A pub stop and a night near Cymer Abbey

Thursday 10 July 2025

Nido's parked up in the Vanner campsite, just outside Dolgellau, with a view of the ruins of Cymer Abbey and Cadair Idris in the distance.  It's been a hot day, so once we arrived, we chilled out in the shade, taking Salty for the occasional walk down to the river for cooling dip (for him!).  It's my 62nd birthday; for the past couple of years we've been in Scotland at this time, but as we're not visiting mainland Europe this year, we're instead spending a month in Scotland in late August/September, including two weeks in the Outer Hebrides.

Yesterday we left the campsite and took a short drive to the Purple Trees plant and tree nursery, which we spotted on the drive in on Sunday.  The co-owner was watering when we arrived and we had a good chat.  It was really interesting to hear he spends two months in the Autumn in forests collecting tree seeds, ready to plant in the nursery.  We bought six plants which are now travelling with us in the van, spending the nights outside in the cooler air.  Moving on we parked up in a shaded area at the Hafod Estate, now owned by the National Trust.  We had a lovely walk down a chasm to the waterfall, before following the river, then passing through flower meadows and ancient forest.  We had a lazy lunch sat outside the van in the shade of the trees, which was welcome given the hot sunshine.

Pampered plants

Chilled dog!

Last night's park-up was at the Halfway Inn in Pisgah, high on the top of a ridge with views down into the valley and across to the other side.  We'd seen this pub on a Welsh language programme - Cefn Glawd - and they were very happy to let us park up for the night in exchange for a meal in the pub. We both enjoyed a very tasty lasagne, a couple of drinks and a quiet night in their car park.  

It was very hot this morning when I opened the van door and took Salty for a walk.  So a quick breakfast and we drove to Lidl in Aberystwyth for a quick groceries top-up before arriving at Vanner campsite.  It's a mix of static caravans and a couple of fields for tents, motorhomes and touring caravans.  It's quite relaxed with none of the myriad signs and many pages of rules you often find at these sites.  We walked Salty down to the river and he enjoyed laying down in the flowing water.  Sadly it was too shallow for us to have a dip, so we had to be content with sitting under the shade of the awning. 

Later we took a walk around the abbey ruins.  It's small so didn't take long.  Cistercian monks were more than religious men. Worldly Cistercians were also pioneering sheep farmers and some of the first rural entrepreneurs. Their network of abbeys included Cymer, idyllically set at the mouth of the Mawddach Estuary.  Founded in 1198, it was one of their lesser settlements, suffering greatly during the conflicts between Wales and England in the 13th century. Nonetheless, substantial remains survive from this simple abbey church.

Dinner tonight was stir-fried vegetables with Salmon and we spent the rest of the evening chilling out and enjoying the cooling air.  We head home tomorrow. Our son is driving up on Saturday and, if his car survives the journey!, me, him and Salty will be off on a Boys' Road Trip on Sunday for three nights; Cathy is very much looking forward to the peace and quiet!

A few days in Ceredigion

 Tuesday 8 July 2025

Nido's parked up on the Nantyrhelyg campsite in the village of Pontrhydfendigaid, about 13 miles south-east of Aberystwyth, in the county of Ceredigion.  It's a beautiful part of Wales, with rolling hills and deep valleys, many small hamlets and smallholdings dotted around.  The Cambrian mountains are visible to the east, separating this area from towns such as Rhayader on the other side.  A footpath trail runs through the campsite which, if walked north, takes you to Devil's Bridge.  The campsite is on a 12 acre smallholding, with lovely views all around and red kites hovering overhead.  At £15 per night including EHU it's an absolute bargain and we've had it all to ourselves. The owners have kindly provided free bantam eggs; six make an excellent breakfast omelette for us to share!

Since our first trip of the year - to Fairbourne and nearby - we've had a couple of trips away in the van, including exploring the Montgomery canal and visiting St Fagans National Museum of History near Cardiff, but I didn't blog.

We arrived here on Sunday, having driven directly from home.  Once settled in we took Salty for a walk along some of the footpath trail, before passing the primary school and walking down into the village.  Until recently there were two pubs but both are now closed.  However, the village shop and post office is well-stocked and friendly.  After the journey here and dinner, we were soon ready for bed.

