10th October 2019: Ruyton XI Towns (brisk)

I had 10 minutes to spare before setting off by car to Chirk, so I rapidly put together a route that could be used as a brisk or moderate ride. The problem was it was only 42 miles. I thought “never mind, someone will have a suitable route”. I arrived in the car park and it was clear that the weather could do anything today, so I had a ride around to warm up the legs before going to the Castle Bistro for a coffee.

There was a reasonable crowd of CER riders there and it polarised into a brisk ride ( yes, my route) consisting of John M, Nick and a dragooned in Steve T. I explained the length dilemma and explained we would just wing it when we got as far south as I had originally planned.  I didn’t catch where the Mods were going though. So we set off down the Ceiriog Road and up and around the back lanes of Weston Rhyn and in and out of Oswestry. 

The first part of today's route was a steal from the recent Mod ride to Baschurch as we continue south and east to Melverley. My original route for today then turned north for Montford Bridge and Ruyton. So after a quick conflab, we slide across the River Severn and take the long and undulating “main” road east through Ford on the A458 to turn up to Montford Bridge. The weather is threatening now and light rain and drizzle now accompany us all the way to Ruyton XI towns with 31 miles up. 

Believing that The Talbot did not open until 1400, we stop at Cafe Eleven where I am told it will be 25 minutes at least before we can hope to get some food. I ask John to ride down the high street to check if The Talbot is open - and it is! It now opens at 1200 except on Mondays, but after the ride I check their website which states food service between 1800-2100 only. So, somewhat confused now.

We go in and food is on, and as its a Joules pub, there is delicious Slumbering Monk ale to be had. We all order Eggs Benedict (in various forms) and some excellent chips.  We talk about our ancient memories and our ailments ( do we need an Ailments tab on the website perhaps?). Warmly ensconced in the bar, it is difficult to leave knowing that the rain is all around, and my original cobbled together route is a very short run back. So I look again and plot a slightly longer route back via St Martins. 

So up Grug Hill and onto Gimpo, it seemed like the lanes have all been hedge-trimmed or tractor to death, so we have mud and thorns and debris everywhere. We hit Welsh Frankton and I remember that the obviously direct lane to St Martins is in appalling condition so we circle Perthy and onto New Marton and St Martins. It is now only a quick dash down to the A5 roundabout, then onto the canal side by the Poacher Pub to end up back at the cafe after 48 miles and 2500 ft of climbs at around 1515.

It had rained all the way home, and the temperature had dropped, and the bikes were covered in Shropshire countryside debris - so we all decided to head for home rather than take a coffee on the cafe. So thank you for being patient with my route planning today, but as ever, an enjoyable day out on the bike

See route map and/or gpx file download

CA

24th August 2017: Ruyton XI Towns (mod)

It was a select group of four Easy Riders who met at the Castle Bistro & Tea Room in Chirk. This was to become even more exclusive when it became clear that Dave M, having ridden from Tattenhall, was merely passing through Chirk on his way to Llangollen, the Old Horseshoe Pass and points Welsh on a recce for an Audax that he was preparing. So Ken, Trevor and I were left to decide where to go. Both Ken and Trevor had a 41 mile route to Ruyton XI Towns on their Garmins, so that became our destination, with Trevor leading and the Talbot Inn as the lunch stop.

We crossed the aqueduct over the Ceiriog valley and followed the tow path alongside the Llangollen Canal. Leaving this at Rhoswiel, we were soon negotiating the busy A5 roundabout and heading off on the B5068 towards St. Martins. Soon off this, we passed some very grand looking holiday lodges  at Henlle Hall after which we were down the quiet Shropshire lanes running through Hindford, Tetchill and Hordley, where the simple but pretty Norman-built St Mary’s church dates back to at least 1160. It’s hard to see where the congregation comes from in this sparsely populated area, but services are held here on the second and fourth Sundays of each month. Pressing on through Lower Hordley and Bagley, we could see rain across the Perry valley. This was in spite of the BBC weather forecast insisting that the day would be fine and dry. Trevor made a great attempt to steer us around the rain, but entering Weston Lullingfields, we got caught by a heavy shower. A complaint to Carol Kirkwood seems to be in order.

