Viewing 39 posts - 1 through 39 (of 39 total)
  • Afan advice please- Skyline or W2?
  • DanW
    Free Member

    Hi all,

    I am hopefully heading to Afan over the weekend (as I’m sure many are) and was wondering which route you guys would all recommend?

    Skyline or W2?

    Distance and climbing shouldn’t be too much of an issue so it comes down to fun and which has the least diversions in place. Is the logging still going on?

    I rode Afan about 5 years ago and remember thinking the boardwalk stuff was pretty pointless and damn slippy in the wet- I’m not desperate to ride too much of this if possible 😉 Which trail is this on?

    Also, why is Whites red, The Wall red but the two combined (W2) a black run?

    Many thanks in advance, DanW

    plodtv
    Free Member

    Apparently its because the distance mixed with the technicality makes it black. I am a big fan of skyline, but a lot of people dislike the amount of fire trail in it. The boardwalk exists in whites. If you want the quieter of the two trails, skyline wins.

    nashwaymule
    Free Member

    Quite a good idea is to ride Whites then climb back up the sheep track (first climb) and hit the last 1/4 of the Skyline by doing this I think you hit the best decents at the place. get back to the top and turn right this takes you over to the top of the canyon
    the entire Skyline route is quietest but has a large chunk of fire road slogging to do.

    dalepoint
    Free Member

    Brecon Beacons black route forget the long boring fore roads.

    chrismac
    Full Member

    W2 Skyline is boring as it has far too many fire roads sections.

    Nashwaymules suggestion is a good one. I have often done that too

    mafiafish
    Free Member

    I did some of skyline about a month back and it had very fast and pedaly descents without any techy stuff of note. Very good though. I didn’t get to ride much of the other trails but did a bit of white’s level and think I preferred Skyline although ‘darkside’ was alright. It was great to see so many people riding bikes, it was my first time at Afan and was taken aback by how popular it was. (Not so handy if you’re a strava addict like me though!)

    mrmo
    Free Member

    much prefer Skyline because it is quiet, you don’t get people having picnics in the middle of the trail, the track has a more remote feel than W2. But it does have a fair amount of fire-road if that is a problem.

    argoose
    Free Member

    Goto Brechfa and do the “Gorlech” red, but just before the final decent follow the signs for the “Raven” black route. When you get back to final decent of the Gorlech you can finish off.
    Best of Wales, and not too busy either.

    DanW
    Free Member

    Thanks all!

    I am lucky to be in Wales so Brechfa and the other suggestions can happily be done another day.

    As far as Afan goes it sounds like Skyline could be the better bet for me at the weekend- I like the idea of quiet and remote. Slogging fireroads is no problem as I’d like to get some more time legs for some of the events coming up. Descents are never bad though 😉

    Are there any descents at Afan that make you think “Sh1t what on earth am I doing here”? The only trail centre I ride regulalry is Cwm Carn for comparison.

    Thanks again, DanW

    argoose
    Free Member

    Whatever you decide, just enjoy being out on your bike 8)

    chrispo
    Free Member

    Haven’t done Skyline but descents on W2 are not at all scary, just fun!

    PimpmasterJazz
    Free Member

    Short Skyline – do the climb, ride along the road at the top, do the descent. Cut out the boring middle section and have more time in the pub.

    Winner! 😀

    AndrewJ
    Free Member

    You got to love this forum, OP asks for Afan advice and gets told to go to Brechfa!

    W2 Skyline is boring as it has far too many fire roads sections.

    No, Skyline has lots of fire road in it, W2 is a totally different trail which has very little fire road in it and lots of singletrack.

    mafiafish
    Free Member

    I haven’t ridden everything but there is nothing too technical or committing at Afan. There is a weird descent that is either designed to be ridden exclusively by 20 lb hard tails or by people on amphetamines/ rockets stuck to their bike. (As in it’s effectively an uphill with jumps and berms. There’s also a bit through some trees on a narrow bit f trail that you have to keep an eye on your speed for, the trail is very smooth and fast but the corners are fairly flat so it’s easy to get to excited and cause some tree-teeth interface.

    davidjey
    Free Member

    Nothing as tech as White’s Level on Skyline, generally faster swoopier singletrack and less rock features etc but still good fun. The only thing I struggle with on Skyline is arm pump from the sheer length of the last descent (not really something to complain about!)

    argoose
    Free Member

    Andrewj, just trying to let OP know that there’s a lot more to Wales than Afan. The natural trails in the Beacons far outclass the trail centers, but local knowledge is essential

    DanW
    Free Member

    If I was not local to Wales then I’d be very happy for advice of better riding in the vicinity- not everyone always knows what they want despite what they ask for 😀 So Andrew and argoose’s replies are both valid 😉

    I’d like quite a chilled longer ride so Skyline still seems like the best option. Chilled = fun for a longer weekend 😀

    rkk01
    Free Member

    much prefer Skyline because it is quiet, you don’t get people having picnics in the middle of the trail, the track has a more remote feel than W2. But it does have a fair amount of fire-road if that is a problem

    Sums it up well.

