A weekend at Afan Lodge
Tuesday 28 January
| Tweet |
Imagine a place where you can turn up with just your bikes and your enthusiasm, and everything else is sorted. Afan Lodge is designed and run by mountain bikers, for mountain bikers... perfect!
We all know those weekends in Wales.. the ones where the moment you step out from under the covers on Saturday morning, you know you’re in for a bloody good soaking.. its all too familiar. Regardless of the ridiculous amounts of cash you’ve invested into various super technical element-proof garments, there’s no getting away from the fact that by 11am, everything you’re wearing right down to your favorite gore-tex y-fronts will be wetter than an otter’s pocket. Well it was one of those weekends that we had booked into Afan Lodge.
What you need on one these weekends, between bouts of thrashing up and down rocky, puddly singletrack is comfort, warmth and basically a bit of good old fashioned looking after. Stepping through the doors into Afan Lodge is like a big comforting hug from an old friend. Friendly faces, big smiles and all the right aromas coming from the direction of the kitchen. Not to mention a very well-stocked bar. You just know you’re in for a great weekend.
Built around an old stone structure from the mining days, but having undergone some serious extensions and super-modern development 5 years ago, the lodge is the perfect blend of old and new. Characterful, but with a clean, alpine aesthetic and all mod cons to make your stay as hassle-free as possible. In terms of its location, Afan Lodge sits in one of the prettiest parts of the valley with fantastic surrounding forests, rivers and meadows, and of course, the endless network of trails that the whole area is known for.
For those of you that haven’t ridden here before, lets just say around 200km of waymarked purpose-built mountain bike trails awaits you with a grading system ranging from green through to black. Regardless of fitness level or technical ability, there is a trail for everyone. At the beginners’ end of the spectrum there is the Rookie trail - a cruisey little intro to the concept of riding off road. Then at the more advanced end of the scale, you could choose to test your fitness and singletrack munching powers on the epic Skyline trail or hit the Afan Bike Park to rack up some air time. These are just a few of the options. Check out our Afan Forest Park and Glyncorrwg pages to view the full menu.
The Afan area is not all about trail centres though. After a couple of pints of Grolsch on the Friday night, the conversation soon turned to tales of endless natural trails connecting the Afan valley with neighbouring Rhondda and Garw valleys and there was mention of a nearby trail incorporating a 1000ft descent. Due to the extremely inclement nature of the weekend of our visit, it was apparent that we wouldn’t be exploring any of this, but the locals sure did whet our appetite for another visit in the near future. If this type of thing gets the juices flowing, Afan Lodge can arrange an outing with their very knowledgeable local guide, Nigel. Postman in the mornings, and trail specialist in the afternoons, Nigel is more than happy to deliver a package to match the aspirations and capabilities of your group.
The whole team at Afan Lodge simply blew us away with an extremely high level of service and efficiency rarely encountered these days. The super friendly and welcoming approach makes you feel relaxed and able to kick back and enjoy your hard earned time off. There’s a definite pub atmosphere in the evenings with a good mixture of visiting mountain bikers and local regulars creating a lively atmosphere with plenty of quality banter and if you’re really lucky you might get to witness Linzi’s legendary moonwalk.
It would be unthinkable to finish this article without mentioning the food at Afan Lodge. In fact, I could probably write a whole article just about the food at Afan Lodge. The restaurant and menu has an understated but classy sort of vibe, with a truly hearty selection, reminiscent of the alpine mountain food I’d enjoyed during visits to Austria and Switzerland. Pies, Casseroles and steaks from top quality locally-sourced meats are dominant but there is also a lighter and more herbivore-friendly choice. I opted for the full meat feast and experienced one of the best cuts of steak I’ve ever eaten. The chef really does know how to serve a medium rare! Lets not forget the full cooked breakfast (and cereal, fruit, yoghurt etc) which is included in the room price. Take it from us that hunger is a sensation you will not become familiar with here.
So, do yourselves and favour and get booked into this wonderful establishment. There are so many reasons to stay here and many new developments unfolding to further enhance the experience, including an on-site skills park and pump track. We’re hoping that Richard and Louise will fulfil our request of a table tennis room in time for the next visit. That would be the icing on the already fully loaded cake.
Afan Lodge can accommodate groups of mountain bikers large and small and rooms start from £30 per person per night including breakfast. Visit www.afanlodge.com for full details and to book online.
| Tweet |