Why this ride
367 km from Harlech to Harlech, about 5 h 36 of riding. The stops in between: Beaumaris Castle, Pontcysyllte Aqueduct and Canal and back through Beaumaris Castle. The line favours views over speed.
CURVESCOUT / MOTORCYCLE RIDE
Harlech Castle and Pontcysyllte Aqueduct and Canal
Plan this ride
- Recorded distance
- 367 km
- Riding-time estimate
- 5 h 36
- Journey
- Recorded itinerary
Distance and timing basis
The recorded total and the leg detail need reconciliation. Inspect the leg notes before using this record for timing or navigation. Stops, delays, approach and any separate return travel add time. Basis: producer-declared routed record.
Reading history stays on this device. My road watch requires a separate selection; opening it does not subscribe this ride.
Distance and riding time are measured on the routed road. Check local closures and conditions before you ride.
Scenic road chapters
Snowdonia Llanberis Pass
Speed drops and stays down. Park rather than crawl through. 61 km through ground somebody thought worth listing. The road passes it rather than bypassing it.
Rider note
Check the pass is open before you commit to it.
Chapter facts
- Length
- 61 km
- Named road
- Snowdonia Llanberis Pass
- Pass
- Pen y Pass
Waypoint introductions and full write-ups
1. Harlech Castle
When Edward I built his castles in Wales, he was not interested in subtlety. Harlech, raised between 1283 and 1289 by the master mason James of St George, sits on a rocky crag above the dunes of Cardigan Bay, with concentric walls, massive gatehouse and round towers that still look ready for a siege. It is one of the castles of Edward I in Gwynedd listed by UNESCO, together with Caernarfon, Conwy and Beaumaris. The sea once came almost to the foot of the rock, and a staircase down the cliff allowed the garrison to be supplied by boat; the coast has since moved, and now there is a broad plain of dunes and a golf course between the castle and the water.
Read the complete Harlech Castle write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Harlech Castle is where the day begins. Next is Beaumaris Castle.
2. Beaumaris Castle
Beaumaris is often called the most perfect castle never finished. Edward I began it in 1295 on the shore of Anglesey, at the northern entrance to the Menai Strait, as the last of his great chain of fortresses built to hold down Wales after his conquest. His architect, Master James of St George, designed it as a perfectly symmetrical concentric castle: an inner ring of high walls and towers, an outer ring of lower walls, and a moat linked to the sea so that supply ships could sail up to a dock at the gate. Money ran out, the Scottish wars took priority, and the towers never reached their planned height. Even so, it is a masterpiece of military design, and with the castles of Conwy, Caernarfon and Harlech it is listed by UNESCO.
Read the complete Beaumaris Castle write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Beaumaris Castle comes up 81 km in. Next is Pontcysyllte Aqueduct and Canal.
3. Pontcysyllte Aqueduct and Canal
You hear it before you understand it: water running in an iron trough thirty-eight metres above the River Dee, on stone piers so slender they look drawn rather than built. Thomas Telford and William Jessop finished the Pontcysyllte Aqueduct in 1805 to carry what is now the Llangollen Canal across the valley, and more than two centuries later narrowboats still glide over it, steered by people trying very hard not to look down. There is a towpath on one side with railings; on the other side there is only the edge of the trough and air. Walk across if you have a head for heights. It is one of the strangest and best ten minutes in Wales.
Read the complete Pontcysyllte Aqueduct and Canal write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
162 km in you reach Pontcysyllte Aqueduct and Canal. Next is back through Beaumaris Castle.
4. back through Beaumaris Castle
Return visit. Read the place description above.
Read the complete Beaumaris Castle write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
back through Beaumaris Castle, late in the day. Next is Harlech Castle.
5. Harlech Castle
Return visit. Read the place description above.
Read the complete Harlech Castle write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Back at Harlech Castle. That is the ride.
Leg by leg
Harlech Castle to Beaumaris Castle
Harlech Castle → Beaumaris Castle is 61 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
Beaumaris Castle to Pontcysyllte Aqueduct and Canal
Beaumaris Castle → Pontcysyllte Aqueduct and Canal is 101 km of getting across. Ride it tidily and keep the enthusiasm for what comes after.
Pontcysyllte Aqueduct and Canal to back through Beaumaris Castle
Pontcysyllte Aqueduct and Canal → back through Beaumaris Castle is 101 km of getting across. Ride it tidily and keep the enthusiasm for what comes after.
back through Beaumaris Castle to Harlech Castle
back through Beaumaris Castle → Harlech Castle is 61 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.