August 13, 2025
Ruthin to Corwen via Horseshoe Pass
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What a difference a day makes. The riding was great!
First things first though.
Ruthin (not pronounced like “Ruth” but like “ruffle“) is a small market town (around 6,000) that packs a big punch on the history front but we will not be able to see most of it.
Last night we had dinner in the dining room. Dinner was good. We tried sticky toffee pudding, a common British dessert. It was fine but not noteworthy and I doubt we will indulge in that dessert again. We wanted ice cream, but again the flavors were chocolate, vanilla, strawberry, and lemon. I feel like the Brits (Scots, English, Welsh) are stuck in the 1960’s when it comes to ice cream flavors. Very bizarre.
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There were several long hallways to reach the dining area and the hotel has displayed the history of the castle and its ties in with world history on these walls.
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The Castle originated in the 11th Century so there was a lot of history to cover. The more permanent structure was built in the late 1200’s by Edward I, the English king that ultimately subjugated the Welsh and solidified his hold by building a number of castles (including Ruthin Castle) for defensive reasons. Ruthin Castle was NOT one of the big Castles, which are: Caerphilly, Caernavon, Cardiff, and Conway. I think we will see Caerphilly later when we approach Cardiff. (As you know, we ration our castle viewing; a few castles go a long way).
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51 minutes ago
Signature events in the life of Ruthin Castle include the siege of the castle by the Parliamentary troops of Oliver Cromwell in 1646 for 11 weeks, as Ruthin, like most Welsh communities, was on the side of the Royalists. Ruthin Castle withstood the siege, which didn’t surprise us after we saw how high up the castle was, but later the castle was demolished (called “slighted’) as many Welsh castles were - by order of Parliament after Parliamentary forces ultimately won the day for Cromwell and he became Lord Protector for Britain in 1653. (This is an era of British history I don’t know much about).
Ruthin Castle was rebuilt in the Victorian era and it became a private hospital between 1923 and 1962 until it was turned into the present day hotel.
Charles III, the current king of England, stayed here in 1969 the night before his mother (Queen Elizabeth) conducted his investiture as the Prince of Wales.
After an early dinner we took in the lovely evening light and took a stroll for an hour around the extensive, mysterious complicated grounds. There are so many nooks and crannies we got lost a number of times.
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We came across this weird mini Stonehenge site: I learned online that it is the Gorsedd Stones Ruthin, Modern Eisteddfod Stone Circle. The Gorsedd Stones, a modern Eisteddfod stone circle, were created in 1972, to proclaim that the National Eisteddfod (a significant annual Welsh festival) was to be held in Ruthin the following year. The 12 stones represent the 12 counties of Wales. It was within the Gorsedd Circle that ceremonial dances were performed, and where all new members of the Druid Circle are inaugurated.
Our pretty positive feelings towards the Castle hotel were dented by the laughably bad breakfast we had. It was a pure buffet (fine) but the room was packed and the hotel was unable to keep up with replenishing the food so it was a shit show. I felt sorry for the staff as there clearly was not enough of them to do the job and they were run off their feet. This has generally not been our experience since being in Britain as there seems to be plenty of staffing. The dining room was so hot we sat in the bar and after eating our sparse breakfast moved there to finish our tea and coffee out be out of the fray.
Our mission today was to ride Horseshoe Pass and reach Corwen, our endpoint. It was a stunning day of riding, starting with temperatures in the 70s, and a beautiful ride up the pass, only light traffic and great views. Definitely a why we tour ride. I couldn’t tell where the summit was (we missed the sign coming up) so we wound up descending another 200 feet and then having to turn around and ride back up.
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On the descent to Corwen we turned onto this terrible one-lane road that was paved, but the asphalt was terribly beat up. It didn’t matter because there was no traffic and we were descending. We then had one short stretch on a road for about 2 km that was busy and I was happy to wind off of that.
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We stopped for lunch at the Grouse Inn, in Carrog, about 5 km from our ultimate destination. It had a great deck overlooking the river and there was a lot of action in the river due to it being a perfect day. We split a grain salad and sweet potato fries and I even had a half pint of beer to match Dave’s pint.
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We lingered over our lunch and beer, pondering how few days like this we have had on this trip; the weather just hasn’t been there to hang out on a patio. So, it was a great feeling.
Our ride into Corwen went quickly and we stopped at the local pharmacy for a few supplies. Then we made our way to our b and b, which should have been a two minute ride, but it took us 10 minutes, some independent scouting by Dave, and a conversation with a neighbor to find it. The inn, called Bron y Graig, is up a short sucker steep pitch from the main road. It’s nice once you get there. The breeze was blowing pleasantly on the ridge and our room, although at the top of the house, had a nice breeze coming through along with the wind from the fan Dave scrounged from the owner, Nick.
Today's ride: 34 km (21 miles)
Total: 3,550 km (2,205 miles)
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