Day 6 The End Moylgrove to St Dogmaels

Well here we are at the last day and the best weather of the week. It wasn't boiling hot but the sun shone for most of the day and it didn't rain until we had finished and were waiting for the bus.

The gorse bushes were everywhere and a local lady said she had never seen it looking better than this. The smell of it always reminds me of coconut suntan lotion and it was almost overpowering in some places.

We reached the highest point of the Pembrokeshire Coastal Path today at 574ft just before reaching Cemaes Head.

Cemaes Head

There should have been seals here but they seemed to be hiding from us. After this point the path began to descend and turn into a track leading down to Poppit Sands.

It then becomes a bit of an anticlimax as there is another 2 miles of road walking before reaching St Dogmaels where the trail ends.

There was no-one about when we got here but eventually a local man walking slowly with a stick came past and we persuaded him to take our photograph. He told us that if we went to The White Hart Inn they would give us a certificate so of course we had to go and get one and have a drink to celebrate!

THE END

Day 5 Moylgrove to Parrog

The final 16 miles is often done as one walk but as we had two days left it made more sense to split it in two so we caught the bus to Moylgrove which is a mile inland and walked down a lovely wooded path to Ceibwer Bay.

There were plenty of ups and downs today, probably the hardest part of the walk but only 8 miles so plenty of time to do it in.

The Witches Cauldron

There had been a light shower as we arrived and this made the paths a bit slippery in parts but for us most of the worst bits were when we were climbing so it didn't seem too bad.

As soon as we dropped down to Newport Sands the rest of the walk was around the estuary and completely flat so it was a day of contrasts.

 We decided to go back to Morawelan Cafe at Parrog for tea and Bara Brith and just got there with half an hour to spare before closing time.

Day 4 Parrog to Fishguard

What a difference a day makes. A lovely sunny day but very windy in the morning with quite strong gusts blowing from the sea. We were catching the Poppit Rocket bus today at 10.00 am in the town so just had time to have a look at the Last Invasion Tapestry in the Town Hall. This is an absolutely stunning tapestry embroidered by local ladies in the style of the Bayeux Tapestry. It is 30 metres long and celebrates the capture of the French troops on the occasion of the last invasion of Britain in 1797. This link gives you some idea of its size and when you visit there is a film to watch as well showing how it was made. I managed over three mornings to see the whole of the film before the bus arrived!
Today we were walking south again from the edge of Newport at Parrog back to Fishguard. A longer walk today but no waiting around for a bus at the end. We began with coffee at Morawelan cafe on the quay at Parrog. The wind was blowing so hard we could hardly open the door and the sea was lashing the rocky shore.

 There were several small pebbly beaches on today's walk as we made our way round to Cwm-yr-Eglis (church valley) which is a beautiful sheltered spot away from the westerly winds.

When you get there you have to decide whether to make the climb up to Dinas Head or take the short cut across the middle missing out Dinas Island. No short cuts for us as we climbed to the trig point at 466ft on Pen-y-Fan. Not very high by Yorkshire standards!

 And then it was all down hill zig-zagging our way to the pretty cove at Pwllgwaelod where we had our lunch.

By now the wind had eased a bit and the sun was out and it felt much warmer. The remainder of today's walk was along the cliff tops to Fishguard Fort.

Then dropping down the road into Lower Fishguard where we spent some time on the quay. It's a pretty place but missing a trick as there isn't anywhere to get a cup of tea or anything to eat, no shops and only one pub that is only open for a few hours in an evening and doesn't do food.

Fortunately we were staying there so cups of tea were no problem and as we were back earlier than usual we had plenty of time to rest before walking up the hill to find some dinner!

Day 3 Whitesands Bay to Abereiddy

Most people viewing the weather forecast today wouldn't have bothered getting out of bed this morning as 70 mile an hour winds and torrential rain was the forecast for South Wales. Fortunately we were just on the fringe of the bad weather and although it rained all day it wasn't too heavy and it wasn't at all windy.
We took the service bus to St David's and then the Celtic Coaster to Whitesands Bay where we indulged in a hot drink before setting off.

Whitesands Bay

Whitesands Bay

It doesn't look very appealing in the rain does it. It's a good job we saw it in the sun a couple of years ago.
We set off in a northerly direction this time to walk to Abereiddy over the rocky outcrops of St David's head. It was a bit difficult following the path through the heather but we managed not to get lost (keep the sea on the left!) My photos are all a bit blurry today as my camera isn't waterproof.

 We had a small hill to negotiate today and there was quite a lot of up and down before we arrived at the beach at Abereiddy.

We had quite a long wait for the bus there but amused ourselves by having a cup of tea from the van on the beach and spent a lot of time in the toilet as it had a roof on it! Fortunately the bus arrived on time with all its tyres intact and we went back to St David's and had a very nice hot meal in The Bishops before returning to Fishguard.

Day 2 Fishguard to Goodwick and Abercastle to Abereiddy

We had a short section of path to do from Fishguard to Goodwick so we soon got that bit done walking along the Marine Drive into Goodwick.

Lower Fishguard

Lower Fishguard

The sea front at Goodwick has three large mosaics as well as a nice cafe which we had time to visit before catching the bus to Abercastle.

 

The weather was much drier today and sunny but there was still a cold wind blowing so we needed to keep on the move. Our walk was shorter today because we had extended the walk yesterday. We walked to Porthgain and then on to Abereiddy where we visited a flooded slate quarry called the Blue Lagoon.

Abercastle

Lots of badger holes on the coast path

stone circle

The Blue Lagoon

Porthgain

We had plenty of time before the bus so we walked back the two miles to Porthgain and had tea and scones in The Shed. It would have been fish and chips but we were there at just the wrong time. All we had to do now was wait for the bus.......and wait........and wait........and wait. Half an hour later  the bus came limping along with one flat tyre at the back. Now we were assured this would be OK as there were four tyres at the back so as long as we went slowly and nothing else went wrong we would get back......sometime! On top of this there was a new driver learning the route who didn't have much of a clue where he was and had a problem finding the right gear. The regular driver Michelle was on board thankfully or we might still be there. We eventually arrived back in Fishguard at 8.15pm.

Barbara and Ann return to Pembroke part 3 Day 1

Well here we are back in Pembrokeshire to complete our journey along the coastal path. This time we chose to stay in Lower Fishguard at Morawel B&B and what a good choice that turned out to be. A four star B&B at a very reasonable price with a delicious breakfast that included a lovely platter of fresh fruit each morning, cooked breakfast and home made Welsh cakes with home made raspberry jam.

Breakfast

Andrew and Theresa who run the B&B have a great deal of local knowledge and gave good advice on which way round to do the walks and what to look out for on the way.

Irish Ferry

The weather wasn't as kind to us this year and our first day was a wet one for most of the day. We caught the coastal Strumble Shuttle bus to Strumble Head and picked up the path at Porthsychan Bay

Porthyschan Bay

Strumble Head Lighthouse

 and continued south past Pwll Deri YHA to Aber Bach, Abermawr and then on to Abercastle.

Pwll Deri YHA

Abermawr

Abercastle

We arrived about an hour before the bus was due and like most of these little bays there aren't any tea shops. However we got lucky here as a family staying in a holiday cottage near the bus stop made us a nice cup of tea!

The bus duly arrived on time and we bought a Chinese Takeaway to eat back at the B&B where we were invited to eat in front of a log fire watching the BAFTAS on TV. It was just like being at home!