Bus Trails
Bussing It
People have forgotten the joys of just jumping on a bus and letting the drive do it for you. There's nothing better than heading out for a days walk or a multi-day adventure on a bus as you gaze out at the scenery without a care in the world. The bus either chatters or its quiet. With an appreciation expressed you're off the bus and on your way in a manner that's good for the roads and environment to. So what are you waiting for? Make use of the buses they're super useful and a real good vibe.
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Quick Announcement! The free bus service that operated throughout 2021/2022 has now ended. For details as to what happens now check out the link.
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Step Onboard. Let's Go!
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Routes
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Scroll below for a list of the bus routes that will take you to all parts of the Wye Basin. Most give access to day walks with a loop back to the same stop. If up for it you may have to overnight camp to explore the Wye region in full or walk from one bus stop to another to get your days adventure in. Whatever the method you can get about and have a great time. We start with Hereford Outbound then move on to how to get into the Wye region from outside. It's all very simple. Stick around!
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Hereford to Kington: 461 Click for Sargeants timetable. This will take you to the walking town of Kington and the hills of Hergest Ridge, Bradnor, Rushock and beyond to the Radnor Forest and even the Cambrian Mountains via Llandrindod Wells.
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Buses from Kington: The Sargenats service will take you to Llandrindod Wells. From there you can reach Rhayader and even Aberystwyth using the X47. Via this bus it's the source of the Wye, the Elan Valley, Gilfach, the Nant Y Dernol and many other parts of the central and North Eastern fringe of the Cambrian Mountains. It's a regional hub so buses to Builth Wells service 48 are common also, which will take you into the Southern part of the Cambrian Mountains or up into the Epynt. Look out for Celtic Travel who are the main service provider in the area.
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It's not all Cambrian walking. You can catch a service to Presteigne and Knighton (service 41) from Kington (Sargeants), which opens up, not only the source of the Lugg amid the Beacon and Pool hill range of hills, but a great section of the Offa's Dyke also.
Hereford to Monmouth: Again these are regular services this time run by stagecoach. Look out for the 36 service, which will give you access to the whole of the Lower Wye via Monmouth. You can of course explore Monmouth and the surrounding area as well as walk a stretch of the Wye Valley Walk or the Offa's Dyke through to Pandy. At Monmouth look out for the 69 to Chepstow run by Phil Anslow & Sons Coaches. The stops here are Redbrook, Llandogo (for Cleddon Falls) Tintern (for the Abbey) and the views from the Devils Pulpit and the Wyndcliff.
If you want access to the backwoods of the Wye Valley then catch the 65 service to Trellech. There's a whole load of walking options amid the fringes of the Wye Valley from the stops featured here.
Hereford to Ross On Wye: One of the most regular services the 33 service to Ross/Gloucester run by Stagecoach will give you access to some great walks around Ross on Wye namely part of the Wye towards Backney (South) or Goodrich (West), the Chase wood and beyond as well as Symonds Yat via the 34 service to Whitchurch run by Nick Maddy Coaches. Some good hours can be spent exploring Symonds Yat, the Seven Sisters limestone bluffs/views and the Doward from this stop. You can of course jump off short and explore Goodrich Castle or Coppet Hill, which will take you to the fantastic Coldwell Rocks valley where the Wye snakes its way past the Yat Rock view point above.
Hereford to Hay on Wye: With a reasonably regular service to Hay on Wye and through to the Brecon Beacons in the day the T14 service has been a popular service for us. From Dorstone village we can get up onto Cefn Hill opposite Hay Bluff and from Hay up onto the Northern edge of the Black Mountains. There's also access to the Mid Wye Valley and the Western Escarpment of the Black Mountains via the T14 stops at (see map links) Glasbury and Talgarth. All Wye catchment! A good walk is from Talgarth back into Hay On Wye via Rhos Fawr and Twmpa. You can of course do sections of the Offa's Dyke from Hay or even explore the River Honddu via the Vale of Ewyas. It's spectacular! On Sunday there is the 39a bus run by Yeomans Travel. The T14 service is run by Stagecoach South Wales.
