Bridges, buddies and Beacons

After a steady journey through the Midlands where work to install additional safety bays on smart motorways meant miles of 50 mph zones (which suited me as that is my default speed) I arrived back at Rock Farm near Shepton Mallet where Caroline soon had me to work cutting and drilling more steel sections. These were destined to form part of the safety fencing that would line each side of the approaches to the proposed bridge installation linking two detached sections of the Strawberry Line cycle path. 

The new bridge was required to be some 4m higher than the original to accommodate the modern HGVs that now use the road and as a cycle path aims to have a maximum gradient of 1:12/13 these rising approaches would be around 50m long.

The previous work party had created the rebar and shuttering for a substantial concrete pour that created the two new abutments and after a few weeks curing these were ready to accept the new 15m bridge built near Huddersfield.

Thus early on Tuesday morning a significant number of volunteers and spectators gathered to await the arrival of first a large crane and shortly after the lorry carrying the bridge. A road closure was in force and one of the groundworks contractors used his tracked excavator with a multi purpose operating head to slice through a number of dead ash trees which would impede the lift and were in any case a potential traffic hazard. The deft operator soon had the debris clear enabling the crane and lorry to take up position in a still restricted operating space. Slings were attached and final checks made before gradually the crane took the strain and the bridge moved towards its final resting place.

There was a round of applause for the fitter who walked across to ensure that the four legs were true on the abutments and a final adjustment was made to square things up. A final short lift allowed two steel plates and two heavy duty rubber pads to be inserted at the end that effectively floats to allow for thermal expansion before final bolts were installed and a resin based bond inserted to finish the job. It was a testament to the skill of all those involved from preparing the ground to making the abutments, designing, constructing and delivering the bridge that it all fitted perfectly. Having the gap literally bridged also made it much easier to crack on with the fencing and building up of the surfaces to finished level. A team of civil engineers from Bristol had turned out for a volunteering day and said they had learned a lot from getting out of the office and seeing how the reality of a project contrasts with computerised design in an idealistic scenario. A box of biscuits fortified the troops for a final push and by the end of the day most of the important fencing was in situ.

After a very satisfying day I returned to the peaceful quarry for a quiet night and returned to site the following day in torrential rain to drill and fix some final securing bolts. Unfortunately the cordless SDS drill packed up halfway through the work and it was too wet to safely use the genny so the task was put on a long list of 'to dos' before the official opening in a few weeks time.

I headed off to Priddy after stopping off to stock up for the forthcoming weekend gathering and found the field soggy but empty. Thursday was a far better day and I set off for a day's ride starting with the descent of Cheddar Gorge. On the tightest bends at the lower end I had to sharply avoid 3 motorbikes that had overcooked the corner and were over the white line - all fully liveried police bikes! I followed the Strawberry Line as far as Sandford where a new cafe has opened up at the old station - The Pullman is actually run by the adjacent sheltered housing complex for the elderly and is a brilliant innovation combining good food for passing walkers and cyclists and providing a social stimulus for the residents. I returned towards Axbridge and then explored various options to put to the team at the weekend around Wedmore before reaching Wookey Hole and the final climb back up Ebor Gorge to Priddy, always a tough finish. I enjoyed the last hour or two of sunshine after an excellent day.

A quick spin  over to the Mendip Heights C&CC site saw me buying a few bottles of local cider and some biccies before Pete and Nick turned up and settled in. We enjoyed a good catch up and retired to await the arrival of Dale early on Saturday to complete the team. Despite two flat (bike) tyres he arrived raring to go so we dropped down through Cheddar once more and stopped in Axbridge for an early coffee. Our next track alongside one of the drainage ditches was a wet mud fest and persuaded us to stick largely to the quieter surfaced lanes. Lunch on a bench in the Wedmore church yard also gave us the chance to clean the worst off the bikes before we followed a network of lanes and the odd track back towards Wookey and Ebor once more. Nick whizzed off on his ebike with the benefit for us using more traditional steeds of arriving back just as his kettle boiled.

Friends from Dethick arrived on their return from a trip south to get their van windows tinted and on a dry but fresh evening we walked the mile up to the Hunters Inn. This place has barely changed in over forty years and we secured a table by the fire to enjoy a choice of ales and their basic but excellent food. Pete took a shine to the local farm cider and impressed all by downing four pints and remaining both coherent and upright. It was a memorable evening and Dale was kind enough to run Nina back to their van as her damaged knee was playing up before heading back to Bristol.

Sunday morning saw heavy rain leading to some fun and games getting them away before Pete, Nick and I walked back to the pub getting soaked in the first half mile by a final shower. We were in search of Nick's missing phone which Roger handed over with a wry smile as we ordered some soups and another round of beer. A good walk back past Priddy Pools, up to the remarkable Nine Barrows and back via the Swildon's entrance hole saw us warmed up and dried out and ready for an entertaining games evening in Pete's van. It was good to experience the layout of different vans over the weekend as we each have varying needs and priorities and seek different adventures, however IMNSHO the Topaz reigns supreme😁😁

With work a thing of the past the three of us set off on Monday to ride over to Shepton Mallet to give Nick a chance to see what we had been involved in. The groundworks contractor had made great progress on the two approach ramps but unfortunately back at the cemetery project the final stone work for a curved bench was yet to be finished so this sensitive area remained to be completed.

Some good off road sections and lanes returned us to Wells where I noticed an unusual number of texts on my phone. To my horror the phone had sent multiple emergency texts to the 999 service and they had replied numerous times. Then my phone rang and the Avon and Somerset Control room were relieved to hear it was all a mistake and I of course apologised profusely.

