The Town of Machynlleth is a small but bustling town in one of the most beautiful areas of mid-Wales, surrounded by the colourful rolling hills and mountains on the Dovey estuary and is fast becoming the focal point for “real” mountain biking in mid-Wales. After the runaway success of the waymarked trails in Coed-y-Brenin over the past few years, it wasn’t going to be long before existing classic rides were going to be waymarked to draw in the mountain biking public and Machynlleth has done just that.
Locals, who know exactly where the best riding in the area can be found, have devised three waymarked trails, all of which exist on current rights of way. There are three routes, all of varying difficulty and length, although even the 10 miler has some fairly tough climbs. The three routes named Mach 1, Mach 2 and Mach 3 take in some of the best riding to be found to the south of this town, some of which is also covered on the “South of the Dovey Valley” and “Wales Coast to Coast” rides on this site.
The routes have had input from a number of parties within the Machynlleth local area but have had considerable support from the local tourist office, Greenstiles Cycles in the town and from the Millennium Commission.
A leaflet has been produced which includes a map of the routes and a guide to what Machynlleth has to offer is invaluable if you are visiting the area for the first time and helpful to take as a route guide anyway. The leaflet entitled “Machynlleth Mountain Biking” can be picked up from the local tourist information office, Greenstiles Cycles or by contacting the TIC on 01654 702401 or by e-mail mactic@Powys.gov.uk. Further Information can also be found on the Machynlleth Mountiain Biking website: www.mach-off-road.org.uk.
Knowing that the Machynlleth area had plenty to offer mountain bikers after several visits in the past, I had to go to ride the three machs. I foolishly chose a weekend in late October after a long period of rain, so I was expecting a wet weekend. Thankfully the weather held and it remained warm and dry for much of my visit but the trails were very wet and I think you will find that if you ride any of these routes you should expect to get wet if you visit between September and June.
As I was fairly familiar with the area, I decided to take on the toughest route first. So on a sunny Saturday morning I unpacked the bike and set off, full of energy on the Mach 3.
Mach 3 is a 20 mile route, the longest and hardest of the routes on offer and will take the average mountain biker between 3 to 5 hours to complete depending on weather conditions and stops en-route. Beware that the weather at the far end of this route is very likely to be a lot more unpleasant than the weather in Machynlleth.
I set out on Mach 3 across the golf course following the professional and clear way marking signs for the route. It wasn’t long before I was climbing through fantastic scenery, to start with on minor roads and after the first few miles of road work climbing steeply on a farm track up and around a hill on Glyndwr’s Way. Throughout the early stages of the ride you must not forget to pause now and then to look behind you to admire at the fantastic view of rolling hills unfolding behind you as far as the eye can see.
After the 5-mile uphill slog you will reach a plateau upon which you will skirt a couple of field before descending for the first time in the ride. A long descent will begin and as you plunge into a forest you will then loose much of your hard-earned height on some speedy fire roads. After the quick descent you will find yourself in a deep valley and the only option is to climb up out of it on the long zig-zag track that climbs up through the trees. This leg burning climb goes on and on before it eventually levels out in a desloate, deforested area well beyond the reaches of civilisation.
This is probably a good point to mention the need for a proper map. Although the route is well signposted you will need the leaflet map to check your position and a full map for the area to find your position if you stray off the route for whatever reason. The way markings are usually found when you need to change to another track, path or road; generally, if there is no sign then you should stay on the track that you are on until you reach one. There are a few minor exceptions, which I will try and point out as part of the route description.
On reaching a gate at the very end of the forestry area you should be faced with further wilderness and a track leading off into the desolate distance. Soon after going through the gate you will be faced with a shallow ford (potentially deep after heavy rainfall, but on a concrete base so not entirely lethal) and a brief climb before you will see a farm down by the river on you right. Take the rough track down to it, this wasn’t signposted on my visit but one may now be in place. You will be greeted by another ford (and some dogs if the farmer is around) just by the farm buildings at Hyddgen, however this time there is a small concrete bridge too. Go round the left-hand side of the buildings and follow a muddy, boggy and very damp path steeply up the hill. You may end up walking up this hill, but to bring a smile to your face, just stop for a moment to admire the fantastic views and enjoy the sound of silence!
Following the path you will reach a ridge and then a little further on you will find yourself on a ridge with a fence at which point you should stop and absorb the breezy calm of the location. From this point you will begin to head north back towards civilisation, and some fantastic downhills! You will follow a double track path, at some times passing as a small stream along the ridge just above the tree line. Again you will find some fantastic views, this time looking down the dramatic steep valley just below you. After a couple of miles on the ridge you will reach a gate just before a forestry block with a rough shale track leading down into the trees. This descent is known as “The Chute” and is a treacherous but fun descent. Take it easy to start with until the path straightens and it gets really dark as you go through a tunnel of trees, then you can begin to really let it go, just be careful as the path begins to turn. You will reach a gate and then take a short, steep drop down to another gate and a junction with Mach 2.
For the next half mile you will have to endure the worst leg of the entire ride. It is a long muddy and churned up path which in places in rideable but generally is not! Also, this path is not marked as part of Mach 3 by the signs, but is by the map, so you should follow the Mach 2 signs for this section until you see Mach 3 signs again. After this section you will be back on reasonable paths as you cross through a few fields and down to a crossing of paths by a pile of logs. For most of this section you should keep your wits about you, because I got stuck going along a particular rut and then found myself plunging knee deep into a deep pool of muddy water, which just looked like a shallow puddle, not nice.
After the log pile, descend steeply on a ski run style wet grassy field to a gate and shallow ford at the bottom, before rounding the hill and passing through a farmyard. From here is your last but one descent of the ride so enjoy it, but be ready to stop in time for the gate across the road at the bottom of the hill, just after you round a sweeping left hand bend.
You will now be in the river valley and have one steep climb followed by a short steep road descent into Machynlleth. You will have completed the 20 mile Mach 3 when you reach the clock tower by Greenstiles cycles.
If I was to summarise the Mach 3, I would say that it has something for everyone, a ride through impressive and dramatic landscapes with mad downhills, long uphill slogs, a bit of singletrack, some technical riding and a great introduction to the area. If there is one ride you do next time you are in mid-Wales, make it the Mach 3 and give Coed-y-Brenin a miss for a change and do some real mountain biking on real mountains.
On reaching Machynlleth I didn’t stop and rode straight out on the Mach 1 thinking that it would be easy in comparison to Mach 3, how wrong could I be……… watch out for the Mach 1 write up soon.
Last Updated 07-11-2001
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