Bike Route: Llanidloes to Machynlleth 25mi 1900ft
Accommodation: Private Room Hosted by Stephanie (Airbnb). Double room with balcony and private bathroom in historic Welsh mansion.
Dinner: Shilam Tandoori Indian restaurant tucked behind the clock tower at the end of the old high street in town. Papadum, lamb curry, vegetable curry, coconut naan, and prawn biryani. Pretty good.
What a difference a day makes. All spent riding on roads and lanes, up little hills and one long big hill, down the other side, and into Machynlleth.
Our accommodation was a graceful old mansion run as a guest house by an opera singer, her doctor husband, their two children, and a young woman named Rosie who met us in the driveway. We were a little confused when we arrived because our host had not included the name of the guest house or a picture of the outside in her directions, but Rosie said we were at the right place.
Our room was a little worn, with carpet over a floor that slanted and dipped, and an old, old timber and plaster wall. But it was clean, the bed was comfortable, and we had a fabulous view of Snowdonia National Park from our balcony.
Better yet, we arrived in the early afternoon and were able to shower and drink a cup of tea before walking a little over a mile back to town for dinner. We found a small Indian restaurant just opening for the evening, and had a nice meal.
After dinner, we explored the old high street, stopped at the grocery store, and walked a little way on a footpath leading to a main hiking trail across Wales.
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| This landscape sparked a discussion of the book and movie How Green Was My Valley, set in a small Welsh mining town at the turn of the 20th century. The book was written by Robert Llewellyn in 1939. The movie was directed by John Ford and filmed in California. |
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| Buildings along High Street in Machynlleth. |
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| Entranceway to the park at the start of a footpath that leads out into the countryside. |