By the time we were approaching Baschurch, the rain had stopped and the roads were dry, no rain having fallen here. Before entering Baschurch, we swung right along the B4397 through Brownhill, arriving at Ruyton XI Towns and the Talbot Inn soon after opening time. A man followed us into the pub with two full-sized poodles. He was clearly a regular and he recommended the Scotch Eggs which are home–made at the pub and have a great reputation. When it became clear that these were in short supply (only one was available) there was some good natured banter about who might have it. Being good natured souls, we chose other dishes from the menu, leaving the Scotch Egg to the local.

The food was good - the Talbot is on the list of favoured lunch stops. Over lunch, Ken gave me a short tutorial on the Viewranger app which I have just downloaded on to my phone. It’s clear that I have a lot to learn, but it looks as if I will finally drag myself into the 21st century and start using ‘emaps’.

Photo by Steve T

Much has already been written in previous blog reports about Ruyton XI Towns, so I will not say more here. But there is a board in The Talbot which lists the other ten towns that Ruyton banded together with to fend off invasions in the 12th century by the Welsh, something I had not seen before – the list that is, not the Welsh.

Suitably refreshed, we started for home, leaving up Park Bank in what was now warm sunshine (better late than never!). The lanes through Wykey and Eardiston were quiet and we even managed get back across the A5 without difficulty. Harvest time is in full swing in this part of the world and combine harvesters could be seen in several fields. We passed several large tractors and parcel delivery vans along the narrow lanes during the day and all of them either stopped or gave us plenty of room. We had to dismount at one point to edge past a slurry tanker, but this proved to be no difficulty. Pressing on through the Maesburys and Aston, we approached the ‘Oswestrian suburbs’ (© Trevor). These were navigated with supreme confidence by our leader and we soon emerged on the road past the Old Oswestry Fort which took us on to Hengoed and Weston Rhyn. Then it was just a matter of gliding down Chirk Bank and back along the canal tow path to the aqueduct, where we had to squeeze past a few pedestrians. The sting in the tale was the short but steep climb from the end of the aqueduct on to Castle Road. Ken threatened to deduct points from the ride score for this, but, personally, I think this would have been a bit harsh. After all, we did ride down it at the start of the ride.

So 41 very pleasant miles in good company. Thanks to Trevor for leading and to both Trevor and Ken for their excellent company.

ST

9th February 2017: Ruyton XI Towns (mod)

Having watched the Countryfile forecast promising freezing temperatures and strong easterly winds, I was not too enthusiastic about our chances of a ride on Thursday. Nevertheless I planned two routes in case they had miscalculated and sure enough, Thursday morning began a bit chilly but almost windless. Over our tea and crumpets at the café in Chirk we discussed the preferred direction and chose Ruyton XI Towns - down to the south east - and should the wind pick up after lunch we would have a tailwind for the return leg. The brisk group did not appear, so the group of myself, Dave H, Keith B, Steve H and Andy who had already ridden from Mold set off down the hill to cross the Dee on the old A5. Following the B road toward St Martins we turned east onto the lanes for Hindford and Welsh Frankton.  It had obviously been peak ploughing time in Shropshire and almost every gate we passed produced a layer of sticky mud along the lanes. Clive would have been proud of us!  It wasn’t long before those with low mudguard clearance needed to stop and have a clearout, despite speeding through the occasional puddle in an attempt to dilute the red post glacial Gorilla glue.  Things improved when we turned south towards Hordley, Lower Hordley and Stanwardine in the Fields, where PGL have a large outdoor pursuits facility. We were pleased to reach the Talbot Arms and the warmth of the open fire about 19 miles and two hours after setting out from Chirk.

