North Wales Bed and Breakfast 2008 - Llanberis Pass and The Great Orme

After our ablutions and breakfast we pay and say goodbye to our hosts. I’ve only spent 2 nights here but I think I’m going to miss this place already! The bike is fully loaded again but without the camping equipment it’s still very easy to handle. The man on the telly appears to have been right as the weather is a little overcast this morning but there’s no sign of rain as yet.

We make our way to Porthmadog and out to Beddgelert. I’m sure I must have passed through Beddgelert many times but I’m surprised at how nice it is, snug in the valley and surrounded by mountains. As we ride slowly we discuss coming back here and stopping one night. The road the heads uphill and becomes the Llanberis Pass. At the start of the pass we stop to take pictures and a breather and we are joined by a father and son on a Bandit 1200. They, like us, have had a couple of days break and are making their way back to the Midlands.

The Llanberis Pass is steep and twisty as you would expect a great mountain pass would be. It is impressive but somehow after the endless and awe inspiring roads in Scotland the Llanberis Pass seems an like an interesting footnote. We eventually hit the A55 and start to head homeward. As Llandudno approaches I start to need fuel so I pull off and head into town. I’m looking for either a petrol station or a café for a rest, or both.


The scenes along the Llanberis route are very green and impressive today.

I find neither, immediately. What I find is that I’m on a very very steep road heading uphill. This steep road then crosses tram lines and I figure I’m heading up the Great Orme. Yep, the road narrows and climbs, climbs and narrows until we spot a cable car station, tram station and café complex at the crest of the hill. The car park is quite busy and the café even more so. I stay with the bike as the gf gets refreshments and powders her nose. On top of the promontory that juts out into the sea the wind is strong but the weatherman must have been wrong this morning. The wind is strong yet warm and the sun is shining down. It’s not as warm as yesterday but it is really very nice.


The Tourist trap at the top of the Great Orme.

I’m quite worried about the ride back down. It’s a steep roads and I have visions of fried brakes and ever increasing speeds into the town, and disaster. I need not have worried. Looking around the car park there are coaches and big cars who will all have a much harder time than I will. On the way down we are caught behind a large coach so most of the trip is made at 5 or 6 miles per hour as he delicately negotiates the bends and parked cars. I’m not bothered, I feel much safer at these speeds.

The rest of the ride home passes without incident.

And that is the end of the story, or so I thought. One week after our little sojourn I notice a letter in my post with some Welsh language on it addressed to myself. Oh dear. It seems the North Wales Constabulary would like to have a word in my shell like about excessive speed. If you recall I took a wrong turn and ended up crossing the Menai straights. Well when I pulled off the main road to check the map it seems at some point I travelled at 36 mph in a 30 zone. Curses! A clean licence for 18 years and well in excess of quarter of a million miles, ruined.

I am now a common criminal and hang my head in shame.

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