Autumn's Onset

Following the energetic weekend of mountain biking I took it easy for a few days with a potter round Hay on Wye's book shops, the restored flour mill at Talgarth and Bronllys Castle. A misty and tranquil walk round Llangorse Lake included a climb up Allt yr Esgair for surprisingly good views of the surrounding Beacons and after badminton in Brecon on Wednesday I drove up to Coventry for a sign on interview with the practice nurse. 
In an effort to rejuvenate the van I changed the fuel filter plus oil and oil filter which seems to have done the trick. A disintegrating  fan belt was spotted and later replaced whilst down at Bristol. During this work I spotted a badly worn suspension bush and arranged for it to be replaced on the Tuesday thus imposing on the hospitality of friends for longer than planned. With my MOT only a month old this was an alarming oversight on the tester's part and highlights the shortcomings of these safety inspections.
Good weather and access to a few tools enabled me to give my bike a much needed clean and service, exchange the waste tank tap for one with a larger bore and continue to transfer my various settings to the new netbook. 
Saturday saw us walk along the bank of the Severn to the original crossing on a crisp and sunny day whilst the poor weather on Sunday saw me scanning a decade of farm photographs on to a memory stick and then disposing of the bulky and rather tatty old albums. I was pleased with the results and will deal with the remaining dozen or so other albums covering the 1980's over the next few weeks. Around 2000 slides also need attention but that will be an even more labour intensive task which may keep me occupied whilst down in Europe this winter.
I plan to leave in late December and head to Spain over the Christmas/New Year period and then slow right down once it warms up.
As part of the pre trip preparation the excellent PC Motors (01179424746) in Bristol will be asked to replace the same bushes but on the offside and do a cam belt - much easier to have this done early here in the UK than over on the continent. The last change was done in Auckland!
A new clutch is being fitted this week after which I travel to Sheffield by train for a long weekend, return south for the bothy muck digging and then have two cosy weeks up in the Lakes.
It is good to be drawing all the various loose strings of the last year together and I am looking forward to setting off once more with a rough route but no timetable - just how I like it!
A few piccies here cover the last week and these here look at a few highlights of my smallholding experiences.
Errant locations via the Spot here.

Fond Oz memories epitomised below.

Beacons Biking

A picture perfect journey on a sunny autumn day through Wales' finest scenery had me in Talybont by lunchtime to meet Bill and Dale with time to walk in to Brecon along a combination of canal towpath and footpaths with just enough time to get the last bus back followed by a few pints in the Star.
Saturday saw the team assemble with the arrival of Nick and Dale and in perfect conditions we headed off up the Talybont Valley. The long climb brought us to Torpantau Tunnel after which we followed much of the 2012 Beast route across the moor and down the rocky tracks of Cwm Callan. At Pontsticill we split in to two and 3 of us headed over the Gap Road to enjoy the swooping descent towards Brecon culminating in a blast down the green lane in to Brecon itself where Dale picked up some much needed front pads at Biped Cycles. 

A less conventional crossing of the Gap can be seen by clicking the above link.
A steady spin back along the canal finished an excellent day's riding and justified a guilt free feast and more ale at the Star once more.
Early mist on Sunday morning soon burnt off as four of us drove round to park in the shadow of the Sugar Loaf and begin the long steady climb up the Grwynne Fawr reservoir - the crisp air, bright sunshine and stunning colours showed off the impressive dam at its finest . Lunch at the bothy saw us fit to continue to the ridge with wonderful views across Radnorshire before we headed south towards Waun Fach along a broad ridge that at times got boggy leading to a spectacular face plant by Bill. Almost never ending views across to the Carmarthen Fans were our reward as we kept up a decent pace to ward off the surprisingly fresh easterly wind.
The fast descent down an old pack horse route to Hermitage put smiles on all our faces and a weary return through the lanes had us back to the vans after two thoroughly rewarding days.
Given the tough terrain and long distances the bikes and bodies all held up well - thanks for turning out guys - must do it again!
This week I am seeking advice on a perceived power loss combined with increased fuel consumption that may require some professional intervention - these issues relating to the van not me - and next week I travel to Sheffield for a few days.
Photos of a memorable weekend here and locations here.

