Wales and England - Days 26 - 29 Llanelli to Malvern and 'Home'

Sunday 16th - Wednesday 19th June 2019
Mileage 132 from The Gateway Resort near Llanelli to Blackmore Club Site near Malvern
Parking Co-ordinates 52.09657, -2.27536

Sunday 16th 🌧️🌧️☁☁☁🌞🌞🌞

Our day started with absolutely torrential rain and as it was a moving day and we were parked on grass we were slightly worried that we might get stuck😱!  However, we'd had the forethought to place all 4 of T4rdis2's wheels on mud mats (Black flat plastic mats with traction tread) and these had helped to stop us from sinking into the soft ground, so we just glided off with no problem😀😀!

Today's destination was Hanley Swan near Malvern and to get there we could have chosen to go via the motorway but that would have been boring, so instead we poddled  via the A40 which would take us through the splendid Brecon Beacons area.  There our views were of majestic rolling hills and torrenting waterfalls, and it really made us want to pull over and grab our hiking gear but as time was limited we just made do with eating our lunch in the shadows of the mighty Pen-y-Fan (which we've climbed in the past).

Brecon Beacons.

We crossed over from Wales into England at around 3.30 pm and it wasn't much longer after that when we found ourselves in the West Midlands and heading for The Blackmore Camping and Caravan Club site  which would be our last destination of this tour.  And it was to be there that we'd have the pleasure of Electric Hook Up which we've easily managed without for the last 19 days because T4rdis2's solar panel and big leisure battery have more than taken care of all our needs in that department, thus saving us about £80 to spend on other luxuries 🍷🍷🍻🍻!

But just as we neared our campsite we had a very lucky escape because we needed to pass The Three Counties Show ground and it seems that this weekend had been the one when The Royal Three Counties Show took place.  Apparently the show is a celebration of the countryside and extols the virtues and excellence in farming, livestock, agriculture and also food and drink from across Worcestershire, Herefordshire and Gloucestershire.  We later learnt that about 90,000 visitors had attended, and judging by the number of cars parked across fields for almost as far as the eye could see it looked as if most of them were still there!  I think that if we'd been just a short while later in our arrival we could very easily have got snarled up in that lot as they left the show - and that would have been the last thing we'd have wanted after a long drive.

The Three Counties Show Ground from High up in the Malvern Hills. (after the event had finished)

Monday 17th ⛅⛅⛅⛅⛅⛅
Mileage 17 in the van and about 6 🚶‍♀️🚶‍♂️

Today we did something that we don't normally do!!  Usually when we've got the van settled on a campsite we don't move it again until we're heading for a new destination, but the site wasn't near enough to the Malvern Hills to facilitate our walk so this morning we packed everything away and nipped along to a car park right at the foot of them.

We then proceeded through a muddy old woodland and followed a path that kicked us out near 'The Gold Mine' which is a round guide post made of Malvern stone that has  pointers that indicate which way to go depending on which hill you wanted to climb.

We attacked Summer Hill and this led us steeply up to The Worcestershire Beacon which is the highest point amongst the hills at 1395 feet.



There we found a toposcope dedicated to Queen Victoria that identified the features visible from the viewpoint which included the Severn Valley, and possibly in the very far distance, the Welsh mountains.  What an ideal spot to stop and sip coffee! 

The Memorial to Queen Victoria with the Toposcope  on the top (+ Wally)

From there we proceeded on past Sugarloaf Hill and around North Hill and Table Hill via Lady Howard De Waldern Drive (which was really just a path).  Lunch was taken at End Hill and we wandered back via one of the other many paths and bridleways, and in doing so we circumnavigated the Beacon at a lower level.  And all the while we were walking in this 'Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty' we were treated to birds eye views over Malvern itself and also other villages of the Malvern district, and more distantly we could see into the 3 counties of Worcestershire, Herefordshire and Gloucestershire.

Malvern

The Beacon from a distance.

Tuesday 18th ⛅⛅⛅⛅⛅ 🌧️🌧️
About 8 🚶‍♀️🚶‍♂️miles

Today our target was the town of Malvern itself, and we were a bit undecided how to get there because there was no public transport available and the site wardens told us there was no suitable footpath either!  So should we move the van again or just to use Shank's Pony because despite what we'd been told John had used his maps and identified what he thought would be a 4 mile pleasant walk to the town using footpaths.  We opted for the later and in the end it was the right plan because we only got a bit wet 🌧️on our way home!!   

