13th January 2021: Edgerley (brisk)

Our second meet of the year was the Castle Bistro in Chirk. John W and I travelled out from Chester on the train. These are getting busy again but we had room to put our bikes in the cycle storage area. Arriving into Chirk, it is chilly after sitting in the warm train. We cycle from the station to our cafe start and are swiftly joined by Clive, John M and Nick, so today’s peloton is 5 brisk riders. After a coffee and tea cake, we get ready to brave the expected low temperature with frost and fog predicted. 

Our route is to the Royal Hill Inn at Edgerley which is located on NCR 81 between Pentre and Melverley. 

Leaving Chirk, we cautiously head down Chirk Bank which feels icy but no frost is visible. Ray had had a crash on his bike Tuesday when riding with J W to ride a 200k audax route. This incident heightened our concentration and senses and we descend carefully. At the A5 roundabout, we continue to St Martins along the B5070. We head right off and along Church Lane and pass St Martins parish Church.

The lanes are wet and dirty with some flooding and in a fine fog. At one point we brake the surface ice on flood water making us even more alert. Although the sun was bright it restricted our views of the countryside. Arriving at the A495 at Welsh Frankton, it’s a quick right and left thankfully as the main road was busy with some big lorries behind us as we cycled up the bank. The first 8 miles of the route is an uphill ride but we are now over the most and dropping down towards Tetchill the roads are getting drier. At 15 miles, we stop to remove a layer of clothing and it’s a little surprising that we’ve only ridden a short distance as it feels we’ve been out all morning such is the concentration.

 
Our pace is now picking up as we approach Rednal and skirt around the airfield and the numerous adventure parks dotted around the disused areas. The sun is now burning away the fog and with little wind it is a pleasure being out in the fresh air. Through Ruyton XI Towns, we again have a little climb up towards Little Ness. We are on a lane which runs through Valeswood Wood and the road surface is very muddy and wet. Eventually leaving the trees behind, we run parallel with the A5 and into Nesscliffe and take a narrow lane to Pentre and our lunch stop at Royal Hill Inn.

The menu for light bites costs approx £4.50 and it is a good portion. A good slice of shortbread is served with our drinks of tea and coffee and our lunch is quickly served. We are seated in a small bar snug area with an open fire and have to open the window to let some cool air in; just no pleasing some!

Agricultural veneer

Ready to ride after lunch

Leaving the Inn, we ride on NCR 81 to Melverley and Crew Green where we begin to head north and home. The sun is now very bright and in our face rendering us with blindness at times. We pass through Llandrinio the village which hosts the lunch stop of the CTC 100 mile ride.

Crossing the A483 at Llanymynech, we are heading towards Knockin. Not stopping at the shop today but continue on to cross the busy A5. We witness an unusual courtesy from a car driver who slowed the traffic behind him, to allow us to cross this busy road in short order.. 

Passing West Felton and Queen's Head, it’s the 4 mile slightly uphill straight drag to Whittington. Passing straight through the village, a shout of "flat" rings out and, considering the road conditions we’ve ridden on today, Whittington can boast relative good surface conditions. Nonetheless, John W has succumbed to the snake bite pinch and he is quick to release his front wheel and smoothly replace the tube. After 5/10 minutes max, we are again heading to our end of journey for today. Through Gobowen and the back of Lions Quay, we cross the A5 again for the last time then heading to Weston Rhyn and Chirk.

As we arrive at the bottom of Chirk Bank, the sun is illuminating the viaduct so John and I stop to snap the photo opportunity for the final blog picture and to act as a reminder of what a great day out on the bike it’s been. As always good company and after the first hour of our ride, great weather for January.

A total of 57 miles ridden with 2412 feet of ascents . Let's hope our next ride out from Delamere is as favourable. Thanks to all for making a great day out. 

See route map and/or gpx file download

ID

Photos JW

12th August 2021: Melverley, Edgerley (mod)

Today’s ride started from the Castle Bistro in Chirk – always a welcome opportunity to get outside our usual Cheshire territory. There were seven moderate riders: Dave H, Dave P, Andy B, Alan, Steve T, Steve Hu and myself. I had in mind two possible destinations – The Old Hand and Diamond at Coedway and the Royal Hill at Edgerley. In truth both of them offered similar rides as the same route leads to them, you just need to travel a little further to Coedway. Incidentally, the proper address of the Royal Hill is Edgerley, though on the map, Pentre or Melverley seem the more obvious locations.

Photo by AO

Our way out was familiar: over the busy A5 roundabout, out to Hindford and then to Welsh Frankton. The Hindford to Welsh Frankton road has been awful for ages, but today we were mainly contending with thick gravel and potholes, and not the thick mud that you can meet there. Things seemed to be going fine as we descended from the junction with the A495, until we heard the unmistakable crunch of a bike hitting the tarmac. Alan had suffered a nearly calamitous jammed chain leading to him tumbling off his bike. Fortunately, Alan himself only had minor scratches and bruises, so we pulled into the driveway of a friendly local villager while we assessed damage to the bike. The main problem seemed to be that several links in his chain had become twisted, though not so badly that he couldn’t ride. We carried on cautiously

We arrived in Bagley where we took the turn to Stanwardine-in-the-Fields and travelled through some lovely countryside on quiet and smooth lanes.  After Stanwardine, came Baschurch, and then Little and Great Ness before we crossed over the A5. Here we could see a densely packed herd of sheep on the opposite hillside. Though as we approached their movements looked unnatural, and it was only as we got closer that we could see they were in fact a flock of white geese! We continued, passing by the army camp and arrived at our destination.  

The Royal Hill is in a delightful south-facing location on the banks of the River Severn looking towards the distinctive Breidden Hills on the far bank. Atop the main hill is Admiral Rodney’s Pillar, erected to commemorate his victories in the American War of Independence. Obviously, his battles went better than the rest of the war. 

Photo by SH

We sat on benches outside. It was warm, quiet and relaxing in the sun. The Severn was close by, though we had to look over a hedge to see it. A chap came over to talk and ask whether we were from Shrewsbury.  He had arranged to meet members of a cycle club there for lunch and was checking to see if we were them. We admired his car, a classic open-top maroon Mercedes. Food arrived quickly and was enjoyed. Before long it was time to leave.

Our return took us to Melverley, where previously Mike Gilbert (I think) had shown us to the church, an ancient half-timbered structure on the banks of the river.  Today, we passed by and made for Maesbrook, then Maesbury and into Oswestry from the east. Negotiating the back streets we emerged by Old Oswestry Hill Fort, and took the road to Weston Rhyn. Avoiding the busy main road, we dropped down to the Ceriog Valley and climbed back up to our starting point. 

We covered 43 miles in some lovely weather and pastoral scenery, and with good company.  An excellent ride.

See route map and/or gpx file download

SH