Sunday Trail days

2 routes on offer this week starting at 8am on the Sirhowy Valley path heading to Machen Mountain. Short route 7 miles, longer route 14.

As Sunday mornings go on winter days, this started as cold as you would expect however as the sun was due to shine we were looking forward to getting to the top and taking in the panoramic views. As navigator for this weeks trail, Lisa started smart by adding the GPX route to the Garmin watch. Sorted!

So we all started off with the first steep climb that would see us head to the Ynysddu area. As we arrived to Ynysddu however the watch froze never to be fixed for the duration of the trail. Ooops! First lesson of the day, never rely on technology to get you to where you want to go. You either need Stu O’Bree navigating or bring a map and compass. We soon make it to Grug common though and the route becomes more familiar. We are heading toward the sun and glorious clear views.

Huw didn’t have his glasses on so he didn’t realise there were cows in the distance, he thought they were bales of hay 🙂

Julia’s panoramic view at the top of Mynydd Machen, before we start the well earned descent

So as we head down, the trails get technical. This is our playground; ducking and diving through all the trees, dodging all the tree roots and splashing through the mud. We get to the entrance to the Alpaca farm and stop for the obligatory photo.

So as we all know, we plan a trail route and end up with something on a variation of it. We aimed for 14 and ended on 17. As our cup is always half full; we didnt regret the getting lost bit, it only added to the adventure. (I think Teej was aiming to make Lisa feel better about getting us lost)

When we got to the top of scramblers climb we spotted Huw heading back 🙂

And this is why we love the trails; full of adventure, full of mud, lots of hilly climbs, amazing views of the surrounding valleys and sparkling company

Trails are planned for all paces. As long as you are fit enough to cover the distance everyone is welcome. Keep your day free for our next big adventure covering the 3 peaks of Abergavenny on Sunday 13th February 2022

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