I don't get out on my bike often enough. I reserve my days off for catching up on sleep, baking and being lazy. I'm also not terribly confident on my bike, especially when I'm surrounded by cars and people getting annoyed with how slowly I'm cycling. I've got no excuse not to explore more of Wales on my bike because we have some of the best cycling routes in the world with amazing views. Some of the routes are a tad challenging for someone with my level of fitness and a basic bike but there are still plenty of routes for a novice like myself to enjoy.
A few days ago I headed out to a lovely coastal route with Martyn from Swansea Marina to Mumbles - 10 miles there and back - on a quiet, flat and car-free path. The perfect route for me. We started in the Maritime Quarter, then head south to the beach, past the civic centre to pick up the seafront path.
There was plenty to see on the way including views over Swansea bay, Mumbles Pier, Oystermouth Castle and secluded bays and a lighthouse. The view of Swansea Bay almost certainly influenced Dylan Thomas and his early poems like 'The Hill of Sea and Sky is Carried'
*Train Fact* Some of the route I cycled along followed the route of the Swansea and Mumbles Railway. The Swansea and Mumbles Railway was the world's first passenger railway service, located in Swansea, Wales, United Kingdom. Originally built under an Act of Parliament of 1804 to move limestone from the quarries of Mumbles to Swansea and to the markets beyond, it carried the world's first fare-paying railway passengers on 25 March 1807. At the time of the railway's closure, it had been the world's longest serving railway and it still holds the record for the highest number of forms of traction of any railway in the world - horse-drawn, sail power, steam power, electric power, petrol and diesel.
*Train Fact* Some of the route I cycled along followed the route of the Swansea and Mumbles Railway. The Swansea and Mumbles Railway was the world's first passenger railway service, located in Swansea, Wales, United Kingdom. Originally built under an Act of Parliament of 1804 to move limestone from the quarries of Mumbles to Swansea and to the markets beyond, it carried the world's first fare-paying railway passengers on 25 March 1807. At the time of the railway's closure, it had been the world's longest serving railway and it still holds the record for the highest number of forms of traction of any railway in the world - horse-drawn, sail power, steam power, electric power, petrol and diesel.
I really want to head back to this route again and carry on a little further along the coast and spend some time at the National Waterfront Museum on the way back or enjoy an ice cream at Joe's in Mumbles.
If you want to visit Swansea Bay head to this site for lots of information about things to see and do.
