Review
The route starts from Aust services, located at junction 1 of the M48. As we leave the services and join the now toll free M48 into Wales, you will see to your left the new Severn crossing (completed 1996; renamed the Prince of Wales Bridge in 2018), the Severn suspension bridge connect Monmouthshire and the rest of Wales to southern England. Including viaducts, the cable-stayed bridge extends more than 3 miles (5 km) and is the longest in Great Britain. Leaving at the next junction (Jn 2), we come to where our “L” plate riders can join this ride.

As we drop down into Caldicot, we pass along the outside of Caldicot Castle, but from this position you are unable to view the Castle. On leaving Caldicot, we come into Magor, an area of large distribution sites for some of the major supermarkets and the old steelworks.

On passing the old steelworks we arrive In the Nick of Time (Festival Clock) - the collapsible mechanical clock that was at the Ebbw Vale Garden Festival of Wales. On the hour, the structure would open, billowing smoke, to reveal a bizarre world of skeletons, devils, cuckoos, and angels hidden inside. After the festival event the clock was relocated to John Frost Square, Newport and moved to its present position in 2015. The clock no longer opens but keeps reasonably good time.

Our next place of interest is at the other end of the scale from being quirky and modern, it is very rare, this being the Newport Transporter Bridge, Transporter Bridges are very rare, with only eight remaining in use out of a total of twenty built worldwide. They work by carrying a gondola suspended above the water, but well below the level of the rails that carry the bogie that supports the car on long wires.

The Newport Transporter Bridge crosses the River Usk in Newport, Wales. Built in 1906, it is the oldest and largest of the three historic ferry bridges that remain in Britain, and also the largest of the eight that remain worldwide. The transporter design was chosen for this bridge because the river banks are very low at the desired crossing point. An ordinary bridge would have required very long approach ramps to gain sufficient height to allow tall-masted sailing ships to pass under it. A ferry was not an option because the river is not navigable at low tide.

The wire between the towers spans a length of 645 feet. Power to propel the gondola is provided by two 35 hp electric motors, which power a winch situated in an elevated winding house at the eastern end of the bridge. The gondola travels total span at just under 10 feet per second.

The engineering of this bridge is outstanding. When compared with somewhat better known (thanks to the 1980s British TV series, Auf Wiedersehen, Pet) Middlesbrough Transporter Bridge, this larger bridge required much less steel to construct, since it made better use of cables for support. The visitor’s centre is on the west bank of the river and features exhibits on the history of the bridge, its construction and other transporter bridges around the world. You can make the crossing either on the gondola, or walk up the steps and cross the main truss on foot.

(Please note that the site will remain closed until Spring 2023 as we undergo restoration and the construction of a new visitor centre)

Now is the time for a coffee at the Cosmeston Lakes Country Park and Medieval Village. With free parking for motorcycles, you get a chance to walk and explore Cosmeston which has a variety of habitats covering over 100 hectares of land and water, some areas designated a Site of Special Scientific Interest protecting the rare and diverse plant and animal species. The Country Park opened to the public in 1978 and gained Local Nature Reserve status in May 2013. Today Cosmeston Lakes Country Park is a haven for local wildlife.

The Park is located on land that was once the enclosed fields of croft farms. The farming would have been poor because of the combination of underlying limestone with being kept permanently wet by many natural springs. The site was a commercial limestone quarry operation owned by the British Portland Cement Manufacturers and later Blue Circle. Development started in 1886 and production commenced in 1889. The quarries here provided limestone for the large cement works that stood until 1970 on the site of the present Cosmeston housing estate opposite the country park. The peak year of production was 1962, when 175,000 tons of cement were manufactured. Many of the early paving slabs laid in Penarth were made from the ‘Dragon’ brand of cement. The works finally shut in November 1969. The quarries were closed in June 1970. The only factory building left standing today is now the Harvester restaurant. Once quarrying ceased two of the excavated sites were used for landfill and the remaining two naturally flooded creating the lakes that are seen today.

The Park was subsequently developed and opened in 1978, through funding from the Countryside Commission. A circular path was created around the lake, with boardwalks constructed over the wetland areas . It was during the laying of the paths, thinning of dense undergrowth and general landscaping that the remains of the former village were found, excavated and developed into a visitor attraction.