Our walk was also very varied because along our way we passed through corn and rape seed fields, fields with animals grazing, woodland and huge swarths of open meadow where gazillions of wild flowers were growing.  Then towards the end of it, on Hawthorn Lane, we passed by some very pretty cottages and outside one of them was a little white bench, and as we paused to admire it I said 'I wonder if they'd mind if we borrowed it while we have a coffee'.  I was obviously overheard because suddenly a lady popped her head out of her rose surrounded window and said 'I don't mind at all and would you like some water' We declined the water but it was another lovely place to sit while we sipped our brew.  

We reached Malvern around 12ish after walking past quite a few buildings that were built out of stone quarried within the locality - I called them crazy paved but I'm sure that's not the proper name for this building style!

Malvern Priory

It seems that in the past this beautiful mellow stone that has many hues used to be quarried in at least 10 places in the surrounding area, but the last quarry closed quite a few years ago so now the only way to obtain these rocks is secondhand when buildings are knocked down - thus the stone is very valuable!

The whole park had a wonderful rose aroma!

Our first stop in the town was at Rose Bank Gardens which used to be the home of Charles William Dyson Perrins (deceased Jan 1958), and I'm not sure I would have recognised the name but apparently it was his Dad that owned the Lea & Perrins Worcestershire Sauce factory!  The old house is gone now but the beautiful manicured gardens remain, and from it you can either move on to explore the town or climb the 99 steps that lead first to St Ann's Well and then on into the Malvern Hills.  But as the Hills weren't today's objective we decided against gaining any more height.

It was in the park that we also got to see the sculpture of the Malvern Buzzards which were created by Walenty Pytel to mark the Diamond Jubilee of Queen Elizabeth II.

And the Lark Ascending also by Walenty Pytel

Additionally we learnt that C.S. Lewis (the author of my favourite childhood Books 'The Chronicles of Narnia') went to school in Malvern and later, along with his mate JRR Tolkien, returned frequently to walk in the hills. And it seems that the gas lamp in 'The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe may have been inspired by his fascination with the towns 200 gas lamps!
.

By the time we'd finished in Rose Bank Park it was lunch time, and for once we'd decided to treat ourselves to a meal out!  The only trouble was where should we pick because the choice was endless.  However, in the end we picked good old Weatherspoons which was lodged in an old coach house called  The Foley Arms.  

The hotel's history begun about 200 years ago when Malvern was just developing as a spa town.  The Georgian style Inn was originally called the 'Down's Hotel but was soon renamed  in honour of Edward Foley who was a Lord of the Manor and was responsible for building the Coburg Baths and the Pump Room which were later to form the hub of the fashionable health resort.

Inside the hotel the decor and furnishings were a bit more up market than most Weatherspoons and we were fed very well on steak for John and chicken for me, along with 2 pints and all for just over 20 quid!  Good old Weatherspoons 😀 I'm sure we'd have paid much more anywhere else in Malvern!

Also while we were in the pub we learnt a bit more about the iconic Morgan Three Wheeler, the garage for which opened in Malvern (Link) in 1906.  It seems it became one of the most successful lightweight cars in the early days of motoring and from 1909 - 1953 30,000 Morgans were manufactured in the town and many more under license by Darmont in France.  Fast acceleration combined with a cruising range of over 50 miles to the gallon made it very popular.  But on the race track it also did well and in 1913 it won the French Grand Prix with speeds that exceeded 100 mph.  Apparently Stirling Moss owned one and said 'My Morgan is a great babe magnet'!

Once we left the pub we didn't have to go much further for our next point of interest - in fact it was a pedestrianised balcony just across the road.

There we found on of Britain's greatest composers - Sir Edward Elgar and John couldn't resist stopping for a mo to have a chat with him!  He composed The Enigma Variations and Pomp and Circumstance (Land of Hope and Glory)  along with many others while living in this area.  And apparently cycling, walking and kite flying in the hills were amongst his hobbies and it's said that while engaged in such activities he formulated ideas for some of his works.

