Taff Trail

I pottered up the Taff Trail on my ten ton Dutch bike a few days back, I went from Cardiff to Merthyr, very pleasant, not hilly and didn`t have to get off and push. The bike was perfect for it.
I fancy doing the other section from Merthyr to Brecon, I was wondering if this is much more hilly and would more gears be needed (the Velorbis has 3), I don`t really want to take a mountain bike if I dont have to as I believe its mostly tarmac? Ive had a read on the Taff Trail site but it doesnt say how hilly it is.

Also any decent Mountain bike alternative routes would be good.

The Gap would perhaps be just what you are looking for. I’ve seen a bloke ride a folding shopper bike there- I’d stick to a MTB to be truthful though.

Taff Trail all tarmaced, I rode Cardiff to Brecon when I was 15 and we survived it then, except some of the estates it passed throuhg in Merthyr were rough..may well have changed in the last few years!

I did the taff trail in the opposite direction from brecon all the way down to cardiff, just last week. There are hills but not many although there is one very large and steep hill you will encounter going that way. Out of brecon after the canal bit you pass a resovoir and then start climbing, going south this hill is a steady incline for approx 4/5 miles, then a very steep drop and then pretty much flat all the way. So going north, you’ll have a steep hill and then a beautiful long roll down to brecon. I wouldn’t go buying a new bike, not sure about the 3 gears bit (you could get off and push) but the terrain doesn’t call for suspension. If you already have a MTb then I would probably take it.have fun.

I wasn`t going to buy a new bike Ive got five inc two mtbs, just hoping it isnt too steep for my newer Dutch bike as its a new purchase and a very civilised way of getting around.

Wow, I’m surprised you had the mental endurance to cope with such boredom..!

Seriously though – the bit down to Brecon above Talybont Reservoir is incredibly tedious up and down. It’s a wide smooth disused railway, which makes it constant gradient with no bends. There is however a much better alternative above it, the Bryn Ore tramway. Not exactly a top 10 trail itself but it’s mtbing and you have to actually ride instead of sit there whilst your bike rolls along.

How did you get to Brecon, the railway doesn`t go that far, is there a bus that takes bikes?

Munge Chick, the Taff Trail doesn’t pass through any estates in Merthyr Tydfil and it certainly isn’t Tarmac all the way to Brecon either!

To answer Catfoods question you could ride your 3 gear bike on the Merthyr to Brecon section, the Taff Trail turns from tarmac to gravel fire road around Pontsticill Reservoir with one or two slightly steeper sections and further beyond that follows the former railway line (gravel) along the length of Tal y Bont Reservoir. Past Tal Y Bont it follows minor roads/lanes and/or the canal towpath to Brecon.

There is a bike bus that runs from Cardiff-Merthyr-Brecon but I think it only runs from May to the end of September.
Brecon Beacon Bike Bus

There are several good offroad routes from Merthyr to Brecon such as the Gap route mentioned above or the Brinore Tramroad,the following website will give you a general idea of what’s in the area. Mountain Biking Brecon Beacons[/url]

Hope this helps.

Maybe it wasn’t Merthyr then I’m talking 17 yrs ago but some dodgy housing estates 😉

Roughest part of Taff Trail is def the Ponty area bit .. then not really that bad if your over 9yrs old .. and not a girl.

Yeah South of Merthyr it goes through some roughish areas but nothing too dramatic. Doable on a Dutch bike I guess, you might want to stick to the road around Ponsticill though and there are a couple of steepish (but short climbs just after Ponsticill (should be fine on 3 gears though as long as you’re prepared to get out of the saddle).
Personally though I’d take an MTB and do the gap route, follows the odd section of Taff Trail but does a lot more interesting stuff besides.

I did it from Brecon to Cardiff using the Brecon Bus and the Taff trail rather than any of the alternatives mentioned above.
There’s one longish hill out of Brecon and its pretty much all downhill from there.
Here’s my record of the ride so you could workout what the reverse would be like.
I think its doable on a dutch 3 speed commuter type bike.

Thanks folks, much appreciated.