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STAGE 1

Cardiff to Mumbles

Start	Cardiff Central Railway Station (ST 184 759)
Finish	Below Oystermouth Castle, Mumbles (SS 616 885)
Distance	67 miles (107km)
Ascent	800m
Time	8–9hr
OS maps	OS Landranger 171, 170 and 159
Refreshments	Lots of places to stop at along the route
Accommodation	Plenty of accommodation of all types in towns, including hostels in Cardiff and just off route before Port Talbot

Wales can claim to be the world’s first industrialized country with more people in the 1851 population census working in industry than in agriculture. This stage passes through the coastal towns that were once the powerhouses of industry – as well as through the local seaside resorts that grew to provide recreation for the workers. The route makes use of NCN trails wherever possible and follows many miles of local shared-use paths. The final 13 miles around Swansea Bay are entirely traffic free.

Parked up below the impressive steel and copper front of Wales Millennium Centre (Canolfan Mileniwm Cymru) in Cardiff Bay

Head south following the blue signs for local route 4 down Lloyd George Avenue towards Cardiff Bay. Ride through Roald Dahl Plass past the Wales Millennium Centre, around the bay and across Cardiff Barricade to Penarth (3/64 miles). Penarth was a popular holiday destination during the Victorian era when it was promoted as ‘The Garden by the Sea’.

Out in the Bristol Channel are the islands of Flat Holm, which traditionally was part of Wales, and Steep Holm, which belonged to England. Once they were fortified to defend shipping using local ports but both are now protected nature reserves and sites of special scientific interest.

Turn right at the roundabout at the end of Penarth Portway and follow NCN 88 alongside the marina before turning left up the serpentine shared-use path that provides an easy ascent to the town centre. Ride through the town centre and past the railway station to join a largely traffic-free path that ends at Cosmeston Drive.

Turn right, then left and follow a shared-use path alongside the B4267. Ride through Sully (8/59 miles) and then turn left along the A4055 using the sections of shared-use path that have been created so far. Go straight on at the next roundabout, cross the carriageway and follow a shared-use path alongside Ffordd-Y-Mileniwm through Barry Docks (11/56 miles). There are plenty of signs for the Wales Coast Path along this section of the route but none for NCN 88. However, as long as you keep heading west along the shared-use path, you cannot get lost. Before World War I Barry Docks were the busiest coal port in the world employing about 8000 women and 10,000 men.

Follow this path across the complex junction by the Premier Inn hotel and along Barry Island link road opposite and then turn right along Heol Finch. Turn right after passing under the railway and Harbour Road and follow the path along the coast before turning left along The Parade. Once around the bend and heading away from the coast, this road becomes Lakeside and then Romilly Park Road. Follow it around to the right where there is a fine bistro, ride under the railway bridge and uphill around the perimeter of Romilly Park. Turn left along Park Road and follow it through to Porthkerry Country Park where there is a popular café and the first waymarker sign for NCN 88 for many miles. Continue along the shared-use path behind the café and ride under the railway viaduct to join a narrow lane that ends at a junction where a group of attractive thatched cottages sit uncomfortably opposite the perimeter fence of Cardiff Airport.

Turn right following a waymarker sign for NCN 88 towards Llantwit Major and ride around the perimeter of the airport. Turn right again near the cargo terminal and follow a shared-use path across the A4226, through Penmark (16/51 miles), then Llanmaes (22/45 miles) and down to Llantwit Major (24/43 miles).

Llantwit Major grew up around Cor Tewdws, a monastery and seminary with over 2000 students, including seven sons of English princes. It is believed to have been founded sometime around AD395, making it the oldest school in Great Britain. It was destroyed by Vikings in AD987 and then closed in 1539 during the Dissolution of the Monasteries. The remains of the monastery are hidden somewhere below St. Illtyd’s Church in the middle of the village.

Despite rapid growth to accommodate personnel from the local RAF base during the 20th century, the town retains much of its medieval character, making it a desirable place to live for those working in Cardiff and Bridgend, particularly since the railway station reopened in 2005.

Follow NCN 88 down Burial Lane alongside the 15th-century town hall and out into the countryside. Ride through St Donat’s (25/42 miles) to Marcross (26/41 miles). The American tycoon William Randolph Hearst purchased the medieval St Donat’s Castle, now the Atlantic College, in 1925 and visited annually until 1936, typically with an entourage of film stars and famous politicians. Although the route runs close to the coast it seldom feels like it. If you want to get closer, or perhaps just stop for a break at the clifftop café, turn left down the lane by the inn in Marcross and ride for 1 mile down to Nash Point where the twin towers of the 19th-century, Grade II listed Nash Lighthouse used to provide a clear set of ‘leading lights’ to guide vessels around the dangerous sandbar below the ever-crumbling limestone cliffs.

