I went by train and George went like a train to Abergavenny for an assault on the Tumble by a new and most definitely unimproved route. After striking west along the canal, through showers, we turned up an unpromising and closed road which, after we had navigated the locked gate and concrete blocks (both rideable), provided fabulous views over the Heads of the Valleys Road and of a rainbow over Sugar Loaf and Skirrig before turning east for us to enjoy a wind assisted and traffic free climb to the top of The Tumble. George was surprised by our turning from the Blaenarvon road to reach the real 512m summit (the road sign pictured tells a lie) by the radio masts, before a glorious descent that seemed to go on forever. My plan to stay off the main road from Pontypool was abandoned when we realised it included a steep hill marked with an unpromising No Through Road sign, but a torrential downpour that we were mostly able to avoid, thanks to the shelter of some trees, provided the occasion for a navigational review. Seeing what looked like a caravan going across a field we realised there was an opportunity to follow the Monmouthshire and Brecon canal for a while instead, which we duly did. Finally finishing our descent, we crossed the Usk at Chain Bridge a little muddier than we had been at the start of the ride, or, as George helpfully pointed out, before he had met up with me.
The pace picked up on the rolling roads and we soon reached Raglan, passing through it on the old A40 which we followed to Mitchel Troy for some lunch. Looking to pick up the cycle path from Monmouth to Symond’s Yat we found a new way over the Wye, on a bridge which seemed to be missing any kind of road surface. The bumpiness of its corrugated metal surface forced us both to walk!
With the sun getting lower in the sky and temperature dropping we decided on a direct route home from Goodrich Castle, taking in the Walford Valley. After riding the Tumble earlier in the day May Hill seemed a mere pimple, and the final few kilometres flew by.