USK TO LLANDOVERY

Wales is a little big country. Little is the size of the country but it is big because of its wide open spaces, panoramic vistas and such brilliant cycling. If the sun comes out as it did today, the Welsh scenery is spectacular and can be seen at its best. I buy my maps from Sustrans and, so far, this journey is working well with these maps. We leave Usk towards Abergavenny on NCN42 and one vista holds a windmill with a backdrop of the Brecon Beacons.

It starts gently, then you are lifted into hills passing livestock farms and tiny hamlets. Abergavenny is a "must see" town for cyclists. The variety of shops are easy on the eye and, if you can avoid the chains, there are plenty of locally owned coffee shops. We leave NCN42 and join the Monmouth and Brecon Canal Path.  Unexpectedly it is a near flat cycle ride for 25 miles to Brecon. This is viewing the scenery the easy way.

There is no obvious cycle route west from Brecon without huge detours into the hills. The only route is the A40 which is a trunk road. Before setting off, I had thought that it would be quiet and it proved to have relatively little traffic. We made good time to Llandovery and, as I sit here writing this, a group at the table behind me in the Whitehall pub are having a passionate discussion about rugby. Dagmar and I meanwhile are discussing our route in Ireland
Today we have cycled 58 miles.  Tomorrow, our plan is to reach Tenby on NCN4 and catch the Irish ferry on Saturday