The info boards said that he told a friend that 'if ever after I'm dead you hear someone whistling this tune (from his cello concerto) on the Malvern Hills, don't be alarmed, it'll only be me'





On the Balcony we also found the Malvhina Spout, along with a sign that informed us that the water is pure from the Malvern Hills and that the water is piped directly from Three Springs  above the Town, one at Happy Valley, another at Rushey Valley and the third from Ivy Scar Rock.  It went on to say that the water was thought to come from so deep down that underground pressure forces it upwards filtering it through the Ancient Malvern stone in the hills and that in so doing all impurities would be removed. Therefore, I trusted what they said and took a little sip!

However, if you want to drink Malvern water you don't quite have to resort to drinking it from a stream that runs out of a wall!  It seems that from about 1850 Schweppes began bottling the water on a commercial scale and it was first offered for sale at an Exhibition in 1851.  But more recently after Coca Cola closed their plant in Colwall a company called Holywell Water Company Ltd took over the task and now offer the water in still and sparkling versions - for a price - the water that comes out of the wall is free!!

But where does it all come from?  It seems fissures in the rocks retain rain water which slowly permeates through and which can only escape at the springs.  The springs in turn release the water with the flow rate depending on the amount of rainfall so it can vary from as little as 8 gallons per minute to over 77 gallons, but whatever the amount it has never been known to cease altogether.

The Malvern water has been absolutely pivotal to the town for many years and it experienced a major transformation in 1842 when Doctors Gully and Wilson launched their natural 'hydropathy' cures.  It seems that Dr Wilson rejuvenated a 64 year old gout ridden drunkard and thus the Water Cure's fame spread rapidly.  But some of the treatments were quite austere -  for the 'Cold Douche Treatment' water was poured over a shivering naked patient from a height of 20 feet, then before breakfast they were required to walk up to St Ann's Well to drink the water, but despite these 'tortures', 'The Water Cure' quickly grew in popularity and attracted many famous folk like Charles Darwin, Florence Nightingale and Lord Tennyson!   However, eventually the practice lost favour (I can't imagine why) and petered out altogether around 1905 so happily at least there was no option for John and me to have a go!

Our last stop was in Priory Park and it was here that we found another delightful garden with a beautiful old wood carving displaying a swimmer, an otter and several fish.  Unfortunately there was no info with it so it was hard to know what it depicted, but it looked like it was probably the remains of an old tree that had been carved into something equally as beautiful as when it lived!

It was also in this park that we witnessed a quite  macabre event!  There we sat by a long pond sipping our last cup of coffee and munching our lemon muffins when down came a big seagull who did no more than jump in the water and snatch a little moorhen chick!  As you would imagine it was very soon dead because the gull was throwing it all over the place trying to break it down into bite sized pieces!  But when he couldn't manage that he just tipped his head back and swallowed the poor baby whole - it was such a shame he didn't choke!

Wednesday 19th 🌧️⛅⛅⛅⛅⛅ 
Mileage 100 from Hanley Swan to Ripley

This morning our main task was to get on the road and drive back to our home town of Ripley, and as we'd only got 100 miles to go this was achieved in just over 2 hours.  Once there we were very quickly and comfortably parked up on what has become our regular parking spot at Butterley Bank, but our plan is only to stay for 12 nights on this occasion.    

While we're here we'll have a great time seeing all our family and friends, and also enjoy looking after John's Mum while his sister Val and her husband have a well earned holiday in their motor home.  And after all that is done we're off to France for 3 months, so for now and  just for a short while, it's Au Revoir from us  

 Click here to see our English camping spots

Wales - Day 22 - 25 - St David's to Llanelli

Wednesday 12th - Saturday 15th June 2019
Mileage 80 from Lleithyr Farm Campsite near St David's to The Gateway Resort near Llanelli
Parking Co-ordinates 51.66367, -4.10436

Wednesday 12th   🌧️🌧️☁☁☁

For once I haven't really got much to say about today's activities, so instead maybe I'll just moan about the bloody inclement weather that it looks like we're going to get over the next few days😠😠😠.  The weather man says we'll have rain most days, and on some days it may well be for all day!  So now we're wondering what on earth we're going to do with ourselves because our initial plans included mostly cycling and a bit of walking.

