A465 from Hereford into Abergavenny is spectacular. I went down to Port Talbot last week in absolutely sh***te weather and it was still a blast (maybe something is missing in my life-this occurred to me as a pool of water leaked from me onto the Mcdonalds restaurant floor in the town...) However l recommend the Black mountain(s)...excellent..☺

Yes i would be up for the factory visit. I too prefer the ride outs, would like to do the Lake Vrnwy that i suggested last year then work got in the way as usual. However now i'm retired, not an issue. Things on that sort of a theme. Not forgetting the annual end of April Matlock Madness. I assume it's still annual, if not then it should be.

Not sure about matlock as it was lindsay who sorted the event I think. Barmouth camp will deff be on and there is a possibility of a South Wales camp and lower lode dates are not set as yet but we should have a better idea in January.                                                                                                                                                                             

I would be interested in the factory visits.                                                                                                                                                                             

Just read the thread - an interesting and challenging road is the one from Tragaron to Abergwesyn - tiny tiny place not far from Llanwrtyd Wells - so mid/South Wales - mostly single track through the mountains - given the runout from Barmouth this year its certainly doable from there

More up north would be nice                                                                                                                                                                             

👏Steve h lol u seem to be the one that does that                                                                                                                                                                             

Steve has a few going up north. Hope you fine a few that fit your calendar                                                                                                                                                                             

Thanks jp                                                                                                                                                                             

Yep Beth, I seem to have inherited the North. It's just a matter of getting folks up here... I think most of the southern contingent get nervous if they ride for more than 20 minutes without seen a car lol.
I might even try for a Northumberland camp again, even though the last one was just XK (an aquired taste), Richard and me... so it degenerated into alcohol and "brisk" riding, although not at the same time obviously.

Well the sights and rds up this way are great on a bike and if you get the weather to that's a bonus . See what happens next yr maybe they will venture up this way Steve                                                                                                                                                                             

Steve I took myself to Northumberland earlier this year - love it up there. I would be up for trip further north :)                                                                                                                                                                             

Northumberland rocks Suzi. The place is just stuffed with great roads, fabulous walking, awesome mountainbiking, magical castles - but for some strange reason bugger all people!
I'm a miserable intraverted sod and therefore love the place :-)                                                                                                                                                                             

Me too:) went posh and stayed in a caravan on a small site in Newbiggin on Sea. No entertainment, no kids, brilliant lol. Rode the coast to Bamburgh one day then one day over to Holy Island. One great long ride by Hadrian’s Wall and a wander around Vindalanda and back via Kielder Water. Loved it!

Ooh thanks SusiPop, you brought back memories of yesteryears Vindolanda, went as a child n then as an adult several times, did some of the archeology stuff. LOVED it! Will have to check it out in 2019, things will no doubt have changed a great deal.

Agree with Steve n SusiPop, Northumberland 👍

Susi, shhhhh about Kielder. We're keeping particular bit of magic secret lol                                                                                                                                                                             

I think I went with school first Lindsay and it has advanced massively now. More archaeology so more to see and a wooden reconstruction of one of the forts on the wall. Really interesting and a nice cafe too lol. Going to say nothing more about KW Steve. My lips are sealed... lol

Talking of up North and the Northumberland area.

Couple of years back I called in to a lovely little place (on way to a Jim Clark museum visit) called Bellingham. Great spot with all the amenities and a wonderful little campsite, adjacent to a farm and about 1 minute walk to the centre of town.

https://www.tripadvisor.co.uk/Hotel_Review-g1916987-d4290745-Reviews-Demesne_Farm_Campsite_Bunkhouse-Bellingham_Northumberland_England.html

https://www.ukcampsite.co.uk/sites/reviews.asp?revid=4968

https://youtu.be/Tek9R1MMQ2g

The campsite was super friendly, with bunkhouses too. In town are the relevant watering holes , an heritage centre just up the road (border Reivers) and of course nearby Hexham and Hadrian's wall.

On my trip I set of from there and had a great ride over the Cheviots and the Kielder, down into Sedbergh, up to Kelso and then onto Dunn's for my Jim Clark homage 😁👍

Hello all ...Been to a few BM meets in the past as I was on here 7 years ago ...for the past 5 years I have lived abroad and the biking roads are amazing with very little traffic if you avoid August that is....looking into doing a few rallies and meets this year as I will be spending more time back in the UK this year ....so I will get out the calendar and try and book a few ...looking forward to meeting you all at some of the events that are lined up

Now that is a good idea Mick. I checked out that campsite a couple of years back, but never got round to doing anything with it.
Couple of pubs in the villag.
Well placed for exploring the area.
Only about 10 country miles north of Hexham so easy to get to.

Is there enough interest to justify a Northumberland camping weekend thread?