A Windy Week in North Wales

After the successful bothy related activities I took advantage of clear conditions to complete a circuit of the Carneddau with a return via the small shelter on Foel Grach that I had failed to find 25 years ago on the first night of a memorable off - road, north to south cycling traverse of Wales. It was a stunning day with very strong gusts enhancing the exposure on the short scrambly ridge and clear views to the surrounding peaks. 

A look round Conway Castle and the town walls was followed by the coastal drive round to Caernarfon where I was to spend a week at a smallholding with three horse and two cats for company. The horses could  clearly detect fear but kindly didn't take advantage whilst the cats could spot a soft touch and took full advantage settling themselves on and around me during evenings in front of the wood burner.
Whilst the rain generally confined itself to the nights very strong winds blew for most of the week deterring me from heading for the tops. However a day in Llanberris visiting the impressive Electric Mountain  Pump Storage Power Station built almost entirely underground and the National Slate Museum was well worth it. The collection of skilfully crafted wooden patterns for the foundry was a highlight for me - especially as many of the finished cast products could be seen in use in the buildings and machinery. 
Crossing over to Anglesey on the Britannia Bridge gave me a good view of Telford's Menai Bridge whilst at Holyhead the walk from the breakwater quarries to South Stack included seal sightings, a view of the Wicklow Mountains near Dublin and the Isle of Man, and spectacular sea cliffs. 
Beaumaris Castle was impressively solid but high tides prevented me from following the coast road north so I headed instead to the dramatic scenery of Parys Mountain where huge deposits of copper provided boom times many years ago for nearby Amlwch. The gaping hole with its many hues and barren outcrops reminded me of the iron ore mining in Western Australia and the site provided an interesting couple of hours exploration.
Caernarfon Castle's impressive bulk finished off a varied and informative week and tomorrow I head south for a weekend of mountain biking near Brecon.
Photos here cover the highlights and stalkers can find me here.

Autumnal Activities

The last few weeks have provided a remarkable variety of activities based largely around Wales where the transitional Autumnal colours have been providing a changing back drop.

A visit to Coventry and across to Shropshire to see family and inspect an impressive new wood chip boiler system at my brother's cottage included the spreading of many tons of stone chippings to tidy up his drive. This was followed in South Wales by assisting in the spreading of 8 cubic metres of concrete at a friend's latest project.

A trip to the informative Deep Pit mine at Blaenavon followed by the adjacent blast furnace remains provided a fascinating glimpse in to Wales's historic industrial heritage.

Further evidence of this was apparent on my cycle along the canal towpath from Abergavenny to Newport - very well worth doing with a number of surprises along the way. Long term plans to reopen the waterway seem ambitious but it would be good to see the flights of disused locks functioning once more. 

After a social event in Brecon I returned to Coventry once more to register with a local GP and then took Crad to an outpatient appointment where progress seemed satisfactory. Later that week we headed over to West Wales on a trip for him down memory lane to the Cliff Hotel near Cardigan. I picked up my old slides and photos whilst there which provided me with an opportunity to look back more than a decade to early life on the farm, my caving days and even life as a student nurse in Hampshire over 30 years ago.

A good meal at the Penycae Inn in the Upper Swansea Valley with a friend from my smallholding days was a chance to visit this comfy pub which is much changed from the days when it was a rather more basic affair. I also picked up a new netbook as this machine is showing signs of age after several years of trouble free performance - said replacement will just sit tucked away until things crash permanently.

Our planned re roof of Nant Rhys bothy in mid Wales fell foul of new asbestos handling regulations but we all met there anyway for our Autumn Area Meeting where progress on other projects, new possibilities and current issues filled a constructive evening. The proposed new bothy in the Elan Valley seems likely to go ahead next year as planning permission has been granted - our initial involvement will centre around the shovelling out of many tons of sheep sh*t in mid November - can't wait.

