Torfaen County Borough

The weather forecast was severe enough that the storm system that was due to hit had been granted a name. The rain began to fall just as I was approaching the Severn bridge, accompanied by falling temperatures and a stiff wind.

My route through South Wales took me roughly north-west past Dean farm trust’s sanctuary, through the town of Usk and up to Pontypool. From there I turned due West along the old railway that would once have crossed the Crumlin viaduct. The light finally went on this leg, I was thoroughly wet, tired and hungry - the ride became a balancing act between husbanding my energy to complete the miles ahead and putting in enough effort to stay warm.

Arriving at a point overlooking Crumlin, it became clear how thick the weather was: the bottom and far side of the valley were obscured by the rain and mist. The heavy weather meant it was far too wet to use the OS map on my phone - the capacitative touch system couldn’t tell the difference between my fingers and the water droplets. This became a particular problem when it came time to find my way down the side of the Ebbw valley.

Whilst I had been conscious that the Crumlin viaduct, which the path (back when it was a railway) would have met had been the tallest in the UK my mind hasn’t made the connection with needing to get down to the valley floor. I ended up picking my way down a footpath with steep stairs - meaning I had to disassemble my bike and managed to get grease on my nice new waterproof jacket :-(

At this point a problem developed with one of my lights, so I picked my way along the quiet roads on the western side of the Ebbw and then joined the old Crumlin branch of the Monmouthshire and Brecon canal at Cwm Carn to make the remainder of journey to my Parents’ house further down the valley.Read more