The campsite is situated part way along the River Loughor and right on the Millennium Coastal Trail (a shared cycle trail) which runs for about 13 miles along the coastline on the Burry Estuary.  Additionally the Llanelli Wetland Centre (which has all sorts birds and creatures within it's lagoons) is only a short walk away.  So we've decided that rather than relying on the fairy tales that the weather man often tells we'll just open our blinds each morning, see what the sky looks like and then plan the days activities accordingly - and whatever that is we'll just make sure we take our raincoats with us😂😂😂


Thursday 13th   🌧️🌧️☁☁☁⛅⛅

Well, today didn't turn out to be as bad as predicted!!  The rain had hammered on our roof for most of the night but by the time we got up it'd turned to gentle drizzle and by the time we were ready to go out (after a late brunch) it had stopped altogether.  But everywhere was still fairly wet so we decided that the Llanelli WWT Wetland Centre might be our best bet for the day's entertainment - and what a treat that turned out to be!

There were 5 babies but I only managed to catch 4

We poddled for a mile down the millennium trail, paid our £8.81 entrance fee, and then a very pleasant elderly gentleman explained our best route around the site which covers 450 acres and has about a dozen bird hides.  He told us that the centre is divided into two halves, one large area being dedicated to wetland birds from 'around the world', and in this part of the park we would also find huge salt marshes where wild birds come to feed and hatch their young.  He then went on to say that in the other part of the park - The Millennium Wetlands - (which only has fresh water areas) we would find a mosaic of lagoons reed beds, paths, board walks and more hides for viewing creatures that might just be passing through.

The bit on the left is the lagoon area and the bit on the right is the more populated area

So as advised we started our tour in the 'round the world' area which turned out to be a very busy  metropolis with wetland birds from exotic places such as South America, Australia and Asia to name but a few, and we saw loads of ducks, swans and geese of all colours and varieties many of which we've never met before, and quite a few with chicks.

An American Wood Duck - the boy of course - the female isn't half as pretty!!! 
Apparently it often steels woodpecker nests to breed and it eats acorns!

A red breasted goose who apparently often features in 6000 year old Egyptian friezes
and who when eaten may taste of garlic!

A black necked swan with her cygnets.  In the 18th and 19th centuries thousands of these were
killed to make two tone belts, powder puffs and to adorn garments.

A black headed duck with a bright blue beak - apparently it's beak becomes bluer in the breeding
season but this is a endangered species. 

A beautiful Sheld duck - Sheld is a northern dialect word for variegated colouring.  Also one might think
this one has French origins because one of the main stays of it's diet is snails
and it can eat up to 12,000 in one sitting!

A big tortoise - I hope he wasn't going in there to nick eggs😱!

A Red Crowned Crane - one of the largest of the crane species - he stands over 5 feet tall and can weigh up to
25 lbs.  However it seems there are only about 3,000 birds left now because of destruction of their habitat.
Happily this chap was behind a big fence because the info informed us that they can pack a nasty peck!

A Magpie Goose - I don't know if he's a thief but he'd got a ring on his leg!

And these two - because we hadn't got any food for them they were quite happy to make do with John's fingers😲

After we'd finished touring the first part of the park we nipped back to the Visitor's Centre with the intention of having a snack in the cafe, but whoops!  They stopped serving food at 2.30 and by then it was 2.45, therefore it was a good job that our trusty flask + 2 jammy scones were secreted away in my bag😂😂.

After scoffing them our tour continued in The Millennium Wetlands but there really wasn't quite so much to see there, but if you look carefully there was a Wally hiding near one of the hides!!!

We also passed by 2 beautiful but slightly threatening swans with octuplets (there were 2 more hiding behind mum)!

A huge sculpture of a crane.

And 4 spoonbills feeding in one of the lagoons

But I could only catch one of them!

Then just before we left we realised we'd missed the flamingos😲, but we soon remedied that by nipping back into the first area!  And that part of our visit was very well timed because we arrived just at feeding time and what a row that  caused!!  The flamingos and dozens of black headed gulls were all scrabbling to get the best pickings which resulted in one or two fisty cuffs 'set toos' and lots of screeched warnings - but it was an amazing show to watch!