Yesterday we took a circular walk of about 5 miles.  After the first section along a sunken lane, we very quickly started to ascend the steep slopes of Pen y Bannau, stopping several times to admire the view.....and get our breath back!  From the trig point at the summit we had extensive views over the Cambrian mountains and beyond.  The descent was gentler and took us through bracken and fields, down to the ruins of Strata Florida Abbey.  Strata Florida Abbey (Vale of Flowers in Latin), also known as Ystrad Fflur, is a former Cistercian monastery in Wales with a rich history spanning over 850 years. It was established in 1164 by white-robed monks from Whitland Abbey and became a significant religious and cultural center, known for its association with Welsh princes and poets.   It was free to enter although I did give a donation in the small visitor centre.  We enjoyed our walk around what is left of the abbey, admiring the original decorative floor tiles, before our picnic at one of the tables inside the abbey ruins, with swifts diving and screeching overhead.

The return walk took us along the river Teifi, back into the village. After a quick stop at the village shop it was back to the van to sit outside with a cup of tea, before dinner at the picnic bench on our pitch.  I stayed up a little later to catch up on the Tour de France highlights before a quick read and sleep.

Just admiring the view...not resting - honest!

Some sort of Pilgrim statue on top of the hill

Graves of the monks and landowners

This morning I cycled around some of the small hamlets on fairly quiet roads, although at one point a group of about 50 motorbikes passed me at speed as I puffed up yet another steep hill, with some hairpins bends in the mix; I'm not as fit as I used to be!  The countryside, quiet hamlets and stone buildings strongly reminded me of cycling in France.  Despite the hills, I really enjoyed the 18 mile route and freewheeling the downhill sections made up for the slow slog upwards.

After lunch we walked back into the village and down a road towards the abbey to explore Coed Dolgeod and Coed Cnwch, a mix of deciduous woodland and bog, with the odd small pond here and there.  It's a lovely place to walk around with clear paths and a great variety of trees, plants and wildlife.  By the time we returned to the van I was bushed, so Cathy made a cup of of tea and we relaxed in the sunshine, watching the red kites circling overhead. I cooked dinner and again we sat at the picnic bench until the evening turned a bit cooler.

Tomorrow we're moving on and it's forecast to turn a lot hotter, so we'll aim to find somewhere shady to park up, chill out and have a short walk before moving on to our next park-up.

First trip of 2025

Sunday 6 April 2025

Nido's parked up on an aire in Fairbourne in North Wales, about 1.5 hours drive from home. There's five pitches - with a service point - and the option of electric hook up. It's £12 per night without EHU. We've stayed in the adjacent car park previously, when the aire was being built, but this is our first stop on one of the hardstanding pitches. The steam train station is just opposite and next door is a hotel/bar, which wasn't open the last time we stayed here. With good weather over the past week, and more to come, we fancied a short trip away. So this was an easy place to get to.

Fairbourne's an unusual coastal village. It was developed in the late 19th century by Arthur McDougall, a flour magnate, as a seaside resort. Originally a salt marsh and grazing land, it was transformed with the arrival of the Cambrian Coast Railway in the 1890s, boosting its appeal. The village became known for its scenic beach and narrow-gauge Fairbourne Railway, initially built to carry building materials. Over time, it evolved into a tourist destination and the narrow gauge steam railway still runs between the station opposite the aire and the head of the estuary overlooking Barmouth. It has a relaxed seaside atmosphere, with small cul de sacs of individual bungalows and holiday homes. In recent years, Fairbourne has faced uncertainty due to climate change and rising sea levels, making it a focal point in national conversations about managed retreat.  But life seems to continue in spite of this and we saw a couple of houses being built.

We arrived just after midday and I paid using the 'PaybyPhone' app. The kettle was soon on and we had tea and cake before walking on to the beach, which is only about 400m away. Blue skies and sunshine battled a cool NE breeze, but nevertheless we were in shorts and t-shirts. Salty enjoyed a splash in the sea and a good run around on the sand before we crossed the road and followed the Coast Path. After about 1.5 miles we reached the path heading towards Barmouth, crossing the estuary on the old wooden footbridge which runs alongside the railway line, which opened in 1867. Barmouth was busy on a sunny Sunday afternoon, but we found a bench to enjoy an ice cream (including doggy ice cream!) before reversing our route back to the van. I'd prepared tonight's dinner at home - fried chicken and a mixed bean and orange salad - before we settled in the van with a cup of tea, both of us glowing from the early Spring sunshine and keen breeze.

After the (albeit short) journey here and a 7 mile walk, we were quite tired and headed to bed early - that's our normal routine in the van!

Monday 7 April 2025

After a peaceful night's sleep I was up and walking Salty along the beach wall path on yet another sunny day, but very chilly in the early morning breeze. We enjoyed a relaxed breakfast and I serviced the van before we drove up to the point overlooking Barmouth, with a plan to have a short walk. But the small parking area was already busy, so we be about-turned and drove to our next stop, which was only about 10 minutes away.

