North Wales ride reccommendations

_Brun_

Picking the forum's collective brain...

I'm gonna be in North Wales for a week in early November, obviously planning on taking the bike up there and would appreciate any hints on where or what I should be riding.

Will be based in Gilar, but will have car if it's worth driving somewhere more interesting to start from. Just looking at some of the local roads on streetview gets me quite excited.

mudcow007

how much do you like climbing?

we have a house at a placed called Ffestiniog

this is a link to my favourite corner in the whole world

corner

you could go from Ffestiniog, towards Harlech through Llandanwg (along the coast) into Barmouth through to Dolgellau which brings you right back to Ffestiniog

or if your feeling adventurous go into the mountains at harlech (orrible climbs though)

orrible climbs

just realised you are staying near Ysbyty Ifan...lovley bit of road that, heres a pic from a few summers ago

_Brun_

Wouldn't say I 'like' climbing (anyone who claims to is a liar or an idiot and possibly both) but I'll do it just for the sheer hell of it.

Cheers for the links, I'll investigate further when I get chance.

_Brun_

Did stopping to take that photo cause those skid marks?

mudcow007

_Brun_ wrote:

Wouldn't say I 'like' climbing (anyone who claims to is a liar or an idiot and possibly both) but I'll do it just for the sheer hell of it.

Cheers for the links, I'll investigate further when I get chance.

to be honest its pretty hilly all over that area but if you have to go up a hill, you go down t'other side!

mudcow007

_Brun_ wrote:

Did stopping to take that photo cause those skid marks?

to be honest the welsh drive pretty fast over that stretch of road an that pic was taken on like a 90 degree turn so you find loads of skids where cars have fallen off the road into the mud.

it was fun in the snow, there was a snow plough truck had rolled off the road :shock:

notsoblue

I'm doing the Etape Cymru next weekend. And while I'm not too familiar with the area, I hear the route is a pretty good one. Might be worth checking it out: http://www.etape-cymru.co.uk/

Kieran_Burns

If you get the chance - come down the A5 from Ogwen Vally into Betws-y-Coed. (Oh, yeah - and learn how to pronounce it properly... )

If you don't hit 60 down there, you aren't trying 8)

Llanberis Path would be fun... (wait for someone to ask PATH or PASS?) Path.

mudcow007

notsoblue wrote:

I'm doing the Etape Cymru next weekend. And while I'm not too familiar with the area, I hear the route is a pretty good one. Might be worth checking it out: http://www.etape-cymru.co.uk/

i was speaking to an old guy the other week about the "Horseshoe pass" he said "yeah i use to ride fixed gear over there, but because your going that fast on the way down i'd pull my chain off an just free wheel down with my feet resting on the fork crown" :shock:

let me know how you get on with Etape....i think there are some nasty climbs in that

mudcow007

Kieran_Burns wrote:

If you get the chance - come down the A5 from Ogwen Vally into Betws-y-Coed. (Oh, yeah - and learn how to pronounce it properly... )

.

pronounced "betits Cowid" init

notsoblue

mudcow007 wrote:

let me know how you get on with Etape....i think there are some nasty climbs in that

Indeed, I saw a picture of a 20% sign and it has been haunting my dreams since I registered...

Kieran_Burns

mudcow007 wrote:

Kieran_Burns wrote:

If you get the chance - come down the A5 from Ogwen Vally into Betws-y-Coed. (Oh, yeah - and learn how to pronounce it properly... )

.

pronounced "betits Cowid" init

Once.

Just once.

CiB

Recall Britain's Best Drives, with Richard Wilson. Not a prgramme looking at driveways as modified by your favourite bunch of pikey tarmac gurus, but old Mr I Don't Believe It himself driving a ropey old motor round bits of the UK.

This episode was the N Wales edition, and I recall seeing it thinking there's some hills I'd like to have a pop at, up and down. Worth a watch, with pencil & paper at the ready to note down where he is.