The Flamingos here were Caribbean ones - the largest and brightest of the six different types of flamingo
However, it seems they are quite endangered because their breeding sites have been reduced from 40 to just 4 now!
The info boards told us that an adult bird eats about 50,000 brine fly larvae per day plus other invertebrates
And they live in saline lagoons with twice as much saltiness as sea water and because of this they have developed
a salt excreting gland just above their eyes!

Once the feeding frenzy was done outside the birds wondered inside for a much more well mannered second helping!
And in this area there was an observation platform for us to stand and watch.

While there we also learnt that flamingos always breed in large flocks that can sometimes number over a million birds.  Apparently they lay a single egg in a mud nest and both parents share it's incubation which lasts for about 28 days.  After hatching the chick remains in the nest for about 7 days and both parents feed it by secreting a substance called 'crop milk' and it seems that this is so high in protein that during the first 20 days of it's life the baby's legs can grow by as much as 5 mm EVERY DAY!  It's a good job they don't need school trousers😂😂

In the end we spent nearly 5 hours in the park but just before we left John made a point of becoming quite friendly with this last duck!!!


Friday 14th ☁☁☁☁☁☁⛅⛅
28 🚴🚴 miles

😁😁😁Mr weatherman was wrong again 😁😁😁 - No rain today and the end of the day was really quite sunny.  So today we decided to cycle to the Mumbles and then along the sea front around Swansea Bay.  To get there we mostly used dedicated cycle paths, first a short section of the Millennium trail, then later The Clyne Valley Cycle Way and lastly a sea front track all the way into Swansea, but in-between we had to negotiate several very busy roads. 

And really, I think we both agreed in the end that this wasn't one of our best rides, and that was for several reasons really.  As I mentioned above the heavy traffic blighted it somewhat, but even when we got to the traffic free section in the Clyne Valley Park we found it to be dank dark and a bit neglected, and almost like riding through a tunnel formed by overhead tangled trees.  But maybe that's not suprising because in a former life the trail used to be The Heart of Wales Railway Line!

However, things did get better when the trail ended at Blackpill on Swansea Bay.  From there we turned right and  rode along the prom into the Mumbles which is a headland situated on the western edge of Swansea Bay, and it was also here that we feasted on our picnic accompanied by a huge portion of chips.  From where we sat munching we could view the Mumbles lifeboat station which has operated there from 1866 and who's history includes 'The Mumbles Lifeboat Disaster' - an incident that resulted in an entire crew being lost while attempting to rescue the crew of the SS Samtampa.

Once lunch was finished we turned in the other direction and peddled our way across Swansea Bay's 5 mile promenade which is lined with dozens of what seemed to be mostly empty sea front apartments.

Bloomin Heck - Wally's popped up again😂😂

And once that was done all that was left was for us to retrace our tracks all the way back to T4rdis2  - but that meant going through the dank dark gloomy woods again👻👻.


Saturday 15th ⛅⛅☁☁☁⛅⛅  Ha Ha, Mr Weatherman was wrong again!!
24 🚴🚴 miles

Today we decided to go in the opposite direction to yesterday and head along the Millennium Trail to Pembery Park, and that just so happened to be where the finishing post for this years Ladies Tour of Britain was going to be.

The Millennium trail is described 'A superb mostly flat, well surfaced and easily accessible coastal traffic free route that follows the stunning Carmarthenshire coast ...for a distance of approximately 13 miles from Bynea in the East to Pembery Country Park in the West.  But I think whoever wrote that ought to come and ride along the first 3 miles of it because it's muddy and pitted with loads of deep puddle filled pot holes that rather detract from the pleasure of riding along it.  But having said that the other 9 or so miles to the Park were much better so it did redeem itself! The trail mostly follows the estuary edge and as we went we had fine views of the Gower Peninsula coastline, and when we finally got to Pembery Park we could see the very tip of the Gower which terminates at Worm's Head - we've been there before and it's a fantastic place to explore.

We arrived in the 500 acre park about half an hour ahead of the race so we nipped to the top of a grassy bank that overlooked part of the road that the 96 ladies would have to race along, and as there was a convenient picnic bench up there we settled down for lunch before they arrived.