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Hereford to Pandy/Abergavenny: The X3 service will take you to Pandy, which opens up a great part of the Wye basin via Hatterrall Hill, The river Honddu, The Southern part of the Vale of Ewyas and the Offa's Dyke. With a short walk out and up you're into the big hills and valleys. You can of course jump short and get off at Pontrilas where you can walk the Dore Valley and the surrounding hills, which plays host to Dore Abbey and the Herefordshire Trail. The service us run by Stagecoach South Wales.
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Hereford to Leominster: It's not all big hills or the Wye Valley. Other parts of the catchment are worth checking out by bus to. The 492 service to Leominster from Hereford will take you into North Herefordshire where there are some great walks and adventures to be had amid the Lugg or Arrow valleys or further afield all the way up to the Mortimer Forest and onto the Herefordshire Trail sections there. Check out the 490 service from Leominster to Ludlow. If not wild camping you're only given a couple of hours walking through the Mortimer Forest from Ludlow before catching your bus back to Hereford via Overton or Orleton but it's worth a day out for that. It's all about linking up and experiencing what you can. You can of course do some fantastic walks around Leominster itself. Just contact the Leominster Tourism office for some ideas. There are of course buses West to Pembridge or Eardisland via the 496 service, which gives you access to the Arrow valley - again for a couple of hours but a good couple none the less. Explore and be happy! All of these services and more are run by Lugg Valley Travel.
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Hereford to Bromyard: The Frome Valley where the river Frome resides is beautiful and can be accessed via the 420 service to Bromyard. You can get a good day out here exploring the Frome valley or even the Bromyard Downs the majority of which is registered common land and open access. In fact, if you were up for it you could walk back to Hereford via the length of the Frome. It only takes a day but it's a goodun we can testify. The service is run by DRM Buses. From Bromyard there are other services, which you can use to link up with. For example, the 482 service Bromyard to Leominster stops off at Steens Bridge fairly early at 10.05. You have 5 minutes to catch the link at Bromyard from the 420 Hereford service then ample time to walk back into Leominster via Risbury Hill Fort for a bus back to Hereford via the service.
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Be Imaginative With Your Travel
Linking Services Up!
There's Variety On The Bus
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Offa's Dyke
Backpacker
Local Cruiser
Geraint
Wye Basin In Bound
From Gloucester, Worcester, Shrewsbury Cardiff. Bristol, Birmingham, Liverpool and or London you can easily access the far out spaces of the Wye Basin by way of public transport. Don't let the lack of social mobility hinder you climb on a few buses and explore.
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Routes
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Gloucester to Chepstow: The 24 Service operated by Stagecoach West will take you to Chepstow and give you access to the lower Wye namely Tintern, Llandogo, Cleddon, Redbrook and Latterly, from Monmouth, Symonds Yat. At Chepstow you're looking for the 69 Service. From Monmouth you can get imaginative. For example, you can get to Abergaveny and the Black Mountains South by using the 83 Service operated by Stagecoach South Wales. In fact you can go all the way to Brecon from Abergavenny via the X43 Service and access the Cambrian Mountains and the source of the Wye at Plynlimon via the Brecon to Builth/Llandrindod Wells T4 service. Check out the links.
Gloucester to Hereford: Operated by Stagecoach West you can of course head for Hereford via Ross on Wye on the 33 Service (stay on the bus) for easy access to the Wye region. If it's what you're after you can stop off at Ross On Wye and access Symonds Yat via the 34 Service to Whitchurch (Monmouth), which is run by Nick Maddy Coaches.
Usually you get a good day out using the links. If carrying on to Hereford on the 33 Service you can access the Northern and Westerly slopes of the Black Mountains, Hay On Wye via the Stagecoach South Wales T14 Service or the Yeomans 39a Service on a Sunday. Kington/Hergest Ridge and or river Arrow, Radnor Forest, and the heart of the Cambrian Mountains can be accessed via the 461 Service as seen above. From Llandrindod Wells the X47 Service to Aberystwyth will take you to Rhayader, the Elan Valley and the Source of the Wye all the way up to Plynlimon.
