The UK has thousands of miles of cycle paths, and one of its longest, National Cycle Route 4, runs from the centre of London to the shores of west Wales, following old railway lines across flat plains, country lanes up steep valley walls, and main roads through urban settlements over many hundreds of miles. In late August last year, I set off on a cycle ride that lasted for almost two days, with about 20 hours of my life spent peddling over a distance of 100 miles. While my original goal was to ride from my home in South Wales to the city of London, I reached my limits just as I was approaching the city of Bath in Somerset. It was perhaps the most trying experience of my life, and yet one of the most rewarding, and is one that come next summer I am eager to repeat and exceed. Naturally, I took plenty of snaps to share with you as I relay the trials and triumphs of my time on the trail.

The gondola of the Newport Transporter Bridge has the width of three cars, so while it may not be the most efficient method of transport, I imagine nobody would go on this honestly expecting a quicker drive, right? :P To understand why a transporter bridge was considered beneficial for Newport over a conventional bridge, you must consider Newport’s status as a large industrial city on a large, wide river with shallow banks. Given the need for ships to continue using the Usk river unabated, a conventional bridge would need a very long approach to go high enough to clear the larger, taller ships using the river. One could use a bascule bridge – like Tower Bridge in London – but given the almost constant use of the river for industrial traffic it is unlikely anything would ever cross the bridge, and plus London already had one so Newport had to be different. And so, along came the idea of a transporter bridge, which would allow for constant crossing of the river, with a suspended gondola either clearing completely or weaving between ships on the river.

Hope you enjoy!