We cycled up the old Bristol Road back to Priddy and the others departed leaving me to enjoy a rest and the traditional BBC2 Monday night quiz night. I took another police call as more texts had been received - a longstanding irritation of my experience with the Three network has been that voice mails and texts can take days to arrive so there was a backlog of my unintentional messages. I figured that either my phone had been bouncing in the top tube bag and sent the messages or my Medical Alert app was malfunctioning so I deleted it and turned the phone off for the night. 

At 5am I turned it back on and almost immediately had another police call from another super polite and patient call handler as more delayed texts had been received overnight. Fortunately by coincidence I was calling in at the Three and O2 shops in Bristol and decided to change provider. O2 are one of the few networks not to impose EU roaming charges and have a more reasonable roaming limit of 25 GB a month so I arranged for a PAC code and signed up for 100Gb a month at £20. 3 were unable to match that offer or indeed explain the delayed texts etc : ironically I took a final call from ASP actually in the shop.

I stayed the night in Brecon before joining Jan and other members of the Hereford Caving Club on their weekly dig above the Usk Valley. A rift is being excavated in the hope that it might link up with known sections of the Agen Allwedd system. The cover was removed and a scaffolding frame raised in to position over the shaft to enable a 3 pulley rope system to be used to remove the spoil. Thus an energetic day in good company passed as we raised bucket after bucket of loose muddy material and some heavy individual rocks in a net to be deposited nearby. It was hard work but very enjoyable but I was more than happy to stay on the surface as the working void was tight and muddy. Regular breaks refreshed us and good progress was made with the draught increasing noticeably before we called it a day late afternoon as after lifting many tons the hauling crew were exhausted. My progress around the badminton court that night was even more sedate than normal and Guinness in the rugby club more deserved.

A cracking ride from Talybont over to Talgarth with Mike for an excellent soup in the Mill cafe was enhanced further by the main road being closed for resurfacing to all traffic other than bikes and pedestrians so our return was a reminder of those quieter times during Covid when roads were so empty.

I joined Jan and Ian at the Coliseum in Brecon to see The Outrun which was thought provoking as was the size of the Friday night crowd - 9, and returned to the park up where a number of vans were in residence.

A bright Saturday dawn and a forecast for two fine days inspired me to get up and get going on a long held desire to revisit the 40 plus mile long Epynnt Way which follows the perimeter of the Sennybridge Military Training area north of Brecon. I had failed to complete the circuit in a day a decade ago so had decided to allow two days given that the days are now shorter. I stocked up with sandwiches, pork pies and hard boiled eggs as I wasn't bothering with a stove and just took a sleeping bag, roll mat and bivvy bag for the night out.

I surprised Crad by arriving early above Sennybridge to leave the van parked up and then rode out over the common to join the route proper with almost immediately a section closed for timber harvesting popping up. However the contractors were not working and the only 'hazard' was a very deep and muddy extraction track.

Thereafter followed many hours of hard graft descending numerous valleys, climbing out of them usually pushing due to the gradient, all the while keeping an eye out for the yellow topped posts that mark a route that is rarely otherwise evident on the ground. My Satmap enabled me to retain my precise location as deviating from the route is ill advised due to the risk of unexploded ordnance but it was still quite a challenge to spot the various twists and turns of what was as I remembered a very demanding route. I passed a platoon of soldiers and waited for another group in a firing exercise to spot me and allow me to continue but they were fully absorbed in their task so I had to bypass half a mile or so of the route proper. The northern section above Garth and Beulah across to Tirabad was easier as it parallelled the scarp face and on a section outside of the range I found a place at a small ruin to set up for the night. I had covered 30 miles in 9 hours with an average moving speed of only 4 mph which gives an indication of the challenging route so was ready to get settled down as the sun set. A tumble late on in to a stream had left my clothing rather damp so I hung it in a tree and donned my Superman onesie, bought as a joke in a charity shop, before lying back to watch the stars emerge. I was asleep in minutes and only woke when a rogue shower required me to zip up the bivvy bag and enjoy the total silence.

I woke at first light but had no idea of the actual time as the clocks had changed and there was no phone service. However I wanted to crack on so with a ground frost keeping it a bit fresh I put on the damp clothes but was grateful for dry socks and then hastened up the hill to warm up in the bright sunshine. Another 4 hours saw me knock off the final 15 miles with plenty of descents and ascents, stunning views of the Brecon Beacons and a final tough climb back to the start of the route. I was really pleased to have managed the full circuit but would advise anybody not to underestimate the rough terrain and isolation. A quick shower and a catch up with Dawn after her trip to Venice was followed by a shop and sort out in Brecon before we all met up at Talybont where Clare produced an excellent meal and Mike undertook the duties of maitre d'.

I stayed the night and slept soundly before moving on to the Whistle Inn above Blaenavon where today I have enjoyed a steady 30 mile circuit down the Clydach Gorge, along the canal to Pontypool and then back along the old B&P railway. The pub did a good curry last night and is now gearing up for the Halloween trains to arrive whilst I move on tomorrow, possibly for some more digging and then a brief farm sit at Lower Chapel.

My onward plans include a multi day mid Wales ride visiting various bothies and a volunteering weekend for the Elenydd Hostels folks before returning north for our annual fortnight in Langdale.

Beyond that I have plans to head away south before Christmas - watch this space for the intended itinerary....

More photos here...