Mach 1, 2 and 3: ride straight from town
Machynlleth was one of the first towns in Wales to put mountain biking at the heart of its identity, and the proof is the trio of waymarked loops that leave from the town itself. First laid out in 2001, the Mach trails climb into the big, empty hills south of the Dyfi: Mach 1 is around 10 miles (16 km), Mach 2 around 14 miles (23 km), and Mach 3 around 19 miles — the hardest of the three, with long stretches of exposed upland. These are not trail-centre laps with a café at half distance: they demand fitness and self-reliance, and there are no services once you leave town. The reward is riding that feels genuinely wild within minutes of the clock tower. The routes are maintained by local volunteers — Dyfi Mountain Biking (Beicio Mynydd Dyfi) — whose own site now warns that the Mach waymarkers have been removed and strongly recommends carrying an Ordnance Survey map.
ClimachX: the Dyfi Forest classic
About 4.5 miles north of town in the Dyfi Forest at Ceinws, ClimachX is a red-graded 15 km singletrack loop on Natural Resources Wales land, built and maintained by the Dyfi Mountain Biking volunteers (established 2005). Expect roughly 450 m of climbing over 1–2 hours of riding, all of it earning the trail's celebrated finale — a sustained final descent known to riders as "Tony the Tiger". Trailhead parking is free, which makes ClimachX one of the best-value days out on a bike anywhere in Wales. Combine it with a coffee stop in nearby Corris and you have a very good short day; ride it after a week of rain and you will understand why the Dyfi's loam has a cult following.
Dyfi Bike Park: the Athertons' backyard
Three miles north of town at Pantperthog, Dyfi Bike Park is the area's headline act: 650 acres of Esgair Forest laced with gravity trails built and run by downhill racer Dan Atherton and the Atherton family. Open since 2019, it runs a Land Rover uplift (currently Thursday to Sunday, booked online) serving trails graded from red to triple-black, with a café, shop and coaching on site, plus e-MTB routes launched in August 2025. It is a different discipline from the Mach loops — full-face helmets and big travel rather than map-reading and stamina — and together the two make Machynlleth a rare place where you can ride wilderness singletrack one day and world-class downhill the next. See our dedicated Dyfi Bike Park page for the full picture.
Racing in the Dyfi
The Dyfi Enduro, the mass-participation event that helped make the town's name among riders, has been on hiatus since it last ran in 2019 — so don't plan a trip around it. Competitive racing still visits the valley, though: the Dyfi Forest hosted rounds of the Welsh Enduro Series and the national championships in 2023, and a BEMBA National round in July 2025. Between race weekends the forests are simply quiet, which suits most visiting riders fine. If you want to time a visit with an event, check the current calendars before booking — and note that accommodation in town fills quickly on race weekends (see where to stay). The volunteer trail crews welcome support, too: the Mach loops and ClimachX exist because local riders built and still maintain them, so ride considerately and put something in the pot where you can.
Practical Information
Bike shops: Dyfi Bike Shed in Machynlleth offers sales, servicing and hire — mountain bikes, e-MTBs and downhill bikes — handy for the bike park as well as the Mach loops; Bandit Bikes in Dinas Mawddwy offers servicing and hire at the northern end of the valley. The Mach trails start from town, ClimachX has free parking at Ceinws, and Dyfi Bike Park uplift days must be booked online. Carry tools, food, water and a means of navigation on the Mach loops — the upland sections are exposed and remote, and mid Wales weather changes fast. Machynlleth's railway station on the Cambrian Line makes a car-free trip possible (getting here), and campers will find pitches within easy reach of the trails (camping).
Navigating the Mach loops: the waymarkers have gone
One thing to know before riding out of town. Dyfi Mountain Biking now warns on its own site that the waymarkers for the Mach routes — there are four, with a Mach 4 as well — have been removed, and recommends riding with an Ordnance Survey map (Landranger 135) alongside the route maps the group publishes. Treat the Mach loops as map-and-compass rides on public rights of way rather than as a signed trail centre. The routes exist at all because local riders raised the money to waymark them and then to build in the forest, with help from the community regeneration group Ecodyfi. ClimachX is maintained the same way, and there is a donations box at the trail head worth feeding. Natural Resources Wales gives ClimachX as red-graded, 15 km with 450 m of climb, one to two hours, from a free car park at SH 760 063 — and notes that it may divert or close trails for maintenance, so check the NRW page before loading the car.
Trail centres within reach
Two Natural Resources Wales centres make good day trips from town. Bwlch Nant yr Arian, above Aberystwyth, has the blue Melindwr trail at up to 5 km, the red Pendam at 10.2 km, the red Summit at 18.5 km and the black Syfydrin at a serious 36 km; red kites are fed by the lake daily at 2pm. North of Dolgellau, Coed y Brenin runs from the blue MinorTaur through reds including the 30 km Dragon's Back to blacks such as Tarw Du and the 35 km, 1,100 m Beast, with bike hire, a bike wash and showers on site. Be warned that both have lost their cafés: NRW says the café and shop at Coed y Brenin are no longer operating though the toilets remain open, and at Nant yr Arian there are portable toilets and a drinks and cold food unit in the car park instead. Parking at both is charged by the hour up to around £12 a day, free for Blue Badge holders. Check current prices before travelling. The same passes make good driving as well as riding: see our driving routes.
Day trips