The race has covered nearly 500 miles over the last 6 days and it seemed that the finish would be a tight one because only 1 second separated the leaders.  But to be honest it was impossible to identify any specific person as the closely packed front runners shot by us, but we did learn later that an English lady called Lizzie Deignan won, and apparently she's the first lady cyclist to ever win the event twice and she only had her baby 9 months ago!

Then after all that excitement we turned our wheels homewards and enjoyed the different views as we travelled in the opposite direction.

Tomorrow we'll be on the move again, and our time in Wales will be complete because we'll be spending the last 3 nights of this tour at Malvern.

Bye for now 😗😗

Click here to see our Welsh camping spots

Wales - Day 15 - 21 - Barmouth to St David's

Wednesday 5th June - Tuesday 11th June
Mileage 163 from Graig Wen Campsite near Barmouth to Lleithyr Farm near St David's
Parking Co-ordinates 51.89738, -5.276

Wednesday 5th  🌧️🌧️☁☁☁🌞🌞🌞

Today was just a long driving day, but we made it even longer by going on a little detour back to Porthmadog, and our reasons for doing that were several!!  We needed to replenish our supply of LPG(gas)(and we knew that one of the few garages in Wales who stocked it was out that way), I wanted to exchange some knitting wool I'd brought on our first visit there, and as we were already in the town we also revisited the town's brand new Lidl for groceries.  So all that took until lunch time - but that was soon sorted because our little trek into the town had required us to pass by a fish and chip shop, so somehow a portion of said goodies jumped into my hand and we shared them in the lovely surrounds of Lidl's car park😂😂!  However, that meant we'd been fed and watered and we could just get on with our journey south.

Sarah the Hen 😂😂

We arrived at Lleithyr Farm around 5ish and as we parked we got a bit of a feeling of 'Deja Vu', and that was because back in May 2015 we'd stayed in the next campsite along the road which just so happens to belong to the Motorhome and Caravan Club.   But back then they'd charged £23 per night, and for this occasion we're only paying £14 - and there's everything here that there is there!  Additionally, this site is really delightful because they've got a small 'farm animal walk', rabbits all over the place and also a badger sett at one side, and when you add in the far reaching views that include Carn Llidi this one has definitely been added to our list of favourites. (opposite and below are some of the animals we met around the site)

Sven - a Kunekune Pig 🐖🐷🐖

Nugget and Buddy who are Falabella ponies,

Fernando, Flint and Frankie - and there were many more 🐑🐐 etc.

After our long day in the saddle van we were more than happy to spend our evening sitting outside sipping cider in the very warm sunshine and I think we only finally came in to cook our tea at around 8pm!

Thursday 6th 🌞🌞🌞🌞🌞🌞🌞🌞
🚶‍♀️🚶‍♂️12 miles

Lleithyr Farm Park lies within the Pembrokeshire Coast National Park which covers 240 square miles and has 186 miles of spectacular and dramatic coastline, and recently much of that has mapped to take in a 360 degree virtual tour by Google Trekker.  The website has loads of info about this area and it lets you pick out what you want to see without even moving from your arm chair, but as we'd been here before we already knew what we wanted to do - at least for today.

Our plan was to take the 15 min toddle down to the beautiful Whitesands beach and then from there to proceed around the head land using the coastal path all the way to Porth Clais.

But first things first - the reception for the site had been closed when we arrived yesterday so we needed to go and book in, and on our way back to the van we were delighted by the sight of 3 badgers trundling across the road!

It was a first for us because we've never seen LIVE wild badgers before!
However it seems that they're quite naughty - apparently in the night they nipped into
someones awning and stole chocolate cake!!!

Then after that we got underway, but within a very short distance Wally popped up for a pic.

Where did you get that hat😂😂😂

And after that our breath just kept being taken away by the stunning grandeur of this part of the coast line - it certainly rivals anywhere else we've been in Europe.  However, even though between us we took loads of pics none of them did the scenery justice and you really have to be here in person to appreciate the magnificence of it all.