As is often the case, hardly had we warmed up than it was time to set off again. Still no sign of the threatened ‘Beast from the East’ though the temperature hadn’t increased much - it didn’t rise above 2⁰ all day. The route back took us through Wykey, and Haughton, round the old airfield and back to Welsh Frankton. The lads commented on how much they had enjoyed the crap encrusted countryside on the way out so we followed the same route back, only to get as far as Mad Jacks at Hindford when Andy got a puncture. Despite dunking his tube into the canal we could find no fault with his tyre - whatever had caused the flat had obviously remained on the lane waiting for another victim. Pedalling again, we were soon dicing with death round the A5 traffic island and the last bit of downhill before the climb up to Chirk and afternoon tea.

Andy left us here for a short sprint (about 20 miles) back to Mold while Dave manfully resisted the urge to tackle the cake counter.

A total distance for us of about 36 miles - quite far enough on a cold winter’s day.

JD

15th September 2016: Chirk to Ruyton XI Towns

It promised to be a fine day for our final visit to Chirk of the year and when we arrived at the café there was a good group to meet us. Six of us (John, Jim, Dave H, Chris, Brian Macca and myself) were interested in a moderate ride but no-one had a ride prepared. So I looked through the past rides on my Garmin and came up with 41-miler. It looked vaguely oval with Chirk at one end and the village of Baschurch at the other. But ‘what is the pub for our lunch stop?’ came the question. ‘Haven’t a clue’ I answered and no-one else could recall a pub we had been to in Baschurch either.

Photos by Macca

And so our ride became a bit of a mystery tour and we set off blindly following a thin red line on a tiny screen. The route out of Chirk took us down to the canal and across Telford’s viaduct, dodging the pedestrians along the towpath. Then we were dodging the traffic as we crossed the A5 roundabout before we reached the relative safety of the Shropshire lanes. We headed south through the villages of Hindford, Tetchill, Hordley & Bagley and approached Baschurch with lunch on our minds. However it soon became apparent that we weren’t going to pass a pub in Baschurch. So I expanded the map on my Garmin and discovered that the next village was Ruyton-XI-Towns. Mystery solved – our lunch stop was to be the Talbot Inn.

The last time I visited the Talbot it was under new management. It appears that the new landlords are intent on the place becoming a bit up-market from the village pub that it used to be and this was reflected in the cost of a lime & soda – a whopping £2.40!!! However the sandwiches proved to be good value and we each tucked into one as we sat out in the sunshine.

Our return journey started with the short sharp climb up towards Wykey which got our legs working again. We passed through West Felton and Maesbury criss-crossing the A5 three times to enter the outskirts of Oswestry. We avoided the town centre and headed up past the old hill fort, then following the contours to Weston Rhyn. Finally we dropped down to Chirk Bank to re-join the canal where we retraced our route back into Chirk. Another great day’s cycling – good weather, good countryside and, above all, good company.

TC

9th June 2016: Ruyton XI Towns (mod)

There were 9 riders who gathered at the (now refurbished) Tea Rooms Café in Chirk for the first time this year – Trevor, Chris, Paul, Dave H, Keith B, Steve T, Brian Macca, Dave and Liz. No-one had a route, but the two Daves agreed to fettle one down to Ruyton XI Towns, using a combination of Dave H’s map and Dave P’s knowledge of the lanes.

So it was that we set off in bright sunshine along Church Street, heading for the Llangollen Canal. Safely over the aqueduct, we carried on along the towpath for longer than usual, only leaving it after we’d gone under the A5. The path was dry, but in several places, coarse hardcore had been put down, which made for difficult riding, so we were please to regain smooth tarmac. Passing Henlie Hall, where you can stay in ‘Woodland Lodges’, we went on to Hindford and Welsh Frankton and thence to Lower Frankton. Skirting round the old airfield at Rednal (and the old Westland Whirlwind helicopter), we cycled on through Haughton, Wigmarsh and Wykey, dropping down the hill into Ruyton X1 Towns and arriving at The Talbot  only 90 minutes and 17.5 miles after leaving Chirk.