The two lighthouses at Nash Point

Return to the main road and ride through Monknash (27/40 miles), Broughton (28/39 miles) and Wick (29/38 miles) to Ewenny (32/35 miles) where NCN 88 currently peters out. In the first half of the 20th century the three-storeyed maltings in Broughton was run as a welfare hotel, providing low-cost holiday accommodation for miners’ families from nearby coalfields. Turn right towards Bridgend in the centre of the village and then after 150 metres, turn left along New Inn Road. After 1½ miles, turn left along the A48 for 300 metres (perhaps resorting to the pavement if the road is busy) and then turn right at the unsigned crossroads and follow this lane across the A473 and along an unnamed lane with a weight restriction. At its end, turn left and quickly left again at a staggered crossroads. Follow this narrow lane for just over a mile going straight across the first junction before turning right at a junction around a triangular patch of grass. Ride downhill passing under the M4 and over the railway to Pyle (38/29 miles).

Cross into Croft Coch Road at the traffic lights and pass under the railway. Turn right at its end and follow waymarkers for NCN 4 around in a loop to meet the A48. Turn right and follow the shared-use path for 1 mile, then turn right towards Margam Discovery Centre. Follow NCN 4 around the perimeter of Margam Country Park (41/26 miles), negotiating a pair of narrow iron gates where you may need to remove any panniers to squeeze through. The 850-acre country park contains the remains of an abbey, a Cistercian monastery and Margam Castle; there is also a neo-Gothic house built by local industrialist Christopher Rice Mansel Talbot (1803–1890). After you emerge from the country park, turn right in Margam Village, follow the shared-use path across the M4 motorway and then the A48 and continue through Margam (45/22 miles) to Port Talbot (48/19 miles).

The name Port Talbot was first given to the docks in honour of Christopher Rice Mansel Talbot of Margam Castle, who sponsored their development in the 1830s. Eventually, the name was applied to the conurbation formed when the villages of Baglan, Margam and Aberafan merged into each other. Steel-making started in Port Talbot in the first decade of the 20th century, but the town did not become synonymous with steel until the Abbey Works opened in the 1950s. It soon became the largest steel producer in Europe, employing a labour force of 18,000. Today there are just 4000 employees at the site and like many steel production facilities in the UK and Europe, it has an uncertain future.

Follow NCN 4 signs left across the railway on Oakwood Road, then turn immediately right up Cramic Way joining a path that leads under a flyover across the A4241 and along Riverside Road, with the River Afan to the right and the docks to the left. Cross the footbridge and follow the shared-use path around the roundabout into Afan Way. If you need to make up lost time, continue along the shared-use path that runs alongside Afan Way to rejoin the route at Baglan Energy Park. Follow waymarkers for NCN 4 across the carriageway and over the blue footbridge into Victoria Road. Turn left into Newbridge Road at the traffic lights and follow this road around to join a shared-use path that runs along the front at Aberafan (51/16 miles). After 2 miles follow signs for NCN 4 back inland and ride along Purcell Avenue, Handel Avenue and Seaway Parade to join a shared-use path alongside the A4241 by Baglan Energy Park. Continue along the shared-use path over the M4 and railway and left alongside the A48. Other than for 200 metres in the Swansea suburbs, the final 13 miles of this stage are entirely traffic free.

Cross the roundabout, railway and River Neath on the outskirts of Briton Ferry (54/13 miles) and then follow NCN 4 under the M4, over the A483 and alongside Fabian Way, past mammoth distribution warehouses, to Swansea (60/7 miles), where the shared-use path swings right behind the park and ride car park.

SWANSEA

In its heyday Swansea was a major centre for copper, earning it the nickname Copperopolis. The combination of local coal and easy sea access to the copper mines in Devon and Cornwall made Swansea the ideal location for smelting, and during the 18th and 19th centuries the city boomed, and 60% of all the copper ores imported into Great Britain were smelted locally. Although George Borrow wrote that the town had ‘some remarkable edifices, spacious and convenient quays, and a commodious harbour’, he also said it was ‘large, bustling, dirty and gloomy’.

Today the heavy industry has largely gone and the economy of the city relies on the service sector, such as education, health, finance services and public administration. The UK’s Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency is one of the biggest employers locally.

After riding alongside the Fabian Way for 1½ miles, turn left along the eastern bank of the River Tawe, following signs for NCN 4 towards Mumbles. Cross Sail Bridge and ride around Swansea Bay to Black Pill (65/2 miles). At weekends this stretch of path is very popular with recreational cyclists, joggers and dog-walkers, so progress may be slow. If you are going straight on to Stage 2, turn right at the aptly named Junction Café and follow NCN 4 towards Llanelli. But if you are heading into Mumbles for an overnight stay or simply a break, continue along the shared-use path around the bay for the final 2 miles of this stage.