Whitesands Beach to the South

and to the North

A Seal Basking in the Sea

Ramsey Island - We sat opposite the island while we munched our lunch and watched
several large jelly fish passing though the Ramsey Sound
I thought they might be Portuguese Man O'War  Jellyfish but Wiki reckoned not!
Apparently they were just big common ones that are sometimes called 'Dustbin Lids'

The wild and rugged Ramsey Island is owned by  RSPB and is home to vast numbers of sea birds as well as huge numbers of seals.  Additionally, it is also here that the Bitches and Whelps are found.  These are a reef of rocks which stretch out into the Ramsey Sound and when they are combined with the strong tides  that race through the sound the result is an area of notoriously rough and dangerous water.  When we visited in 2015 we went on a Rib boat ride through them and although the water churned and swirled it was more fun that danger, but it seems many have come to grief on this stretch. One story told how back in 1910 one of St David's lifeboats (The Gem) was launched to go to the aid of a vessel called the Democrat which was dragging it's anchor and was in danger of being carried onto the reef.  Having successfully rescued the crew the Gem  got into difficulties, and in those days the lifeboat was only powered by oars and sail.  Sadly the wind and tide overcame her and she was wrecked on the end rock of the bitches and 3 of the crew lost their lives and the remaining crew member and those they had rescued were left clinging to the reef throughout the stormy night.

The coastal part of our walk terminated at the harbour at Porth Clais and after we'd sat and had another coffee and munched cake we made our way up into St David's but by this time it was 5pm so we didn't bother with the town as it was likely everywhere would be closing.  Instead we followed a small lane that led us by the abbey  and cathedral and then made our way home for another well earned rest in the evening sunshine.

The Bishop's Palace 

St David's Cathedral
(I think maybe Wally followed us here)!!

Friday 7th 🌧️🌧️🌧️🌧️🌧️🌧️🌧️🌧️

Oh Dear, Oh Dear, Oh Dear!!!   Today brought Rain Rain and more Rain, and along with that came strong gusting winds!!!  It seems we're on the edge of Storm Miguel which has popped over from Spain for a little visit.  However, we should count ourselves lucky because the West Coast of France. some of Spain and the Bay of Biscay have suffered 80 mile an hour winds and if it'd been that bad here the poor campers wouldn't have stood a chance!  Therefore, due to the inclement weather and our long walk yesterday we've awarded ourselves a day of rest and we've done nothing much more than sit on our bums for most of the day!


Saturday 8th 🌧️🌧️ ⛅⛅🌞🌞🌞

This morning we thought we might have to battle the wet and windy elements again but by lunch time Mr Sun had started to put his hat on and by 1ish he was fully out to play.  Therefore, we delayed our outing until early afternoon and then headed out along the coastal path to St Justinians before we proceeded up into St David's City!

As we walked along the Coastal Path I managed to Snap this Kestrel
hovering over the cliff side looking for his lunch

This seems to be how Kids from this area spend their Saturday Mornings

When  we reached St Justinians we took our time to find out a bit more about the Lifeboat Station that are found there.  We learnt that the The Royal National Lifeboat Institution was founded in 1824 by Sir William Hilary as the National Institution for the Preservation of Life from Shipwreck.  The station at St Justinians was opened in 1869 and provides a 24 hour search and rescue service to 100 nautical miles from the coast and to date it seems it's saved 360 lives in more than 420 launches.  And all this is done by people who are unpaid volunteers because the main part of the charities funding is provided by legacies and donations and the vast majority of that is spent on equipment and training.

The New and Old Lifeboat Stations at St Justinians

After our browse around the station we left the coast and proceeded up into the City of St David's which is the smallest City in England.  It is the final resting place of St David who is the Patron Saint of Wales and his history suggests that he was born close by in Saint Non's which is just a few miles South of the City.  


The most imposing feature of St David's is it's beautiful Cathedral.  The present one one dates back to 1181 but apparently that is at least the fourth church to have been built on the site that is reputed to be that on which St David himself founded a monastic settlement in the 6th century.  Today, sitting dappled in bright sunlight, it and The Bishop's Palace were a lovely place to sit and lick our ice creams, and as we looked down it was almost possible to imagine how the many hundreds of pilgrims who come here would file down the long staircase and into the building.   While there we learnt that the Cathedral has been an important place of pilgrimage for nearly fourteen centuries and that in 1124 Pope Calixtus II declared that two pilgrimages to St Davids were equal to one to Rome and that three were equal to one to Jerusalem itself!