We all then migrated north to Dolgellau to stay at Penrhos bothy and walk some of the local hills  - 3 of us recreated 'Last of the Summer Wine' scenarios on a couple of gentle but jovial jaunts.

To make use of booked leave and willing volunteers we again moved north to isolated Dulyn bothy in Snowdonia at the back of the Carneddau. An excellent meal in the local pub provided fuel for the hour's walk in which Chris and I neatly avoided by kipping up at the car park. At the bothy the stove required major work as much of the flue and exit pipe had corroded away. Given the remote location and distance from the roadhead we were fortunate that the hydro electric scheme workers were inspecting the adjacent reservoir and valve house and were willing to haul out said stove on their tracked load lugger and Land Rover. Phil and Mike then dashed down to civilisation to effect repairs, returning safely late on a frosty Tuesday night.

On Wednesday the power workers again provided much assistance with the stove, cement, ply and coal and after a busy day by all the bulk of the work was completed along with external pointing, internal painting and a new chimney cap and cowl.

Today heavy rain has sent me down to Llandudno for supplies and a catch up as next week I will be over near Caernarvon where house sitting and keeping an eye on three horse will leave me time to explore some of Snowdonia's tops or if the weather closes in the many attractions of Anglesey and perhaps the Lleyn Peninsular. 

Photos here capture some of the highlights of a busy 3 weeks since my last musings and Spotty Spot here will enable monitoring of my whereabouts.

Slides top right return to Japan as a marked contrast to my current location!

One year on.

The successful completion of the Brecon Beast Event a fortnight ago marked the first anniversary of our return from the two amazing years in the southern hemisphere. Generous sponsorship from friends and family has raised £500 which will go towards new facilities for the Brecon Ambulance Station Crew rest room. The  professional approach and reassurances provided by the paramedics during my memorable transfer over those same mountains in December were so very much appreciated at the time and I am delighted to be able to thank them all in this way - thank you again to all those who kindly chipped in.
The last 12 months have seen as most of you know some profound changes but also produced some very happy memories. Proving to myself that good health has returned has involved gradual exposure to the levels of activity I enjoyed over previous decades and I feel as fit as ever - 5 hours in perfect conditions on the Wall and White's level trails at Afan Argoed yesterday was a part of that.




Last weekend's get together near Brecon to celebrate Jan's final summit as part of a birthday challenge was a happy and sociable occasion - not in my case marked by photos as I managed to lose a second camera during the walk. Thus I also lack pictures of a recent ride in to Moel Prysgau bothy which is looking in top condition and reflects the great efforts put in over the last couple of years by the Maintenance Organisers Chris and Frank ably assisted by the Welsh Area members and other volunteers. In a fortnight we begin a week long project to reroof Nant Rhys bothy - volunteers welcome and details available from myself or via the MBA website here. For a flavour of what to expect check out the video.

