On the hottest day of the year so far, 7 Amblers set off for a scenic tour of the back lanes of the Vale. The plan was to avoid the Easter Sunday traffic, and in that regard we succeeded. Ron, Nick R, Hannah, Ade, Geoff, Carrie H and I headed out via Coychurch and Pencoed (somehow avoiding punctures from the multiple areas of broken glass there) as far as Bryncae before hitting the lanes towards Llanharry. A zig-zag route via Hensol forest and a few sleepy villages on the way, we arrived at the A48. Ron had a prior commitment and had turned off as we approached Watery Lane.
Thoughts were now turning to coffee for some, and the remaining posse opted for Cowbridge, but managed a few more miles of lanes first before negotiating through Llandough. The road surfaces until then had been fairly good (for the Vale that is), but this section is currently more hole than tarmac, although with generous circles of yellow paint to help guide the unwary...
Ade was on limited time so continued on at Cowbridge, but the rest of us stopped for coffee at Caffe Nero (and a generous bowl of whipped cream with chocolate cake for Hannah). As we departed Geoff peeled off back to Llantwit, and the remaining 4 broke up to head home just after City.
Not the longest route for an Amblers' ride but a few short climbs that I'm sure Ben would have enjoyed (maybe best wait a few more weeks for some of them Ben).