Fegla Fach Farm CL is an absolute beauty of a stop. The five pitches are spread around an old quarry site, surrounded by rocks and old oak trees, with uninterrupted views over the Mawddach Estuary and the mountains beyond. The owner was very helpful and we followed him on his old quad bike to our pitch. After a quick mooch about to check out the rocky beach, Cathy boiled the kettle for a flask of tea and made a packed lunch, including doggy biscuits for Salty of course! We followed a footpath through rowan and blackthorn trees, soon reaching the Mawddach trail, a walking and cycling path along an old railway line running from Barmouth to Dolgellau, right alongside the banks of the estuary. We walked for a few miles, sharing the path with cyclists. On the way we stopped at a picnic bench for lunch, before carrying on passed Craig Wen (a campsite we stayed at on New Year's Eve a few years ago). Just beyond we left the trail and walked up a marked 2.3 mile route through the forest at Coed-y-Garth. This was a peaceful circular route and we had it all to ourselves, before returning to the trail and reversing our route back to the van. Both tired and aching (we're feeling all of our 60-plus years!), we sat on some rocks down by the stony beach with a cup of tea as the tide flowed in, watching oystercatchers flying past.

Dinner tonight was a tin of Asda chilli con carne and rice; tasty with the addition of some onion and garlic, topped with yoghurt and a sprinkling of paprika. Now, the breeze has dropped and the sun's about to set into the sea behind us. Salty's on the cab passenger seat watching the sheep wandering around and it'll soon be time for his final walk before another early bedtime. I brought some pens and a sketch book with me and had thought about sitting out to sketch the mountains in the distance. But the failing light now means the contrast is lost and all I can see is a dark silhouette against a pink dusk sky; perhaps if I'm awake early enough tomorrow morning, I might be able to catch them in the early sunrise light. [Next morning note - I didn't!].

Tuesday 8 April 2025

Nido's parked up on an aire on the outskirts of Dolgellau. We're the only ones here, which is surprising given it's a great facility, including a service point and drive over grey waste disposal. I booked it before we left home via the Aire Stop website (they also have an app). There's a shortage of places for motorhomes to park up around this part of the Snowdonia National Park; many of the car parks are small or have height barriers, so places like this are very welcome and I hope they are used or they may disappear.

Last night was cold and it was only 8'C in the van when I got up at 0700 to switch on the Truma for hot showers. Once the sun appeared above the mountains though, it soon started to warm up. After breakfast we headed north, past Dolgellau. We'd wanted to visit Cymer Abbey ruins, but the car park had a height barrier, so Plan B was a car park that we could use. On arrival there were only a few places left and it was on a slope, but it was fine for us. We took the 3.5 mile Llwybr Cynwch (Precipice Path) walk, which contours around a mountain, with steep drops down one side. But the views all around were excellent, including Cadair Idris and down the Mawddach Estuary, with the Barmouth rail bridge in the far distance. It was a hot day with little wind, so we took our time over the sometimes rough and narrow paths. The cars passing on the Barmouth road beneath us looked tiny, but their noise was reflected up the valley sides, so it was good to work our way around down to walk alongside peaceful Llyn Cynwch and back to the car park.

I spent some time looking for somewhere to park up and chill out for the day, but options were very limited. In the end we returned to Fairbourne and parked up overlooking the estuary for a lazy lunch. Cathy stayed in the van to do her Welsh homework while I took Salty for a walk along the sea wall and on to the beach. We left at about 4.30pm and drove up to this aire. I walked back into the town centre and ordered kebab and chips; we were ready for some junk food! Actually they were very tasty and quite healthy with the salad and pitta bread (if you ignore the chips!). There was some road noise for the first couple of hours as people returned home from work, but it's quietened down now. Hopefully it'll stay that way for the rest of the night.

Wednesday 9 April 2025

It was indeed a quiet night on the aire and some traffic noise only started around 7am, when I got up to switch on the heating; it was another clear, cold night. Heading home today, the plan was to visit the ancient Atlantic oak forest at the Ceunant Llennyrch National Nature Reserve. The only available parking is a lay-by on the A487 about 200m from the entrance. But on arrival it was clear it was too narrow for us to park. It's a great shame as it looked like a lovely place to visit, but it's no use if there's limited access. So we carried on north and spent a couple of hours by the beach at Dinas Dinlle, sat in the van having lunch, out of the strong, chilly NE wind.

So a short first trip of the year. We've covered most of this area so definitely need to travel a bit further. There are some area of mid-Wales worth a visit and the border around Shropshire is an easy journey for a few days.