Brechfa-Worth a visit ?

Seems to be a bit of a forgotten trail centre,is it worth a visit ?
I”m heading to S Wales this weekend and it could be the answer,presuming that many of the usual suspects will be pretty damned busy.
Is it worth the extra mileage do you think ?

yes, both Brechfa and Abergorlech are worth a visit.

The trail located in Abergorlech is great fun and the pub is good too.

Like most trail centre tracks they’re best when ridden at speed and when you know the track a bit better.

Do both to make it worth while, I doubt it’ll be busy and I doubt you’ll bump into many riders on the trail – which I like!

From, proper, South Wales it’s a bit of chore to get to. When I lived in Cardiff I never went unless going back to West Wales to visit family/friends.

Now I live back in West Wales it’s my go to trail centre fix – although Afan is arguably better!

Yes.
Great fun place to ride. Personally never really liked the red. The other three trails are great.

Thanks for the feedback guys,always looking for somewhere new to ride so this could be the answer,probably try to combine it with some coastal camping this weekend.

Rode there once or twice a few years ago. Awful eroded mess with no flow. Perhaps I was just having an off day? 😉 Hope it’s improved since.

No idea where you went 😉
Brechfa has no erosion and flows beautifully.
So, yes, go.

Awful eroded mess with no flow

That’s what I thought. Dull trails, don’t bother going.

Doesn’t even have a cafe/jetwash/proper toilets/gift shop/uplift/crowds/egos/expensive parking

Doesn’t even have a cafe

There’s now The Shed at the Byrgwm car park, for excellent burgers, cakes etc. But the lack of a proper gift shop still makes it rubbish, and not worth bothering with. And it’s always raining, which is what causes all that erosion 😉

Yes worth a visit. The pub in Brechfa (the Forest Arms I think it is) is really good.

You can combine Abergorlech and Raven in one, or just drive 2 mins down the road and do separately.

Abergorlech has some really fun flowing sections. Loved it.

No gangs of beer-bellied full-faced helmeted gnar-monsters in the car-park stonewalling anybody on less than 160 travel then ?
Stuff that,BPW it is then ……. 😉

Was not a fan of Raven. Those who like tedious up, up, more up, fireroad up, ah down for 10 seconds, more up, down on a bloody fireroad!!, more up, short down, up, short down, and then finally a decent-ish down… will like it 😉

Odd, because I like Blade at Afan which is often criticised in the same way, but then it has decent technical climbs, not dull tedious ones, and the up/down/up is rewarded with a good amount of awesome rock strewn descents.

Food – stopped at Black Lion by Abergorlech. Was okay but very busy with riders, difficult to get a seat and slow service.

I went with the family, and did the blue green with them. Then the black. Really good day, and I’d definitely go back.

The green trail at Brechfa is bloody good fun. Easy climbs and fast swoopy single track descents.

Yeah it’s a great place,

Some people seem to like the Red, some people like the Black – I don’t know anyone who likes both oddly, but it’s not like I take questionnaires. Red is very trail centresq – the climbs are generally long, fireroad-ish or smooth winding trail through the trees – descents are fast and furious full of man made berms, tabletops and booters, there’s a couple of steep bits down, one is a double down and looks vert from the top, but it’s not quite and there’s a chicken run, but it’s simple enough as long as you don’t panic brake.

The Black is most technical and slower going, not nearly as ‘surfaced’, it’s not my cup of tea – it’s a good workout for your skills as it has a bit of everything, but I fake, wide trails with jumps.

Blue and Green are both great fun.

Brechfa is lovely but even more amazing when you throw in a trip to Cwm Rahaedr as well.

Some people seem to like the Red, some people like the Black – I don’t know anyone who likes both oddly

I can’t tell the difference. Join them up and it feels like one very similar trail to me.

I really enjoyed Brechfa.

Also not too far is cwm rhadeur (I can’t spell it) Quite short, but really good fun and you can go in circles for a while.

Hell yeah – went there earlier in the Summer and it is an extra drive but the black was fandabbydozee and last red has some good fun bits too.

Plenty of climbing for your smiles tho.

A

p.s. good pub next door and can recommend a good cottage to stay in nearby too if you need it.

wallop – Member

Brechfa is lovely but even more amazing when you throw in a trip to Cwm Rahaedr as well.

Oh yeah, you’re not wrong – I love that one too, short and sweet with a piss easy climb (save the last switch back or two which are brutal) and a single fast descent.

Ive ridden the Raven trail at Brechfa twice. Really love it but it doesn’t seem to ride well in the wet, gets very bogged down and sticky in places.

Go there but if its really wet I would do the blue loop twice instead.

Do both the red & the black together to get your true moneys worth – a substantial bit of riding but worth the effort IMHO.

Let me know if you’d like a few detours, there’s loads of off piste stuff up there