The Last Waves of Summer
I almost missed the fact that it was a Bank Holiday weekend – lockdown has that effect on you I guess. I did of course have an active few days in what felt like it could indeed be the last throes of Summer.
Biking, Running and Windsurfing.
That sub-heading sums up Saturday for me. It started off wet and miserable so I spent an hour and a half on the turbo trainer, followed by a hard but short 20 minute brick run straight off the bike. Things brightened up in the afternoon and a nice northerly wind picked up. We hadn’t noticed the wind at home but I went for a walk along the beach with Anna and the further away from the dunes we got the windier it was. The wind was blowing from the north straight down the beach so there wasn’t much elsewhere.
After our walk I headed straight back over for a windsurf session. It was windier than I thought so the big kit I’d taken over was quite a handful at times. It all added to the excitement though as there wasn’t much in the way of waves. It was just a case of blasting over the chop for an hour or so.
MTBing and Outdoor Chores
Saturday was an altogether nicer day weather-wise, but that northerly wind had made a significant difference to the temperatures. The thermometer was down into single figures as I set off for a mountain bike ride in the morning. I was quite tired after yesterday’s activities so just had a nice easy ride planned. I headed up to Nant yr Arian, weaving my way along the lanes and tracks to Bont Goch and then taking the Bont Goch Climb up to Pendam. From here I headed out around the Pendam Trail, doing both the blue and the red routes. I hadn’t been out on my MTB for a while so it was nice to ‘hit the trails’. It was fairly quiet most of the time, with just a few people out and about near the Visitor Centre.
The route home took me down ‘Ice Rink’ and into Penrhyncoch and then home along the roads.
The afternoon was spent on the roof of the lean-to, cleaning out the gutters, cutting back overgrowing vegetation and generally giving it all a good clean. You wouldn’t know how much work went into it just by looking. In fact it barely looks any different, but at least the gutters and downpipes are now clear and there’s less stuff growing on top of it!
Paddling to Aberystwyth and Back
Bank Holiday Monday was a lovely day too. I headed out for a bike ride in the morning. I was on my road bike this time and did some hill reps. Despite the chilly start it was quite pleasant by the time I got into it. There was a barely a breeze, just temperatures around 15ºC and clear blue skies. Perfect for some hard intervals up a hill and the roads were nice and quiet once away from the coast.
The afternoon was spent kayaking all the way from Ynyslas to Aberystwyth and back. I hadn’t planned to go all the way, but once I got to Wallog I could see Clarach so decided to at least go that far. You know what happened next, once at Clarach, Aberystwyth was just around the corner so on I went. I stopped on the beach for 5 minutes and then headed back the way I came. It was slower going on the way back though. I had a slight headwind to contend with and the current didn’t seem to be helping me either. I was pretty tired by the time I got back.
It had been a good paddle though. Nice to have made it all the way to Aberystwyth and back.
The Last Waves of Summer
With the Bank Holiday over it would be a shame not to continue with the activities – as if I ever stop!. I did do quite a bit of work as well, but tuesday morning saw me out for a nice run and then there were some waves. It would therefore have been rude not to head out to play in them as it may may be the last swell of the summer. I even had my GoPro with me today so have some little video clips of the waves for you.
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Glad you enjoyed your week end but it may have been the last waves of summer but I’m sure you’ll play in the Autumn, Winter and Spring waves too