To the delight of our beer aficionados, the Talbot is now a Joules pub, having been refurbished by the brewery and re-opened last December. The present tenants have been in place for only a month or so and they were a bit taken aback by the arrival of 9 hungry cyclists, especially since they were expecting ‘a large party’ at 12:30.  They decided to get our orders to the kitchen first and so we were soon seated at two tables with drinks, awaiting lunch. This arrived quite quickly and the opinion of the group was that the quality was good, but probably not up to the standard required for an entry in Steve H’s guide [It’s already in there, Steve]. Lunchtime conversation was wide ranging, covering amongst other things wind farms, the EU and the TT races. Dave P suggested that the afternoon ride should be a little longer (30 miles was mentioned) and this prompted another round of discussion between the two Daves – well, shouting across the pub would be more accurate. Fortunately, the yummy mummies had decided to take their offspring and eat outside, so no disturbance was caused.

Photos by Brian MacDonald

So it was that we re-traced our wheeltracks out of Ruyton towards Wykey. The hill going up seemed to be much steeper than when we came down before lunch – something to do with the added weight we were carrying, perhaps. Turning right before we reached Wykey, we crossed the River Perry and climbed out of the valley; another steep hill just after lunch – thanks Dave! Riding through Weston Lullingfields and on to  Stanwardine in the Wood, we were fully immersed in the delightful lanes of north Shropshire, which are thankfully bereft of the Chelsea tractors found so often in the lanes of Cheshire. Arriving at Cockshutt, there was a short stretch on the A528 before we peeled off right towards English Frankton. At a sharp left just before we got there, Dave H suggested that we divert to the café at Ellesmere for an ice cream, a suggestion that was given the unanimous support of the group. Ice creams, cake, ginger beer and tea were consumed in the beautiful lakeside setting basking in the afternoon sun. Suitably refreshed, we started for home.

The route took us out of Ellesmere on cycle route 455 which we followed for only a mile or so before turning off past Duddleston Hall to reach St. Martins. Passing the parish church, we crossed the B5069 and headed for Pont-y-blew, crossing back into Wales as we did so. This provided the ‘sting in the tail’ that Dave H had mentioned (quietly) a bit earlier. The lane drops down into the valley where the River Dee (or should I say Afon Dyfrdwy) runs and the climb out of the other side and over the A5 is steep, sapping any remaining strength from our legs.

Arriving back at the car park, we had run 44 miles on a warm, sunny (mostly) day through some quite lovely lanes. Thanks go to both Daves for an excellent ‘off the cuff’ ride.

ST

15th October 2015: Ruyton-XI-Towns (brisk)

I hadn’t seen so many riders at a previous CER meet, especially one from Chirk, which is always more of an effort to start from.  Clive volunteered to lead a brisk ride into Shropshire again on what was his 6th Anniversary as a member of CER.  On the promise of small hills, I joined him along with Darren, Ivan, Steve T and Tom and agreed to write the ride up.

As we rode in a giant figure of eight, it was not long before Clive suffered a p@@@@@@@ due to the seasonal hedge trimming.  He was then supervised by the others while changing his tube.  (See photo)

Photograph by Brian MacDonald

Passing the Queens Head PH, we continued south, skirting the shop at Knockin and headed along unfamiliar lanes around the north side of The Wrekin escarpment.  Turning back north, we completed about 60% of the ride before searching for the only pub in Ruyton-XI-Towns to have lunch but found it was closed for renovation.  We then stopped at a lovely place on the old A5 at Cafe Eleven, Ruyton-Xl-Towns, SY4 1LA, tel: 07976 024 654. 