    I always liked Skyline for it old school, day out feel. Last time I rode it there was snow on the ground.

    AndrewJ
    Free Member

    Andrewj, just trying to let OP know that there’s a lot more to Wales than Afan. The natural trails in the Beacons far outclass the trail centers, but local knowledge is essential

    Yes I know, I live in the Brecon Beacons and have the knowledge 😉

    Funnily enough, I’ll be using that knowledge to ride from home and do Skyline tomorrow, then I’ll be riding back. Should take me around 7 hours 🙂

    nashwaymule
    Free Member

    Andrew J JEALOUS !! all i have to look forward to is shopping with the wife 🙁

    wrecker
    Free Member

    W2 smashes skyline for riding although some people prefer skyline for the views. You will be riding LOTS of fire road (up and down) on skyline.

    nashwaymule
    Free Member

    Crickhowell black mountain killer loop if the weather is good has to be some of the best riding available IMO

    greeble
    Free Member

    W2 smashes skyline for riding although some people prefer skyline for the views. You will be riding LOTS of fire road (up and down) on skyline.

    unless you know the sneaky local bits that cutout alot of fireroad

    argoose
    Free Member

    Crickhowell black mountain killer loop

    awesome ride. But start of Mynydd Llangorse can get chewed up in wet weather.

    argoose
    Free Member

    Andrewj, I see you also live in Gods pocket 😀

    diawl2
    Free Member

    Beware if you’re doing W2 (or White’s Level)as there was a diversion in place last weekend due to logging which sends you way up and back over the top once you’ve done the Energy section. Goodwood was closed (the boardwalk bit) and I assume The Dark Side was closed too. We ended up going down the fire road to Abercregan then back to Glyncorrwg on the multi use track which follows the river. It might be worth giving the centre a ring on 01639 851900 to check before you go as it was a big disappointment.

    Hi Andrew, it’s Simon M. Good to see you’re still at it too. 😀

    tenfoot
    Full Member

    DanW – Member

    Are there any descents at Afan that make you think “Sh1t what on earth am I doing here”? The only trail centre I ride regulalry is Cwm Carn for comparison.

    Thanks again, DanW

    There are a couple of largish rock steps on the way down where you need to have your wits about you. You can see grooves in the step where other people have bottomed out.

    Nothing too scary though – just needs some concentration. The final descent is excellent.

    Nipper99
    Free Member

    Do Skyline, Excalabor and South pit alone are better than all the other worn out bits on W2 and the final is great. A good afternoons ride.

    DanW
    Free Member

    Another question for future reference:

    Is there a quick way to join Skyline from Treherbet?

    There only looks to be 1-2km between Skyline and Treherbet train station and if there was a path/ road/ fireroad linking the two that would be great. This looks like the only feasible way to ride Afan using the train (all other stations are quite a distance away).

    Any pointers or gps maps from the locals between Treherbet and Skyline would be very much appreciated!

    wrecker
    Free Member

    Do Skyline, Excalabor and South pit alone are better than all the other worn out bits on W2

    Yeah right…… 🙄

    DanW
    Free Member

    Failing that I guess Maesteg is the closest train station roughly 5.5 miles away 😕

    argoose
    Free Member

    Have always joined skyline from the top of the Rhigos to Treherbet road, cross road from top of the Darren out of Dare Valley country park, road up from Treherbet is pretty mean on a montain bike

    superfli
    Free Member

    If you decide to do Whites and Goodwood/Darkside are closed, then follow fireroad back up to top of whites climb, continue on fireroad up and along, until you get a right junction, follow that fireroad down a little until trees start, turn right and you’ll be doing the last few sections of Skyline, excellent and longest descent in Afan.

    hugor
    Free Member

    I did skyline today and loved it.
    There may be lots of fireroad but the quality of singletrack makes up for it.
    W2 is too busy on weekends for me, skyline is always quiet.

    DanW
    Free Member

    We did The Wall in the end as time was tight and the weather was a little damp. It was good but not a trail I’d be super desperate to ride regularly. It felt like a XC trail for downhillers- much less balance between challenging climbs and fun descents than say Cwm-Carn. Also, very little of the trail was memorable- only “zig zags” sticks in my mind as having any real flow. I’ll have to get Skyline done when I have more time 😀

    argoose
    Free Member

    It sounds like you need to get into the natural trails 🙂

    DanW
    Free Member

    I ride plenty of natural trails around South Wales, the majority of which are far more up my street 😉 My feeling of The Wall was probably “awkward”… the only way to sum it up. Maybe my spirits were just dampened by the weather 😀

    argoose
    Free Member

    Wall was very good when first finished, but they’ve been working on the final decent, and messed it up.
    The top part, just after the church, seemed to be rode at 6″ above the trail for long parts. Just couldn’t keep bike on the deck, massive fun.

    Dimmadan
    Free Member

    Was it wet?

Viewing 39 posts - 1 through 39 (of 39 total)

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