Activities in Mid Wales
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Beacon Park Boats
The Monmouthshire and Brecon Canal runs along the foot of the Blorenge mountain, southwest of town. You can take to the water with Beacon Park Boats which rents out electric-powered boats (up to six persons). In a day, you can cruise south to Goytre Wharf, or north to Llangattock and back.
reviewed
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Blorenge
Abergavenny sits amid three glacially sculpted hills - Ysgyryd Fawr (Skirrid; 486m) to the northeast; Sugar Loaf (596m) to the northwest; and the Blorenge (559m) to the southwest. Each has rewarding walks and fine views of the Usk Valley and the Black Mountains. Although the summit of the Blorenge is closer to town than Sugar Loaf - the round trip is only 5 miles - it is a much steeper and more strenuous outing, and good walking boots are recommended.
Cross the bridge over the Usk on Merthyr Rd and immediately turn right and follow the lane past the cemetery and under the main road. Cross the B4269 road in Llanfoist and follow the lane beside the church until it bends lef…
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Sugar Loaf
Abergavenny sits amid three glacially sculpted hills - Ysgyryd Fawr (Skirrid; 486m) to the northeast; Sugar Loaf (596m) to the northwest; and the Blorenge (559m) to the southwest. Each has rewarding walks and fine views of the Usk Valley and the Black Mountains. Easiest of the three is the cone-shaped Sugar Loaf, which offers a 9-mile return trip from the centre of town to the summit via heath, woodland and the superb viewpoint of Mynydd Llanwenarth.
You can cheat by driving to a car park about halfway up on Mynydd Llanwenarth; from here it's a 4-mile round trip. Head west on the A40, and at the edge of town turn right for Sugar Loaf Vineyards, then go left at the next tw…
reviewed
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Gap Road
There are lots of opportunities for both on-road cycle-touring and off-road mountain-biking around Brecon; the National Park Visitor Centre at Libanus has information on routes, some of which begin at the centre itself.
The classic off-road route in the Brecon Beacons is the Gap Road, a 24-mile loop from Brecon that takes in a high pass through the hills close to Pen-y-Fan, a descent through Talybont-on-Usk and a final easy return stretch along the Monmouthshire and Brecon Canal. Ask for details at Brecon tourist office or the National Park Visitor Centre.
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Vale of Rheidol Railway
Old steam locomotives (built between 1923 and 1938) have been lovingly restored by volunteers and chug for almost 12 miles up the valley of the River Rheidol to Devil's Bridge (an hour each way). The line opened in 1902 to bring lead and timber out of the valley.
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Welsh Airsports
The Blorenge, rising above Abergavenny to the southwest, is one of Britain's finest paragliding and hang-gliding sites. In fact, it is so important that the Southeast Wales Hang-Gliding and Paragliding Club purchased the mountain in 1998. Several records have been set from here, and the mountain regularly hosts competition events. Welsh Airsports offers instruction in paragliding seven days a week, weather permitting.
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Black Mountain Activities
In Glasbury, 4.5 miles southwest of Hay, Black Mountain Activities offers other activities such as climbing, caving and mountain biking with prices from around £55 per person per day. They do hire out mountain bikes (half/full day around £15/around £25) as well as canoes (half/full day £20/£30).
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Cliff Railway
Victorian tourists enjoyed a stately ride to the summit of Constitution Hill from 1896 onwards, and you can too, on the trundling little Cliff Railway, the UK's longest electric funicular and possibly the slowest too at a G-force-busting 4mph.
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Pen-y-Crug
The conical hill of 331m Pen-y-Crug, capped by an Iron Age hill fort, rises to the northwest of the town, and makes a good objective for a short hike (2.5 miles round trip). There's a superb view of the Brecon Beacons from the summit.
reviewed
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Hill Education & Conference Centre
Franco Taruschio (who founded the Walnut Tree Inn) and Lindy Wildsmith run one-/two-day cookery courses at the Hill Education & Conference Centre teaching Italian cooking with Welsh ingredients. Courses run once or twice a month.
reviewed
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Paddles & Pedals
Take to the Wye waters at Hay and get collected further downstream.
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Holey Trail Cycle Hire
This place hires out mountain bikes from half/full-day around £12/around £18; the staff is a mine of information on the local cycle trails. The owners also offer bike repairs and run the Reditreks bunkhouse.
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Dragonfly Cruises
Dragonfly Cruises runs 2½-hour canal boat trips; there are departures once or twice daily on Wednesday, Saturday and Sunday (plus Thursday in July, plus Tuesday, Thursday and Friday in August).
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Brecon Boats
Brecon Boats hires out boats by the hour. They're at Talybont-on-Usk, southeast of Brecon (about 6 miles by road or 8.5 miles along the towpath).
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Bikes & Hikes
Bikes & Hikes offers bike rental per half-/full day; it also runs guided trips.
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Bi-Ped Cycles
Bi-Ped Cycles offers rental per half-/full day; it can also arrange guided rides.
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Ystwyth Trail
Suitable for cyclists and walkers, this 20-mile waymarked route mainly follows an old rail line from Aberystwyth southeast to Tregaron, at the foot of the Cambrian Mountains. For the first 12 miles it shadows the River Ystwyth, while at the end it enters the Teifi Valley. At the Aberystwyth end you can pick up the trail from the footbridge on Riverside Tce; although you'll get more downhills if you start from Tregaron.
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Holey Trail
Hires mountain bikes (per day £25), performs repairs, offers bunkhouse accommodation and is a mine of information on the local trails.
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Dyfi Mountain Biking
Dyfi maintains three waymarked mountain-bike routes from Machynlleth, the Mach 1 (10 miles), 2 (14 miles) and 3 (19 miles), each more challenging than the last. The Mach 3's not for beginners. In the Dyfi Forest, near Corris, is the custom-built, 9-mile, Cli-machx loop trail. In May the same crew run the Dyfi Enduro, a noncompetitive, long-distance, mountain-bike challenge, limited to 650 riders.
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Cliff Railway
If your constitution's not up to the climb of Constitution Hill (135m), at the northern end of North Beach, you can catch a lift on the trundling little Cliff Railway, the UK's longest electric funicular (1896) and possibly the slowest, too, at a G-force-busting 4mph.
From the wind-blown balding hilltop there are tremendous coastal views. One relic of the Victorian era is a camera obscura that allows you to see practically into the windows of the houses below.
reviewed
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