We spoke with BBC journalist and author Steve Silk, about new book ‘Go West’ which sees him cycling from London to the Welsh coast in just 8 days.

What made you decide on this route?

In my previous book I had ridden from London to Edinburgh, roughly following the route of the A1 – known in the old days as The Great North Road. I enjoyed that experience so much that I was looking for another major road to explore.

You might have expected me to choose another of the biggies, perhaps the A2, A3, A4, A5 or A6. But instead, I hit upon the idea of the A40 because I think it is hard to beat in terms of its scale, variety, gradient and beauty.

I should make it clear that I virtually never cycled along the modern A road itself. I just used is as a point of reference, escaping onto side roads or pavements and enjoying impromptu diversions wherever I could.

In other words, I had a great time exploring the Chilterns, Oxford, the Cotswolds, Gloucester, the Wye Valley and the Brecon Beacons on my way to the Pembrokeshire coast at Fishguard. When I looked back, I realised I’d crossed three areas of outstanding natural beauty and two National Parks in eight days – that’s good landscape bang for your cycling buck.

The other attraction of this route is that it meant I could follow in the tyre tracks of an Edwardian author called Charles G Harper. He wrote about both The Great North Road and what he called “The London, Oxford, Gloucester and Milford Haven Road”. He was old-fashioned, quite conservative and very grumpy – which makes him very quotable 120-odd years later.

What were some of your favourite sights you saw?

I had two favourite days – one in England and the other in Wales. The first saw me go from the banks of the Thames at Eynsham in Oxfordshire to an old coaching inn in Gloucester via the Cotswolds. I was blessed with the most gorgeous weather when all that lovely limestone looked at its very finest. The lesson I learnt, you don’t have to go to the “honeypot” tourist locations in this part of the world. The villages of the unheralded Windrush valley looked just as stunning – and there was barely a visitor in sight.

In Wales my favourite stretch was between Monmouth and Sennybridge. This was day six of my journey and the first to feature three friends who’d come down from Norfolk with their bikes to join me. We headed off along the Trothy valley to Raglan Castle before escaping up to the towpath alongside the Monmouthshire and Brecon Canal. I had never encountered a contour canal before and the idea of staying at the same height all the way round a range of hills was quite entrancing.

I am also a sucker for spots that are now quiet but had a noisy past. So, I was absolutely fascinated to discover how the canal was linked to Blaenavon on the other side of The Blorenge. Of course, Blaenavon’s role during the industrial revolution means that it is now a world heritage site. But tramroads once ran up and down The Borenge’s steep slopes as far as Llanfoist Wharf – meaning that both wharf and tramroads are included within that classification.

Because, in the wonderful words of the information board: “From here, Wales heaved and belched and blasted itself onto the global stage.”

We left the canal at Brecon and then endured some challenging hills on a B-road en-route to Sennybridge. We did 54 miles all in all. I remember hitting the pillow and being out light a light.

What do you hope readers will get out of this book?

I guess I am trying to do two things at the same time. First, I hope that readers will enjoy that sense of Britain slowly changing as I head westwards. Because I am only covering about 50 miles a day, I get time to appreciate the subtle differences in accent, attitude and architecture. You don’t have to be a cyclist to enjoy this book. It’s more a collection of bite size historical and geographical stories woven together by the rhythm of the road.

But secondly, I am trying to subtly convince people that you can do more than you think you can on a pushbike. I am no natural sportsman. I was last pick in the school playground for football all those years ago! Who cares? Just get on a bike and give it a go. You might not be up for 300 miles – yet. But with little more than a pair of padded shorts and a dash of dogged determination, you will find beauty right on your doorstep.

When did you first get into cycling?

I first got into cycling as a kid. Not consciously, but just because every lad of my generation had a bike and used it to get around. Later as a student I spent a long hot summer in San Francisco working as a cycle messenger for a graphics company. This was 1989 so I was delivering what we would now call jpegs or PDFs. But I do remember building up my strength and stamina over the months. I’ve never been fitter.

But after that I stupidly forgot about cycling for about 20 years before getting back into things once my kids were out of nappies and prams. At the very least I now cycle every Saturday – mainly with the friends mentioned above. It’s something I look forward to whatever the weather, whatever the season. It’s good for my physical health and probably essential for my mental well-being too. You never, ever regret a few hours in the saddle.

What was the hardest part of this venture for you?

The hardest day was the last day – Carmarthen to Fishguard. As I say, I was not comfortable cycling on the A40 itself – particularly once I had the responsibility of being with others. And looking at the map back at home, I had decided that there just weren’t enough side roads to safely make it across to Haverfordwest and then north to Fishguard.

So, we took the hypotenuse rather than two sides of the triangle. The good news here is that it forms part of a signposted cycle route. The bad? Well, in these parts, the National Cycle Network’s Route 47 is exceptionally hilly. We ended up doing about 4,500 feet of ascent in a day. Trust me, that hurt!

However, it was worth the pain. I can’t mention all the highlights, but the prehistoric stones at Pentre Ifan are pretty special and we all enjoyed a pint in the famously basic pub called The Dyffryn Arms in the shaded Gwaun Vallery. We had Bass- mainly because that was the only drink available! There are no frills at The Dyffryn Arms.

Do you have any other biking adventures planned?

It’s early days but I am tempted by the Netherlands. I really envy the cycling culture over there. Everything is so effortless for cyclists, and I feel there is a gap in the market for a book tackling all of that from a British perspective. Also, I feel as if Brits flock to Amsterdam to the exclusion of the rest of the country. There is a lot more to see and once again a bike might be the idea vehicle.

Go West: London to the Welsh Coast – 8 Days, 2 Wheels and a Whole Lot of Hills by Steve Silk is published by Summersdale Publishers, £10.99- https://www.waterstones.com/book/go-west/steve-silk/9781837995721