Wall treat: John Scrivener on The Wall

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If you were put on the spot and asked to name the most popular mountain biking destination in Wales, you might be forgiven for taking a stab at Snowdonia – or failing that the Brecon Beacons.

You'd be wrong however, as the correct answer is the Afan Forest Park in South Wales.

Located a few miles north of (and a few hundred metres above) the industrial coastal town of Port Talbot, the park is owned by the Forestry Commission and is home to four waymarked bike trails, varying in length from 15km to 46km.

Within a few hours drive of much of the south of England, the area has become hugely popular for short breaks with MTBers who live in flat areas and crave a quick fix of proper hills - without the worry of having to navigate in an unfamiliar area.

We stayed at the Cwmbach Cottages in the nearby village of Cadoxton, an old-style comfy B&B with a warm welcome and a tasty breakfast.

Like many local accommodation options, the owners have geared themselves up to the influx of cyclists and provide secure storage for bikes and a convenient area to hose them down after the ride.

Penhydd
Arriving on Friday afternoon, I took the opportunity to zip over and check out the area's first off-road route, the 22km red-graded Penhydd trail.

After a short burst of tight singletrack trail through the trees came a sharp uphill, with an access road zig-zagging up for what seemed like an eternity - but was probably more like 20 minutes.

Such will-sapping introductions are commonplace on man-made trails, as the trailbuilders put more effort into making the riding interesting on the flat and downhill sections.

Downhill from here: The final descent on The Wall

There's no gain without pain however, so riders accept the initial effort for the payoff. And in this case my muscles were nicely warmed up by the time I reached the top of the climb. The first technical section is called Desolation, and fittingly it began to rain as I arrived at its start.

Most purpose-built mountain bike trails in Wales and Scotland are intended to be used in all weathers, and so are designed to drain well and to be safe to ride in the wet. The Penhydd trail is no exception and the quick zip through the singletrack of Desolation was as much fun as it would have been in the dry.

More doubletrack leads on to the Hidden Valley section, probably the most testing of the whole route, which consists of a series of tight switchback turns on a narrow track zig-zagging down a hillside through the trees.

I might have cleared it in the dry, but the surface had become a little slippery and nerves got the better of me on one turn.

Soon after this there comes a longer stretch of singletrack, with the Sidewinder, Dead Sheep Gully and Genesis sections coming one on top of the other to provide a fast, flowing and hugely enjoyable experience – the best part of the ride.

Now there's just a nice long downhill with bits named Bubble and Squeak before the route arrives back at the car park.

It's all over a little too quickly for comfort, in just under two hours, but the relatively short length and mostly easy going makes it an ideal introduction for mountain bike novices – or a good quick filler ride for more experienced bikers.

The Wall
I'm joined by my riding buddies the next morning to tackle The Wall, a 23km red-graded loop located on the opposite side of the valley to yesterday's trail.

There's a long ride-in along an old railway line and forest access road at the start of this route, with the gradient gradually increasing as the track climbs the valley side.

Despite the typically long and gruelling start to the ride, it's not long before the trail starts levelling off and some fun singletrack sections come along in the shape of Rhiwgreger and then a clear run of a couple of miles of almost constant singletrack, winding up and (mostly) down through the trees.

There are a few rocky obstacles, particularly in the menacingly titled Graveyard section, but nothing too difficult for a reasonably experienced rider – and certainly nothing that couldn't be walked by the wary.

The final descent is called The Wall - it gave the route its name - and it’s here that the views really open up across the valley.

But we didn’t have a lot of time to admire the view, because our attention was firmly focussed on the trail in front of us as it ducked and dived, swooping its way back down the hillside.

Sometimes it seemed as though there was very little us and the long plunge back down to the river on the valley floor, but the exposed sections were over quickly and there was another switchback or drop-off in front of us to be dealt with.

The final descent left us panting and grinning as we rubbed some blood back into our braking fingers and got our breath back before rolling gently back to the car park.

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