En route to Bristol I dropped in to Neville Hall hospital to visit Crad who the previous day had had an unfortunate incident whilst returning from a hack - his stirrup caught on a gate fixing causing a nasty fall that resulted in a fracture of his left collar bone and fibula plus severe ligament damage to an ankle already weakened by an incident 17 years ago. Recovery will be slow and possibly frustrating but even just 24 hours after the event he was in typically upbeat and determined mode - good on yer cobber!
The trusty van was submitted for an MOT in Bristol and required the same temporary fix to the front brake caliper as I had undertaken on the rear ones last June in the dusty outback of the Pilbarra in Western Australia. The use of Dale's drive for the fix and then Ian's barn for fitting new parts (and as a precaution new rear discs and pads) was very much appreciated. With 255k miles on the clock and at 13 years old apparently there is little else of concern so I hope to get many more years service out of the old girl yet - if only everything was as reliable as a Volkswagen as they used to say!!
A quick trip to Coventry enabled a catch up with my parents, attention to paperwork re finances, van insurance and the impending divorce resolution plus an unexpected and much welcomed meeting with Penny who was visiting family in Warwickshire.
Wednesday saw us all travel to Bishop's Castle to inspect the seemingly rather complex systems behind my brother's new wood chip boiler system - several tons of stone chippings were spread around his drive to smarten the place up and as ever my nephew and niece were charmingly sweet and entertaining.
An energetic session of badminton left me as ever more bushed than the Beast event and Brecon town car park provided the usual secure and peaceful accommodation.
Life on the road suits me very well as I have so much freedom and flexibility - I have enjoyed the last year back in the UK but the reports and tales on other travel blogs continue to inspire me and I will be pleased to set off again on the 20th of December once all outstanding matters are finally resolved. These revolve around  moving my GP care to Coventry followed by a review and reduction of medication (I hope to ditch the beta blockers, move to over the counter statins and aspirin leaving me only the ACE inhibitor on prescription - which will make long term travel easier), finalising the divorce and associated details and I hope entertaining a number of friends over the fortnight of 24th November to 8th December in Cumbria - let me know if you can join in for a day or two.
Today I am tucked away as wind and rain lash the land once more - it is a 12 tealight day and I am as snug as a bug with internet signal, TV reception and my weekly dose of iron in the shape this time of two lamb cutlets to look forward to.
I have put together a selection of photos here recording some of the highlights of a memorably unpredictable year and will by next time have mastered the new camera with its various features. Locations via SPOT will appear here and the the slideshow top right covers time in Southern Oz.

Brecon Beast 2012

Our busy few days of signing over 100km of route, establishing and supplying the two feed stations, marking out the camping and registration facilities and a host of other tasks were completed in glorious sunshine by last thing Saturday night. Access to the more remote sections by quad and trail bike required coordination of transport and drivers & some radical twilight riding to get everything done as the camping field steadily filled up with expectant entrants.
Dale arrived from Bristol & after joining in the pasta supper we checked over the bikes before trying to get an early night parked up in the compound.

Sunday dawned bright & sunny with the Beacons summits beckoning away to the the south & after a substantial porridge & nuts breakfast we joined the throng of over 700 riders in the starting lay by. A police escort saw us safely out of town at a steady warm up pace before 5 or 6 miles out the first off road section began. Locals out early seemed to enjoy this unusual sight as we began to thin out with last year's bottle neck largely ironed out & the rougher sections of Mynydd Llangorse persuading some riders to walk the dry but uneven track. I decided not to stop at the first drinks station near Bwlch & shot along the A40 to Talybont having already lost Dale who unfortunately had a frustrating problem with his gears slipping. 


A long climb alongside the reservoir provided great views and a fast descent before another tough ascent of a rocky track had many of us pushing again. The shorter route joined us again before we reached the second drinks station where I was grateful for an energy drink and a choccy bar before setting off apace on the loop round Pontsticill reservoir. For me knowing that the steady climb through the Beacons to the Gap was really the bulk of the effort done was a real boost and I dropped off towards Brecon at a fast pace - the 60psi tyre pressures avoided any punctures but made for a bone jarring descent passing a number of other more cautious riders.

The last off road section in to town included a race against Jason on the support quad before a final pull up to the leisure centre saw me home in just over 6 hours - I have no idea how the lead rider could complete in under 4 hours but was pleased with my ranking in the 40+ age group.

After a hot shower and hotter tea I felt surprisingly good and enjoyed watching a few more finishers with Dale who had managed to complete the shorter course despite the mechanical hindrances.

That evening and Monday saw us complete the dismantling before the weather changed with vehicles cleaned, signage stored away, hire equipment returned and everywhere tidied up.

