this a couple of years ago and found it utterly
absorbing.

http://www.kellsvillage.bravepages.com/priory.htm

--

Dave

GS 850 x2 / SE 6a
SbS#6 DIAABTCOD#16 APOSTLE#6 FUB#3
FUB KotL OSOS#12? UKRMMA#19 COSOC#10

 

How would linked brakes have an effect on your Sunday pootle? I can see
the merits of an argument for race or track use, but road?

I have a bike with linked brakes and charge about on it at full tilt and
at the limit of its handling and performance [1].

I find the linked give a very stable platform for such stupidity as
braking in a corner fully cranked over.

Importantly they allow me to go into a corner, quickly, without the
suspension banging or flexing all over the place. This is a major
consideration on a machine with a relatively high unsprung weight and
35mm forks. Coupled with a need to keep entry speeds high as it just
can't spin the motor up fast enough to go for the point a squirt method.

So I feel that your "Linked brakes <shudder>" remark is made without any
real understanding of what you're talking about.


[1] A fairly predictable limit which allows it still cut the mustard
with capable modern machinery.

 

Come on Steve - what a crock of shit - Dodger managed it on a Gold Wing, two
up.

You don't think maybe the issue here is the same one that cropped up with
the fuel tap/reserve.. ie you/confidence/something else.

 

So nothing to do with being worried about pies?

 

A good read indeed.

You continue to amaze me in terms of what you can get that Gold Wing to do

 

Salad Dodger <> somehow managed to post:

Probably a request *Ginge* but...

Is there a URL detailing the route/point of this odyssey?