Cosmeston Lakes Country Park is open all year round for visitors to discover over 100 hectares of lakes, reed beds, woodlands and meadows. There is always something to see or do no matter what time of year you visit it’s a perfect family day out. Set within Cosmeston Lakes Country Park is Cosmeston Medieval Village this heritage attraction is unique in Britain. Step back in time and enter the superbly reconstructed 14th century village. Cosmeston Medieval Village is the largest reconstructed Medieval Village in the UK. The buildings were reconstructed by archaeologists on their original 14th century foundations between 1979 to 1990.

Visitors to the Medieval village are guided around either by costumed tour guides or audio units, who explain to visitors what village life was like in Wales in the middle of the 14th century a time of the Black death and the Hundred Years' War.

After another short ride, we arrive at the Promenade Barry Island, this is a very popular site for bikers and can be very busy throughout the summer months and on sunny days the rest of the year.
Barry island is located some 9 miles south of Cardiff. Access to the island up until the end of the 19th century was either by foot at low tide or via a steamer. A railway link was established in 1896 via a long pier and the docks were built in the 1880s for exporting coal worldwide, which effectively linked the island with the mainland. Barry Island is a district, peninsula and seaside resort, forming part of the town of Barry in the Vale of Glamorgan, South Wales. It is named after the 6th century Saint Baruc. Barry's stretch of coast, on the Bristol Channel, has the world's second highest tidal range of 15 metres (49 ft), second only to Bay of Fundy in Eastern Canada.

The peninsula was an island until the 1880s when it was linked to the mainland as the town of Barry expanded. This was partly due to the opening of Barry Docks by the Barry Railway Company. Established by David Davies, the docks now link up the gap which used to isolate Barry Island.

Although Barry Island used to be home to a Butlins Holiday Camp, it is now known more for its beach and Barry Island Pleasure Park. It was used as a setting of the BBC TV show Gavin & Stacey.
Formerly famous for its holiday camps, Barry’s current population of some 50,000 and is still boosted during the summer months by large numbers of visitors. It is a popular resort, with most of its activities centred in the Whitmore Bay area (ideal for surfing, windsurfing, sea kayaking or beach volleyball) and in the nearby pleasure park , which has amusement arcades and more than 50 rides and other attractions.

From sightseeing and ice creams, we step back into the history of Wales. St Fagans National Museum of History is Wales's most-visited heritage attraction, standing in magnificent St Fagans Castle grounds on the outskirts of Cardiff. The late 16th-century manor house donated to the people of Wales by the Earl of Plymouth. During the last fifty years, over fifty original buildings from different locations in Wales and from different historical periods have been re-built in the 100-acre parkland. Each building is frozen in time and opens a door into Welsh history offering a fascinating glimpse into the past. St Fagans is one of Europe's leading open–air museums and Wales's most popular heritage attraction. Discover how people lived and worked in Wales in the past by visiting one of our many original re-erected historic buildings. Since 1948 over forty original buildings from different historical periods have been re-erected in the 100-acre parkland, among them houses, a farm, a school, a chapel and a splendid Workmen's Institute. Traditional crafts and activities bring St Fagans alive, in workshops where craftsmen still demonstrate their traditional skills. Their produce is usually on sale. Native breeds of livestock can be seen in the fields and farmyards, and demonstrations of farming tasks take place daily. Visitors gain an insight into the rich heritage and culture of Wales, and the Welsh language can be heard in daily use amongst craftsmen and interpreters.

Our final coffee stop of the day is at the Baffle Haus, a two-wheel inspired hangout café and event space. This is a new place for bikers too meet and enjoy a coffee, as there is not a lot of information on the Baffle house yet, this comment on TripAdvisor, sums it up “Sitting alone on the Usk Road near Abergavenny is this wee gem of a cafe. with seating inside and outside, plenty of parking, excellent coffee and the tray bakes (delicious) which were all much appreciated after a hard day’s riding”

We now head for home with the “L” plate riders finishing the ride across the road from where they started the ride and everyone else finishing at Aust services.

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