Penmon Point

Saturday 20th April 2024

It was another peaceful night next to Beaumaris Castle and I was joined by about 12 other camper vans and motorhomes.

A lot of overnight parking places on Anglesey have been removed in recent years as I think the council introduce height barriers.

So with not too many options available, clearly Beaumaris is in popular whilst it lasts.

There was no rain overnight and we woke to blue skies and sunshine which was very welcome.

For today's destination, it was a toss up between Newborough Beach or Penmon Point.

I've been to Newborough Beach before and really enjoyed it, but never Penmon Point, so that decided it. 

As much as I like Newborough, Penmon won out.

I knew it was a pay carpark as it's privately owned, but £12.50 for the day ??? Ouch. A bit steep for what it is.

Still it's a great place overlooking Snowdonia, the North Wales coast and the Great Orme. 

I could almost see Saint Trudos church where I was parked the other night.

Penmon Point also overlooks Puffin Island.

There are boat trips from Beaumaris to see the Puffins.

I was hoping to see some from the beach but no such luck, and I'd left my binoculars at home.

So it's been an enjoyable little trip around North Wales, especially so as it's been the first one of the year.

Oh I did some research and the arch walk at Penrhyn Castle is actually a fuchsia walk, not wisteria as I suggested it might be.

I'll bet that looks good hanging with flowers in the summer.

Todays photos . . . . .

I'm heading home tomorrow to avoid the busy traffic on Monday.

Penrhyn Castle and Beaumaris Anglesey

 

Friday 19 April 2024

It was grey and cloudy with intermittent drizzle this morning so I didn't rush anywhere from our overnight parking at the town I can't pronounce, Llanrwst.

Louis had a walk along the river then we chilled after breakfast waiting for the skies to clear, which the weather forecast said was a certainty to happen around 1100 lol, oh yeah ???

Well it did clear but not until about 1200.

By that time we'd had a drive through Betws y Coed. 

I didn't stop as it was still drizzling, and parking always looks a bit limited and expensive for some reason.

So I carried on to Llyn Ogwen in the shadow of Snowdon where we had a cuppa and waited again for it to dry up.

It did eventually and we had a walk along to the National Trust office.

I was here in May last year when the weather was glorious and we walked up to Llyn Idwal which is a fantastic walk and amazing scenery. 

Llyn Idwal and Porthdinllaen, Llyn Peninsula

Llyn Idwal and Porthdinllaen, Llyn Peninsula Wednesday 17th May 2023 After breakfast I set off from Panoramic Walk and headed west into Snowdonia National Park. I've wanted to do a walk...

But not for today, too cold and windy for me and Louis.

After lunch we set off for Penrhyn Castle near Bangor, another National Trust site but one I've not been to before.

It's a rather austere grey granite castle building which on a grey wet day can look a little depressing. 

But thankfully, by the time we arrived the skies had cleared and we walked around the grounds in glorious sunshine, enjoying the spring flowers especially the bluebells.

The walled garden was especially attractive with lots of azaleas and rhododendrons now flowering.

Next stop afer a visit to Tesco was Anglesey, and our destination was the coastal town of Beaumaris overlooking the Menai Straits.

We're on the carpark right next to the castle where they allow overnight parking for the very reasonable price of 6 pounds.

The castle is rather less impressive than I remember, I must be confusing it with somewhere else I think. I didn't go in, just walked around the outside but not much of it appears to remain, it seems only the ground floor has been saved.

The town is quite vibrant and even has a ferris wheel which I don't remember seeing before, overlooking the Menai Straits.

We walked around the town which didn't take too long, and then sat on a bench for half an hour watching the world go by.

The weather forecast for the weekend looks great so I'll try and find somewhere on Anglesey to spend it.

Penrhyn Castle in the sunshine

Another arch walk before the flowers bloom, I think this one is wisteria

They like Gunera here

Not just dragons in Wales

Beaumaris Castle

Menai Straits

Tonights parkup next to Beaumaris Castle

Bodnant Gardens

Thursday 18th April 2024

It was a very quiet night on the Great Orme last night. The wind got up around midnight but it didn't last long, the soon calmed down and I didn't hear a thing after that.

Morning brought blue skies, bright sunshine and not a breath of wind.

After breakfast we set off to Bodnant Gardens about 20 minutes down the A470.

Unusually for formal gardens, they encourage dogs in the grounds so we took full advantage.

It's a National Trust garden famous for it's spring azalea and rhododendron collections.

It is a spectacular sight with them all in bloom stretching along the length of the beautiful river valley.

Unfortunately it was just a little bit early for its other famous attraction, the Laburnum Arch Walk. 

So after walking the length of the gardens it was time for a brew in Ed then onto our parkup for the night at Llanrwst a few miles down the road and no, I don't know how to pronounce it, lol.

It's quite a nice parkup, next to the river Conwy and there are some good riverside walks (paved thankfully) as they've obviously had a lot of rain here over the winter.

The town of Llanrwst has a lovely single track stone bridge (Pont Fawr) over the river with a large hump in the centre so you can't see oncoming cars until you meet in the centre. 

Apparently it provides entertainment for locals in the summer.

Probably frustration too, in equal measure.