Mumbles marks the start of the wonderful Gower Peninsula. For the sake of brevity, it is left out of this tour. However, you could stay over in Mumbles for an extra night and enjoy a day without panniers, visiting some of its famous beaches. Mumbles itself is a vibrant seaside village with plenty of shops, restaurants and pubs that attract day-trippers from all over the region. Food fans should try the local oysters. But if you are not so keen on seafood, you will be spoilt for choice when it comes to ice cream parlours.

Looking across Swansea Bay from above Mumbles Pier

Adding in a loop around the Gower Peninsula

The 27-mile loop around the Gower Peninsula starts at Mumbles and rejoins the circular route at Gowerton, adding 20 miles to the circumnavigation. Start at the mini roundabout on the front below Oystermouth Castle and cycle inland along Newton Road towards Caswell. After two-thirds of mile, turn left into Newton Road. Ride up the short hill, turn left at the top and then turn immediately right into Nottage Road and drop down to join Caswell Road.

Turn right by the church and ride around Caswell Bay (2/25 miles) and into Bishopton (3/24 miles). Turn left along Pyle Road and then after another mile turn left along the B4426 towards Port Eynon. Ride through Kittle to Pennard (6/21 miles) and then turn right into Linkside Drive and follow it to the junction with the B4118 in the centre of Parkmill (5/22 miles). Turn left and ride through Penmaen (7/20 miles) and Nicholaston (8/24 miles) and then turn left by the gatehouse of Penrice Castle. Ride through Oxwich (10/17 miles), then turn left towards Horton.

If you are staying overnight at the hostel in Port Eynon, turn left when you meet the A4118. Otherwise turn right, ride through Scurlage (15/12 miles) and then turn left towards Burry Green. Turn right towards Llanrhidian in Burry Green (18/9 miles) and ride through Oldwalls to Llanrhidian (21/6 miles). Turn left into the village, follow this quiet lane along the coast to Crofty (23/4 miles) and then turn left along the B4295 and ride through Penclawdd (25/2 miles). Join the shared-use path as you approach Gowerton and turn left at the traffic lights on Pont-y-Cob Road to rejoin the route, following waymarker signs for NCN 4.

RIDING ANTICLOCKWISE

If this is your last day and you think you might miss the train you are due to catch in Cardiff, remember you can always curtail your ride early and catch a train into Cardiff at one of the many stations along this stage.

STAGE 2

Mumbles to Tenby

Start	Below Oystermouth Castle, Mumbles (SS 616 885)
Finish	Tenby Railway Station (SN 129 006)
Distance	73 miles (117km)
Ascent	1300m
Time	10–11hr
OS maps	OS Landranger 159 and 158
Refreshments	There are cafés, pubs and shops just off route all along this stage, but little on it other than at Kidwelly, Ferryside, Carmarthen, Laugharne, Amroth, Saundersfoot and Tenby
Accommodation	Plenty of B&Bs and hotels in the towns and coastal resorts but the only hostels are in Llansteffan and Manorbier, which is 5 miles beyond Tenby just off route on Stage 3.

After the first 2 miles, Stage 2 follows NCN 4 all the way to Tenby, making route-finding remarkably easy. The first 30 miles are fairly flat so ground is covered quickly. But once beyond Kidwelly the route becomes much more undulating until the final few miles around Carmarthen Bay.

Ride back north on the shared-use path around Swansea Bay as far as Black Pill, retracing the final two miles of Stage 1. Turn left and follow NCN 4 away from the coast on a shared-use path that follows the track, once used by the Heart of Wales railway, up through the Clyne Valley Country Park, passing close to Dunvant (5/68miles) and Gowerton (7/66 miles). People from Gowerton are locally referred to as ‘starch’, as it was traditionally the village where white collar workers employed in heavy industry in Swansea chose to live. Follow the waymarker signs through the residential estate and out of the village alongside the B4295, then turn right into Ponty Cob Road. After a mile pass under the railway and the A484 and then turn immediately left along a shared-use path to the south of Loughor (8/65 miles).

After a mile, cross the River Loughor and turn right following waymarker signs for NCN 4 around Yspitty (9/64 miles). Cross the main road at the end of the village and ride around the perimeter of the car park and across the footbridge over the A484. Ride along this meandering and generously wide shared-use path through the Millennium Coastal Park, first passing the holiday park, then swinging inland around the Wildfowl and Wetlands Centre before returning to the coast by a smart development of New-England-style homes on the outskirts of Llanelli.