Worcester In Bound: Hereford again is the main hub in the region where most public transport spans out from. If looking to get to the Black Mountains North or West, Hay On Wye, Radnor Forest, Cambrian Mountains, the Elan Valley or the source of the Wye via Rhayader etc it is again the T14, the 39a, the 461 and X47 services you are looking for as described above.
Shrewsbury Inbound: There are a number of ways to get to the Upper Wye, for example, from Shrewsbury it being centrally placed. The X75 Service will take you through to Rhayader where you can access the Elan Valley and the Upper Wye via the X47 Service to Aberystwyth. In fact if you wanted to you could get to Brecon from Rhayader via the X47 and the T4 Service from Llandrindod Wells and explore the Black Mountains another Wye watershed. There is always the option of walking stretches of the Wye Valley Walk to. For other services browse the information and links above.
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Cardiff Inbound: Our advice is to get to Brecon by using the Stagecoach South Wales T4 Service. The T4 takes you to Builth and Llandrindod Wells where the X47 Service into Rhayader, the Elan Valley or the Upper Wye/Cambrian Mountains can be caught. If you're looking for the Southern slopes of the Black Mountains then the X43 Service to Abergavenny from Brecon is the one to hop onto. Having said this you can catch the X4 Service Heads of Valleys, which will take you straight there via Merthyr, Ebbw Vale and Brynmawr. Of course if looking to explore the Lower Wye namely Chepstow, Tintern, Monmouth, Symonds Yat you can either link up at Abergavenny via the 83 Service or go straight to Chepstow using National Express where the 24 Service to Monmouth can be jumped onto.
Bristol Inbound: Chepstow buses will get you into a hood portion of the lower Wye Valley. But first you have to get there from Bristol. The T7 service operated by Newport Bus will do the job. Once in Chepstow look out for the 69 Service by Phil Anslow Travel. This will give you access to the whole of the Wye Valley all the way up to Monmouth. At Monmouth you can catch the Nick Maddy 34 Service, which will take you to Whitchurch and into Symonds Yat. Other options from Monmouth include the 83 Service to Abergavenny, which will take you to the Southern tip of the Black Mountains. There's also the Brecon from Abergavenny X43 Service. As above the T4 Service will give you access to the Cambrian Mountains and the Upper Wye via the X47 Service LLandrindod Wells to Aberystwyth.
Old Borders
Granny
Trail Head
River Bag
Don't Forget Trains
Early morning from the river Trothy trail head featuring the Eastern Escarpment of the Black Mountains in Herefordshire
Routes Continued
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London Inbound: From here your looking for the National express to either Hereford or Chepstow if you want to explore the Wye and or Wye basin. At Hereford you can get to anywhere in the Wye region from the Cambrian Mountains through to the Lower Wye at Monmouth and beyond. For bus times see above: Hereford to Kington, Buses from Kington, Hereford to Hay, Monmouth, Ross on Wye ETC. Click here to go straight there.
Liverpool Inbound: Again from here you're looking for the National express only this time to Hereford if you want to explore the Wye and or Wye basin. At Hereford you can get to anywhere in the Wye region from the Cambrian Mountains through to the Lower Wye at Monmouth and beyond. For bus times see above: Hereford to Kington, Buses from Kington, Hereford to Hay, Monmouth, Ross on Wye ETC. Click here to go straight there.
Birmingham Inbound: As above you're looking for the National express to Hereford if you want to explore the Wye and or Wye basin. At Hereford you can get to anywhere in the Wye region from the Cambrian Mountains through to the Lower Wye at Monmouth and beyond. For bus times see above: Hereford to Kington, Buses from Kington, Hereford to Hay, Monmouth, Ross on Wye ETC. Click here to go straight there.