Information:
Intro:
Twisty, rooty, rocky and in places wildly exposed,
the singletrack in Afan Forest Park is the enthusiasts dream.
The trails here have been carved out of hillsides once scarred by coal
mining, but now the valley has been transformed into singletrack heaven
by Forestry Commission in partnership with Neath Port Talbot Council,
Wales Tourist Board and the local community group Glyncorrwg Ponds
Co-operative.
Afan Forest Park is home to 4 world class trails,
the 'Penhydd', 'The Wall', 'Skyline' and 'White's Level', boasting over
100 km of singletrack heaven. Afan Forest Park was the only UK trail
destination to feature in the 'What Mountain Bike Magazine' as one of
the ten best places to ride "before you die", December 2004 issue.
Photo Gallery:
Getting there:
Junction 40, M5.
Misc:
The Penhydd Trail
Distance: 22Km
Climb: 550m
Time: 1-3 hours
This
is a varied trail, which combines forest and road climbs with tight,
technical, switchback trails through mixed woodland and open flowing
singletrack through ground with great views.
Big climbs followed
by technical descents mean this trail is not suitable for novices and
in places the trail is exposed to bad weather on high ground. Please
make sure that your bike is in good working order and that you are
adequately equipped.
The Wall Trail
Distance 23Km
Climb: 450m
Time: 1.5 - 3 hours
This
trail essentially traverses the North side of the Afan Valley on
singletrack, which varies from fast, open and flowing to tight
technical and rooty.
Much of the singletrack crosses some very
steep side slopes and in places feels quite exposed. The route also
shares a section of the family cycle trail along the valley bottom so
please ride with consideration for other users.
Skyline
Distance: 46km
Climb: 2000m
Time: 5 - 7 hours
The
latest addition to Afan Forest Park. The trail starts with the same
climb as White's Level - quite rocky and technical. Skyline is a giant
of a ride. Be prepared!
Sharing the same sheep-track ascent as
White's Level and continuing on long, forest road climbs with sweet,
flowing technical singletrack descents you will be treated to stunning
skyline views of Brecon Beacons, the Preselis. The Black Mountains and
the South Wales coast.
This route will test your stamina and
your nerve, with technical singletrack, such as 'On the Edge' and
'Excalibur' sections. Your reward will be out-stretched views and a
nerve-tingling, rocky, 6km singletrack descent back into Glyncorrwg.
There are also 2 short cut loops built into the trail and the furthest
section 'Excalibur' should only be attempted with sufficient daylight
hours to complete the route.
Come well prepared with plenty of
water, food, spares (inner tubes etc) and due to the nature of the
trail, some spare clothing. Skyline route is subject to extreme weather
changes and temperature differences between the valley bottom (195m)
and mountain top (600m). The weather can be wild and can close in fast.
White's Level
Distance: 24km
Climb: 400m
Time: 1.5 - 3 hours
Very technical progressive riding trail with drops, step downs and long singletrack climbs.
A
6km sheep track climb gives fantastic views of Afan Forest Park,
extreme exposure on tight singletrack means ultimate thrills and long,
demanding descents with rocky steps to negotiate, all leading to one
outrageous trail. If this was a slalom run it would be graded black.
Map of Area
Here
Will automatically download PDF map to Afan rides.
Source
Member Comments:
Upon arrival I had a bit of a play with my brakes and had a ride around the
car park as I waited for the rest of the group to turn up.
It began raining, not heavy rain but that drizzle that soaks you through.
It got cold.
To keep myself warm I rode quicker round the car park and got covered in mud.
The rest of the group arrive after also getting stuck in traffic and I look like I've already ridden round twice.
It rains some more and it's getting cold and theres me in shorts and short
sleeve top! (Huge thanks to Reb for the loan of a jacket, I'm very
sorry I went against your instructions and got it muddy but it couldn't
be helped!)
...So off we go...
The rides starts with short climb to the starting point where it is time to make decisions about which
trail to go on. We have chosen 'The Wall'.
The first section is across a bridge into the woods where there is a bit of flat/slight
incline single track to our first decent.
This decent is short but a lovely smooth and steep one with a few berms and dips to content with (an excellent warm up.)
From there we found ourselves with miles and miles (and miles) of fire road
climbing to do broken up with single track sections that are fairly
technical (in my opinion) with smooth sections.
The final climb is a killer! To those of us who are like me, not as fit as we'd like. It's
again all on fire roads but pretty steep.
Then the summit awaits (with the exception of a few uphills!) and the downhills beckon.
The downhill sections are steep, with some very technical sections (namely
'The Rock Garden') The views are spectacular, even in the rain.
But unfortunately the rain wasn't the only problem. Gingerbloke had a loose
headset and a loose front wheel both of which resulted in nothing more
than a short break (a very welcome one at that!) I was suffering from
slipping gears most of the way round which was little more than an
annoyance. But then my brakes stopped working! I have no idea why but I
just lost all power to both front and back brakes. So, I stopped and
adjusted the pads, this fixed the problem and again we were on our way.
So off we trot up the next short climb and on to the trail, where,
half way down I notice a complete failure in brakes again. I stopped,
tried to adjust the pads again but nothing. I could not seem to get
anything more than the pads 'touching' the disc's and providing VERY
little stopping power.
So after all the climbs, in the rain, I was
forced to 'limp' back down to car park level with next to no brakes
what so ever. I was undeterred, I was desperate to ride down so that's
exactly what I did, slowly, or as slowly as possible. So off I go, at
high alert, down the hills. I was struggling with scrubbing off speed,
in fact at some point I even tried going 'old school' and dragging my
feet! (didn't work too well!) After that I panicked, jumped off my bike
and hit the dirt rolling. It was then I decided to walk down the rest
of it.
I got down to the end of the trail and found 2 very
patient people waiting for me. Then we were off back down the fire
road. (WHEEE!) and found ourselves back in the car park.
Then, I showered my bike put it in the car and went home.
I had a great time, despite the weather and the tech problems, the riding I did do was brilliant.
So a huge thanks to everybody who joined me, waited for me and helped me out every step of the way.
Take care guys, see you soon.