Bus Challenge No 108!!

En route to the Devil’s Pulpit above Tintern, Wye Valley, Monmouthshire

“Starting at the exquisite Tintern Abbey, the walk heads along the western bank of the River Wye before crossing over the river and uphill on wooded paths towards ancient Offa's Dyke. It is capped off with stunning views of the abbey at the Devil's Pulpit - a limestone rock jutting out from the cliffs from where (legend has it) the devil preached to the monks below, tempting them to desert their order.

This is a designated Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty. William Wordsworth first visited Tintern in 1793 and returned five years later, when he wrote the (rather literally entitled) poem "Lines composed a few miles above Tintern Abbey", saying that "no poem of mine was composed under circumstances more pleasant for me to remember than this".” The Guardian

I know I use the words a lot, but today really was a stunningly gorgeous golden Autumn day, not a cloud in the sky from dawn to dusk… And as it turned out, one of the most enjoyable Bus Challenges I’ve ever completed! And what has to be one of the best bus routes ever!!

After driving to the Park and Ride on the outskirts of Bristol, our first bus took us into the centre of the city where we changed to a second bus which took us across the Severn Bridge and across the border to Chepstow in Wales! 

Due to a landslide closing the main road from Chepstow to Tintern, the third step of our journey has to be one of the best bus journeys I’ve ever taken! The usual bus has temporarily been replaced by a mini bus that we had to ourselves, hurtling its way through tiny country lanes, up over a mountain, down through leafy forests, passing rolling green fields of fluffy sheep and racing silver streams… Magical… 

Arriving in Tintern, we left the Abbey behind and crossed the river Wye, back into England, before starting the climb through leafy woodland, up to the Devil’s Pulpit for stunning views of the Abbey below and the Wye valley (see extra photo). Due to fallen trees and rather slippery mud, our climb took far longer than we’d planned, but we still found time to sit and take in that wonderful view and for a quick picnic lunch, before slipping and sliding our way back down to the Abbey below, where there was just enough time to reward ourselves with an ice cream after our three hour hike! 

(As stunning as that view was, I chose my main photo as the golden light in the woods, which apparently contain the finest selection of native British trees to be found in the wild, was just magical… I hope you agree… Looks better large!)

Back on that wonderful little bus again, we had just enough time in Chepstow to stock up on Welsh Cakes before heading back to Bristol and the crazy rush hour traffic. But even the traffic jams were bearable on such a lovely day… Any future Bus Challenges are going to be hard pushed to top today!!

(Finally back home, I collapsed into that chair again, and didn’t move for the rest of the evening, so sorry another backblip…)

Total bus journey time = 3 hours 48 mins
Total waiting between buses time = 1 hour 41 mins
Total journey time = 5 hours 29 mins