Cycling ancient trails: off-road on an e-bike in Pembrokeshire’s Preseli Hills

Guided e-mountain bike rides in south-west Wales reveal a wild landscape of woods and rocky summits, plus a valley so secluded it still follows the Julian calendar

The path on which I’m riding my e-mountain bike across the hills of north Pembrokeshire is known as a bridleway, but to Ed Sykes, who grew up in these hills, it’s an “e-trail”. Ed is the founder of Hidden Routes in Newport (between Cardigan and Fishguard), an e-mountain biking outfit that takes clients on guided rides through what is probably the least-known corner of Pembrokeshire.

He came up with the term “e-trail” because, he says, he “wanted a name that differentiated what we do from regular mountain biking. Our routes are rideable on a normal mountain bike, of course, but we just reckon they’re more fun – and easier – on an e-mountain bike.”