This post recounts the fourth day of my 14 day LEJOG19 adventure, in August 2019. For tips based on my experience, please go to my blogpost How to ride Land’s End to John O’Groats. Read Day 3, Moretonhampstead to Street.

What a fabulous day’s cycling! We crossed the Severn Bridge into Wales, which was an emotional moment for me, born in Cardiff. But there were other magical moments, including passing Wells cathedral, crossing Clifton suspension bridge and having a brew stop in glorious sunshine next to the ruins of Tintern Abbey.

For once, we avoided big climbs after lunch and brew stops. Instead, the day began with the Somerset levels. This is such a magical landscape, with Glastonbury Tor rising mysteriously high above the levels, and the quirky town of Glastonbury with the whiff of incense hanging in the air as we cycled through on the way to Wells. The inevitable downpour greeted us as we reached England’s smallest city, but magically the shower gave way to sunshine as we reached the beautiful cathedral.

The hill of the day followed – the climb onto the Mendips – which was a long ascent but by today we had got into a pattern for these hills: choose a low gear and take your time, rising from the saddle from time to time to vary things. It didn’t seem long before we were enjoying the long descent to Chew Magna Lake, which was bigger than I remembered it – and a lovely spot for a brew stop!

The next stretch towards Bristol was a bit of a slog – a busy road and dull scenery. But the reward was cycling over Clifton suspension bridge, Isambard Kingdom Brunel’s masterpiece, finished after his death. This is an example of how Peak Tours is so good at creating routes with unforgettable experiences. (Cycling through Edinburgh was another.) I was just as impressed by the route to the Severn Bridge, which was surprisingly rural compared with the route we took on my 2002 LEJOG, which went over the M5 Avonmouth bridge footbridge and past various chemical plants.

The Severn Bridge has featured in my life for over 50 years, linking my Cardiff birthplace with homes, family and friends in England. It replaced the old Aust ferry in 1966, but remains the only cycle route over the mighty estuary below Gloucester. It was amazingly windy up there – which made the wind-free Forth crossing in Scotland six days later a surprise!

I felt emotional as we crossed into Wales and saw the familiar bilingual road signs. Unfortunately, there isn’t a welcome to Wales sign on the cycle path – a missed photo opportunity that the Welsh government should address!

We had a lovely ride along the Wye valley to Monmouth, fortunately just days after the A466 reopened so avoiding a hilly diversion at St Arvans. The sun was shining at our most scenic brew stop yet at Tintern Abbey – and we had Welsh cakes to celebrate our arrival in Wales.

It was just a short ride from Tintern to Monmouth, the historic border town, and we crossed the border back into England for a few miles with the beautiful Wye to our side. We were staying in the King’s Arms, an old coaching inn that’s now a Wetherspoons hotel. Our bikes had an equally historic home for the night – the Shire Hall opposite!

I had a lovely evening in Monmouth catching up with my cousin Wendy and family. There was a poignant aspect to this as on my LEJOG stay in the town in 2002 I had dinner with my father and late mother. Happy memories.

Day’s stats

65 miles, 3,865 feet climbing, 12.7 mph average.

Read Day 5 – Monmouth to Clun