Without wishing to embarass them I would like to thank Jason, Crad and Al for the huge amount of work they did (as usual) and the barrel load of laughs but also the dozens of other volunteers and marshals whose support and input have over the years created an event to be proud of. Three local charities benefit from the funds raised and full details of the results, some photos and feedback all appear on the  Beast website here 

I will report on the total funds and their destination raised through my sponsorship in a few weeks once I have collated everything - thank you to all those who chipped in. 
Completing the event almost 9 months to the day since my heart attack has given me the confidence to look forward to a return to near normality and start finalising my plans for winter sun - just a shame that it will be another year before I get another choccy bar.

No pics this time as I was too busy hanging on but the SPOT here will give you an idea of the route for a few more days

September Summer

A long awaited spell of excellent weather saw the variety of places visited over the first week of September looking at their best. 
The excellent mountain bike trails at Afan Argoed saw the start of my training in earnest for the forthcoming Beast - some old favourites are closed due to felling but will be reinstated in 2013 but the Wall provided some memorably fast descents on single track.
A return to the small bothy in the Black Mountains with a new broom left it looking spick and span after a brisk walk in from the north as gliders coasted silently overhead.
I then headed off to the Horizons Unlimited meeting high on the Mendips where again an excellent variety of presentations triggered more inspiration for future trips. Perhaps the severest journey undertaken was that by a Polish guy during the hard 2011 winter when in the January he headed to the furthest reaches of Norway arriving in deep snow and temperatures of -34 at the Nordkapp. Using very basic camping equipment and 'cooking' burgers with a blow torch he completed a remarkable journey that few unsupported groups would undertake.
'London to Beijing on Two Sh*t Mopeds' proved to be an appropriate title for an account of another remarkable journey undertaken by two lasses from London and captivating images of Mongolia from other talks sowed ideas in my mind before an evening of chat around the fire pit.
Sunday saw a good cycle round the Sustran's routes of Wiltshire, the Kennet and Avon Canal and then the back lanes in to Frome after which I headed way out west to overnight at Ceibwr in Pembrokeshire as my 3 monthly bag of tablets was due.
Monday afternoon was spent enjoying the trails in Brechfa Forest with Tuesday morning spent at Halfway where preparations for next week's motor rally reduced the choices available. As a result I decided to return to an old favourite - the Sarn Helen Roman road starting near my former home. The track was in better condition as a result of its closure to 4x4s but still provided a challenge as it dropped to cross the nascent Nedd and then climbed to the Ystradfellte road. Dropping through Pont Melin Fach and then reaching the Inter Valley Road I decided to travel down memory lane and pass through Cwmnanthir. Sadly the new owners have to my mind at least somewhat spoiled the place with unsightly new livestock sheds and some rather crude alterations to the house itself. Slightly disappointed at the general air of neglect I passed through anonymously and returned to Coelbren on the green lane that had surprisingly been much improved by the spreading of thousands of tons of hardcore - surely the Banwen bypass isn't imminent?
After a clean report from the dentist I headed to Brecon for an energetic session of badminton where Jan broke the sad but not unexpected news that good old Amber had slipped away that day. True to fashion she had gone with no fuss at the guesstimated grand old age of 18 - coincidentally 3 years exactly since she had gone to live contentedly north of Brecon.
Yesterday and today have seen plenty of hard work by the usual team in preparation for the 2012 Brecon Beast this Sunday. With our largest number of entries to date the need for clear signage is even more important so much effort went in to informing local communities, putting up directions for riders and safety warnings for other road users. Careful planning and co-ordination saw the bulk of the work completed in good time although disappointingly some petty disruption confirmed that as ever a mean spirited minority (very likely just one individual in fact) have only their own selfish agenda to work to. However the support and goodwill from everyone we actually met was heartening and set the mood for what promises to be a busy but ultimately highly rewarding and satisfying weekend of fund raising.
I hope to report on a successful completion of the full course on Monday evening and will endeavour to affix the SPOT device to my helmet so logging on here during Sunday should allow you to follow what I hope will be steady progress.
A few photos are available here.

Lest I forget a big thank you to all those kind enough to offer sponsorship :

 a grand total will be reported in due course.

With fond memories the video below is a touch of self indulgence - turn up your volume and enjoy.