Sunday 6th August

Ty Cerrig is a lovely quiet working farm situated between Bala and Dolgellau in North Wales, run by Myfanwye and her husband John.  Well it has stopped raining, but it’s still a bit cloudy, however we have packed for whatever weather comes our way!  We took a drive down to Barmouth today which is the local seaside resort, for a quick look around.  The heavens opened and I delved into my rucksack for my Berghaus jacket only to find I had packed two pairs of waterproof trousers and no jacket! So we returned to the car, Jane nice and dry and me soaked to the skin.   We then decided on a drive around the vicinity to get a feel for the place, but the rain got worse so we decided to buy the Sunday papers and head back to the caravan for a lazy afternoon.

Monday 7th August 

Off to Portmeirion today by the scenic route. The sat-nav gave us the option of going over the hills or through the valley.  We chose the former, and what a stunning journey it proved to be.   After having to open several gates I was a little concerned that we were going  the right way, so I stopped at a farm along the way and the farmer confirmed that we were headed in the right direction.

The peace and quiet in the hills was wonderful and we didn’t see another car for an hour.

Just as well because this was about the widest bit of road that we travelled.

I was a little concerned that the farmer might have been pulling my leg when I saw this sign

Portmeirion is situated on a peninsula near Porthmadog, and for those of you who are old enough to remember (not me!) this was used as the setting for the 60s T.V drama, The Prisoner.  I thought the place was nice but Jane thought it was a bit twee, but we both agreed that the surrounding area was absolutely stunning.

The golden sands stretch for miles

Not too many people explore beyond the village, and they miss a lot !

The walk to the headland was well worth it!

Whilst we were in Portmeirion we got a call from Dave and Kate who were in the nearby area (although it turns out that nothing in this part of Wales is nearby!) so we met up in Bala and had a lovely meal and a great chat .

Tuesday 8th August

The weather forecast for today wasn’t so good, so we decided to head for Wrexham to go to see Dunkirk at the cinema and to get in a walk if the rain held off.

The weather was kind to us and so after some helpful advice from a very lovely lady in the nearby country park we walked from the viaduct to the Pontcysyllte aqueduct.  As I might have mentioned before I’m not great with heights, so I was pleased that I managed to walk across (and back) this great feat of engineering .

The rain started on the return walk back to the car,

But it was mainly under the trees, so we didn’t get too wet .  We then went into Wrexham for our trip to the cinema. I found it a great difficulty finding a parking place, when you have two bikes on the roof of your car it adds another dimension to worry about, and this obviously rules out multi story car parks.  I was pleased to find a normal car park but disappointed to find that the maximum time limit was 2 hours.  I asked a local  young lady if she knew of anywhere I could park, she said she worked near by and she phoned her boss who let me park in their car park for free.  Have I said how lovely everyone we meet here is?  I can’t get over what a kind thing that was to do for a complete stranger!

Wednesday 9th August

We had a cycle ride along a disused railway line from Dolgellau to Barmouth.

The sun was shining

The scenery was beautiful

And Jane was pleased that there were no hills!

Thursday 10th August

The weather was looking good today so we drove to Snowdon in a vain attempt to catch the train to the summit. By the time we arrived that days allocation had sold out, so we checked the forecast and booked tickets for Saturday lunch time.

So whilst we were up in this corner of Wales we thought we would explore. First stop Caernarfon Castle.

Then over to Anglesey.

Then to Penrhyn Castle in Bangor………..Didn’t we have a lovely day, etc etc!

Llandudno was our last port of call before our return journey to the campsite.

With all the typical sights and sounds of a seaside holiday resort, I was still surprised to see a Punch and Judy show which still managed to enthrall the crowd of young children.

The pier maintained a little of its Victorian dignity but showed a great deal of its present day tackiness, but the kids seem to love it !