The day, as promised, stayed dry; always a blessing at this time of year.  As the brisk pace continued after lunch, after skirting Ellesmere, I decided to veer off at a more sedate pace & arrived back at the Chirk cafe with 56 miles at 15 mph on the clock.  A pleasant final ride from Chirk till next year.  

Brian Mac, now known as Macca, so as not to be confused with the new member Brian M

BMac

21st May 2015: Ruyton-XI-Towns (mod)

I knew Dave P had a ride, but where was he? To be fair, he is reliable and consistent, so he duly turned up at 10:26, too late for a big breakfast this time.  Dave's ride was based upon a previous successful route by Jim.  Dave P, the two Steves, Trevor and myself were soon heading for the pretty canal towpath, and then, by contrast, across the dodgy (for cyclists) A5 roundabout. The quiet lanes past Henlle Hall, and southeast through the Franctons, Hordley and Bagley provided classic easy riding.  The weather was very pleasant, the scenery lovely and the pace pressureless.  We pottered along with Dave using a pencil-marked map to consult here and there.  We had the odd off-piste moments, but generally Dave managed less U- turns than the average politician.  I have never ridden with Harry, but it felt like I imagined it would be with Harry, timeless, rolling pleasure.

Photograph by Steve Tan

Dave fancied The Queen's Head past West Felton, because they had large plates I think, but we settled on The Talbot at Ruyton, because it was nearer.  The food was fine and the service fast and friendly.  We sat at the back in the sun, and nearly fell asleep.  The return was via West Felton, Maesbury and a devious route through Oswestry. We climbed up to the Old Oswestry Fort, heading north to Weston Rhyn on a narrow lane with great views. We finished alongside the canal, and back to the excellent coffee shop in Chirk to round off a perfect day's cycling. 42 miles.  

DH

11th September 2014: Ruyton-XI-Towns (mod)

Our last ride of the summer season from Chirk and the forecast was for a warm sunny day. Although not one of our more popular venues, Chirk does give us quite a variety of rides to look forward to. However, I was determined that I was not going up into the Welsh hills again, so scrutinised the map and came up with a relatively low level route around Shropshire. A message from Dave P the night before showed that he had similar thoughts so between us we chose the strangely named Ruyton-XI-Towns as our destination. A group of seven, consisting of Steve H, Steve T, Dave H, Bryan, Dave & Liz P and Jim duly set off from the café at 10:30. Ivan had plans to test his new bike against the hills and set off with Tom for the slopes. 

Photograph by Bryan Wade

 

We crossed the valley on the canal towpath and were treated to magnificent views up the Dee to the Welsh hills. The first real obstacle was crossing the traffic island on the A5 but we were soon safely on the lanes circumventing Gobowen and heading for Whittington. This seemed to have some potential for a more lengthy visit in the future, but for today we took the back lanes towards Maesbury and then east for West Felton. By and large the route was almost traffic free and we bowled along enjoying fine weather and the many unvisited hamlets, such as Eardiston and Wykey. The terrain was generally undulating with enough uphill bits to make us work reasonably hard at times, but soon we started picking up the signs for our destination. A quick check of the history reveals the correct title of the village “Ruyton of the eleven Townships”, referring to a time during the Middle Ages, when there were many small townships in the area, Ruyton being one of them.

The village itself was not particularly scenic, but the pub, The Talbot, was right in the centre, and served a good choice of local brews and a light bite menu. This was fine for us, as it is not easy pedalling for two hours when full of the pensioners three course special!

Special thanks to our friends at Camra and their website ‘whatpub.com.’ where I found the details and phone number of the pub.

After a pleasant break we set off back northwards through Stanwardine in the Fields, Bagley, Lower Hordley, and then the Franktons.  We were soon skirting round the east side of Gobowen and back to the café for coffee and cake. A very pleasant 38 miles in mostly uncharted territory.  A fine day out that will provide us with pleasant memories when we are splashing round the Wrexham Industrial Estate next winter.

JD