20th February 2020: Minera (mod)

This would be our last visit to The Gallery café at Hawarden before Spiros retires at the end of March. Eight Easy Riders had gathered to wish him well. Jim and Trevor had come in civvies, John W was doing his own thing and Ken had to be home for lunch, but he joined Dave H, Keith, Andy B and Steve T for the ride. We decided that, since Dave was recovering from his gall bladder op and Keith hadn’t been out for a while due to a bad shoulder and the weather was awful, we’d make it a short one today. I’d found a ride on the blog to the Tyn-y-Capel pub at Minera which Steve H had led a year or so ago. At only 30 miles, it seemed to fit the bill for our ride today.

So, off we set out through Ewloe and Buckley (where Ken helped us to navigate the housing estate streets) to reach the A5118 near Llong. Ken peeled off here to head for home, whilst we struggled along the main road into the strong westerly wind before taking the long, steep hill to Pentre, skirting Treuddyn to reach Rhydtalog and Four Crosses. From here it was steeply downhill to reach Minera and Tyd-y-lan opposite the church.

It didn’t look open, but a quick look inside told us that all was well and we were soon settled in the warm pub, drying off gloves and other wet things on any radiators we could find. As well as the normal menu, there was a 2 course lunch on offer for only £7.95. Andy, Keith and I chose this option, whereas Dave went for a Moroccan surprise. He was more than a little worried when the waitress brought him a plate of salad, chips and wraps, but the sizzling sound of a dish of Moroccan chicken soon brought a smile to his face.

As we were eating, the sun came out so that when we set off for home the world looked a much brighter place. However, the wind was still very strong and we did get shot-blasted by a few snow showers as we took the B-road round Coedpoeth and zig-zagged through Pentre Broughton to Gwersyllt, where we joined the busy road to Llay. From there we found the quieter lanes to Penymynydd, where we crossed the A5104.  Andy left us here to take that road back to Mold, leaving Dave, Keith and I to navigate the footbridge over the A55 and then follow the track through Bilberry Wood back to Hawarden.

Yet again we’d started from the café in very unpromising conditions, only to finish the day in fine and dry weather. A short ride today, but good company and the drying weather made it all worthwhile.

See route map and/or gpx file download

ST

10th January 2019: Minera (mod)

A good number of riders gathered at the Gallery Tea Rooms in Hawarden. It was also good to see Dave H out on a bike again – he was joining Bryan W and Jim on a shorter ride and I believe the brisk riders were off to do something incredibly steep.  That left the moderates: Andy B, George, Clive and myself.  I’d been looking for a change to our usual routes out from Hawarden and also a different lunch stop. I picked out a destination almost due south from our start – the Tyn-y-Capel in Minera.

As we set off we immediately found ourselves in drizzle and in one form or another we were in damp and murky conditions all day, albeit relatively mild ones. We headed out through Buckley and skirted around Mold to pass near Nercwys and Treuddyn. We were climbing steadily upwards throughout, but only had to surmount one steep chevroned hill. We turned left at Rhydtalog to reach Four Crosses and our high point of the day at just over 1,000 feet. Then it was steeply downhill into Minera and to the Tyn-y-Capel on the right.

The Tyn-y-Capel sits looking over the valley towards the Clwydian Hills. Apparently the building has its origins as a hostelry for pilgrims making their way over Esclusham Mountain to Valle Crucis Abbey, near Llangollen. It’s also one of the 50 best pubs in Wales according to Wales Online. The large pub has extensive terraces where you could sit in the sun and admire the views on a summer’s day. No such luck today, indeed no views at any point on our ride.  Inside we found good value food and drink.  I had an excellent pint of “The Cat in the Chapel”, which seemed a very Welsh name for a beer.  While we ate, George told us of the “Free Solo” movie he’d just seen about the El Capitan climb in Yosemite, and this led to a general discussion about climbing. We then moved on to Brexit! -  soon it was time to leave.

Our return took us downwards on the B-road by Coedpoeth. At one point heavy rain forced me to stop as the combination of a wet screen and wet glasses meant I couldn’t read the map. We then followed a zig-zag of urban roads through Pentre Broughton to find our way to Gwersyllt. We took the busy road to Llay roundabout, and after the traffic lights, followed lanes back northwards to Penymynydd.  We said goodbye to Clive and Andy, before passing through Bilberry Wood and onto Hawarden car park.

We had covered only 30 miles, but travelled in a less familiar direction from Hawarden which, as Clive pointed out, brought us into the neighbourhood of the rides we used to do from Alwyn Waters.  We also found a good pub, which we will remember for future use.

See route map and/or gpx file download

SH