While we were in the tiny City we also spent some time browsing around the shops and while doing so we learnt about 'OGGIES'!  It seems that the St David's Oggie long preceded the Cornish Pasty with historical references as early as 1181 when it is thought they were served to stone masons while they were building the cathedral.  They smelt delicious but as we'd already eaten we declined.



Sunday 9th 🌞🌞🌞🌞🌞🌞🌞

Today should have been the day that we moved  further south but because we'd so much fallen in love with this spectacular bit of Wales we decided to stay for another couple of days and spend more time in the presence of this beautiful and dramatic coastline.

Carn Llidi

Towering 600 feet above the St David's peninsula Carn Llidi dominates our views from the campsite in a North Westerly direction, and by bypassing it the terrain we found ourselves in was completely different

Today we circumnavigated it and then head north towards the Coastal Path before making our way back to St David's Head, and in doing so we passed by loads of small coves and precipitous cliffs many of which had unpronounceable names😂😂😂.

Here the territory was mostly moraine that was partially clad in rough grass and heather but amongst that there was an occasional orchid or other wild flowers that had managed to find purchase, and apparently this is a feature that the area is particularly renowned for.

This side of the peninsula also seemed much less populated - for most of the time we were out we had this wild and wonderful area all to ourselves!

Us on St David's Head - a place that marks the divide between the Irish Sea and the Celtic Sea!

Our Site from the foothills of Carn Llidi - T4rdis2 is there somewhere!

Monday 10th 🌧️🌧️🌧️🌧️⛅⛅🌞🌞🌞

Bloody Weather Predictions!!! 😠😠  They had informed us that there might be a bit of rain first thing but by about 10am the sun would be out -  WRONG!!  But 'hey ho' we didn't let that spoil our day.  We did try to wait it out but by 11.30 there seemed no sign of the wet stuff stopping so we donned our coats and nipped out to catch the Celtic Coaster to St David's (a little bus that bypasses our site every half hour).  The bus dropped us at St David's visitor centre and after a quick poke around there we made out way down to the Coastal Path at Caerfai

From there we'd got about 10 miles to walk back to Whitesands Beach and although we'd done some of it last week we'd be walking in the opposite direction so we new the views would be quite different and equally stunning.

After only a short distance we arrived at St Non's (St David's birth place) and saw both the new and old chapels, and also St Non's Well which is said to have sprung up during a thunderstorm when St David was born about 500 A.D. and it's waters are reputed to cure infirmities.





Maybe we should have both jumped in - we wouldn't have got much wetter if we had 😂😂😂

At this time the rain was still drumming down on us in a steady rhythm but we were hopeful that by the time we got a couple of miles further on to Porth Clais it might have stopped so that we could enjoy our picnic!  Oh dear WRONG again 😂😂😂!

The Harbour in a seaward direction 

And in an inland direction

The Harbour here was built back in the 12th Century to serve the city of St Davids but today it's much more laid back and peaceful - but it was still very wet as we munched our sarnies! And really it was a shame we hadn't waited another half an hour because then the rain stopped and the sun started to peep out!  But really it didn't matter because we'd saved our coffee and cake and when a lovely little beach appeared a couple of miles further down the track we didn't need any persuading to perch our bums on two convenient rocks while scoffing said snack and watching the waves washing up on the outgoing tide.

You can just see our beach at the top of the pic.

And from there we just plodded our way back, first to St Justinians and then on to Whitesands and back to the campsite where our feet were put up for a well earned rest!


Monday 11th  - a howling gale and lots of 🌧️🌧️🌧️🌧️ in the afternoon.

Today was another day that we should have left the Lleithyr Farm Site but the howling wind and severe weather warnings that have covered much of the country made us decide to stay for just one more day.  We've seen several news reports of flooding and torrential rain that others have suffered, but here we've got off quite lightly because although the wind has been quite ferocious the rain didn't start until lunch time and even then it was mostly only pitter pattering.  Tomorrow we'll definitely move further South, probably to Llanelli and from there we'll hopefully be able to re-explore some of the Gower Peninsula


Bye for now

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