dossier
Wye Valley Cycling
WYE VALLEY CYCLING - DAY BY DAY
The Feathers Hotel, Ludlow, Day 1
The Feathers is a half-timbered coaching inn set in the heart of this beautiful market town. It has a bar and dining area downstairs, two stunning oak panelled public rooms on the second floor with creaky floors and antique furnishings, and the bedrooms are comfortable with modern furnishings and bold colors. It is a short 5 minute walk to the castle and the hotel offers resident’s parking.
Arrive in Ludlow
Visit the castle before dining out in one of the town’s many restaurants.
Ludlowto Presteigne (24km/15mi)
After being fitted out with your bike, cycle west from busy Ludlow into open country along the Teme Valley, winding through protected nature reserves along the River Lugg, where otters and orchids thrive below hilltop forests of yellow gorse. Freewheel into water meadows entering the Welsh Marches to reach the gorgeous market town of Presteigne, where your half-timbered black and white Elizabethan hotel awaits with an invitingly sunny beer garden – bliss!
The Radnorshire Arms Hotel, Presteigne, Day 2
The Radnorshire Arms is a large Victorian black and white half-timbered coaching in set in the heart of this pretty rural town. Oak panelling in public rooms and in the bar lends it a grand but homely atmosphere. There is a garden for relaxing in and bedrooms are all different shapes and sizes with antique furnishings and leaded windows.
Presteigne to Hay on Wye (32km/20mi or 64km/40mi)
Choose between an easy 20 mile ride leading across the floodplains of the River Wye, or try a challenging 40 mile route looping into Wales, leading through fairytale hidden valleys where you can stop to paddle in crystal streams. Refuel with home made tea and cake in the afternoon in a converted station (longer route), and on arrival in Hay take a stroll into town to enjoy the pubs and bookshops.
The Swan Hotel, Hay on Wye, Days 3+4
The Swan is in the heart of Hay on Wye, a honey stone coaching in from the Regency period. It has spacious public rooms downstairs including a small bistro and bar, and extensive gardens in which to enjoy a drink. Bedrooms are comfortable and unfussy presented in an English country house style. It is a few minutes walk to the centre of Hay and all the pubs and bookshops.
Hay on Wye
Hay – a tiny market town on the Welsh English border - is world famous for its literary festival and amazing range of bookshops – some of them outdoors! Give the bike a rest and explore a local riverside walk, or spin out to visit a C9 Crannog, a Royal Celtic dwelling on an island in Llangorse Lake - a designated nature reserve full of curlew and dippers (28 miles). If you fancy a challenge, head into the Black Mountains up to Gospel Pass for incredible views over the Wye Valley, before a long freewheel back to Hay (16 miles) – we provide notes for both excursions.
Hay on Wye to Kingsland (40km/25mi)
Cherry blossom in the hedgerows and poplar trees dotted with mistletoe lead you from Wales into Herefordshire where hills and valleys are replaced by cider orchards and hop fields! Admire the listed Georgian dovecote by the River Arrow in Eardisland, then on arriving in Kingsland, explore the church, the site of a mass grave from the Battle of Mortimer’s Cross in 1461 - very spooky at night!
The Corners, Kingsland, Day 5
Set in the heart of a pretty black and white C16 country village The Corners is a social focal point. The bar and restaurant is the oldest part with exposed beams and great character. Bedrooms out the back are in a modern wooden building and are classy and modern in their presentation. The restaurant offers quality home made food with a selection of local beers and ciders.
Kingsland to Ludlow (13km/8mi)
An easy last day brings you back into Shropshire crossing from the valley of the
River Lugg to the River Teme once again. You pass the oldest timber structure in the UK – the wooden bell tower in Yarpole dating from the C10! Visit either C14 Croft Castle for lunch in the gorgeous tea-rooms, or picnic up at Croft Ambrey – a beautifully preserved Iron Age fort dating from 390BC, and from whose ramparts you can see 14 counties!