Passing an iconic Welsh signpost in the Millennium Coastal Park near Burry Port

Continue following NCN 4 alongside the B4304, then turn left at the next roundabout by Llanelli Dock and ride out along the coast and enjoy mile after mile of traffic-free cycling past Pwll to Burry Port (20/53 miles). A trail-side plaque near Pwll commemorates the place where a seaplane carrying Amelia Earhart landed in 1928, making her the first woman to fly across the Atlantic. She made a solo crossing four years later. Ride around the harbour at Burry Port, which was established to ship coal from mines further up the Gwendraeth Valley, and follow NCN 4 inland through Pembrey (21/52 miles) and Kidwelly (25/48 miles). Turn left immediately after the bridge over Gwendraeth Fach in the centre of the village and ride back out to the coast at the mouth of the River Towy.

KIDWELLY CASTLE

The Normans established the first motte and bailey castle at Kidwelly in 1106, but Edward I commissioned a stone castle with two sets of concentric walls in the 13th century as part of his ‘Ring of Steel’ fortresses that were introduced to control the Welsh. However, it was only completed in 1422 due to local uprisings in support of the Welsh rebel, Owain Glyndŵr, who was trying to regain Wales’s independence from the English crown.

Unlike many Welsh castles, Kidwelly survived the ravages of the English Civil War and is remarkably well preserved. It was used as a location during the filming of Monty Python and the Holy Grail. To visit the castle, continue around the bend and turn immediately right into Castle Street by the coffee shop.

When you reach Ferryside (30/43 miles), you may be able to take the recently reintroduced ferry service across the river to Llansteffan, saving 18 miles. If you can, ride out of Llansteffan following signs first to Llanybri and from there signs to St Clears to rejoin NCN 4. Otherwise follow NCN 4 through the village and uphill to briefly join the A484 and then turn left and ride through Croesyceiliog and down into Carmarthen (39/34 miles). Turn left along the shared-use path alongside the A484, which leads into the town, and follow it across the A48, under the A40 and down Pensarn Road towards the River Towy. Turn left immediately before the bridge and follow NCN 4 around past Carmarthen Station.

CARMARTHEN

The Greco-Roman polymath Ptolemy mentioned Carmarthen in his writings, providing the town with convincing evidence to support its claim that it is the oldest in Wales. Between the 16th and 18th centuries it was certainly the most populous borough in Wales, but was soon outgrown by towns in the South Wales Coalfield during the 19th century.

Carmarthen Castle, which dates from the 12th century, was captured and destroyed on several occasions, and Oliver Cromwell ordered it to be dismantled in the mid 1600s. However, it remained remarkably intact and housed the town’s police station during the Victorian era, the local gaol until the 1920s and is still home to a small museum and the town’s Tourist Information Centre.

Cross the footbridge over the River Towy, loop back underneath it and follow a shared-use path along the riverbank and through Carmarthen Park. Turn left along the B4312 and left again into Llansteffan Road half a mile further on. Once over the A40 and the railway, turn right into Alltycnap Road and follow NCN 4 as it snakes uphill. Near the top of the climb, turn right and immediately right again, all the time following signs for NCN 4. Follow this pleasant, narrow lane enjoying the views of the rolling hills to the north before descending to cross Afon Cywyn.

Turn left when you meet the A40 and follow the shared-use path towards St Clears (52/21 miles). As you approach the village, turn sharply left and drop down to join a shared-use path alongside Afon Cynin. Turn left at its end and ride along Bridge Street. Then turn right towards New Mill just after crossing the bridge over Afon Taf. A mile further on, turn left and follow NCN 4 waymarkers towards Laugharne and enjoy 2 miles of descent before turning right along the A4066 to Laugharne (57/16 miles). If you want to bypass Laugharne, continue through New Mill, saving 4 miles and 160m of ascent.

LAUGHARNE

Laugharne is a pretty town with pleasant Georgian townhouses and the ruins of a 12th-century castle that the Parliamentarians besieged and dismantled in 1642. Had Margaret Taylor, the first wife of the noted historian AJP Taylor, not purchased the Boathouse in Laugharne for the Welsh poet and writer Dylan Thomas (1914–1953), who had once been her lover, it would have probably remained a sleepy backwater. Thomas clearly loved the place, and it is thought to have inspired the fictional town of Llareggub in his most enduring work, Under Milk Wood. However, other places that have a fleeting association with Thomas further along our route make similar claims.

Thomas and his family stayed for just four years until his early death in 1953, which was brought about by a notoriously excessive lifestyle. Thomas is buried in the town’s churchyard and despite a stormy marriage beset by drunkenness and infidelity, his wife Caitlin (1913–1994), who left Laugharne at the earliest opportunity, chose to be buried next to him. Today, the place that Thomas called a ‘timeless, mild, beguiling island of a town’ celebrates him and other Welsh culture in an annual literary and arts festival called the Laugharne Weekend, which takes place in April. See www.thelaugharneweekend.com