A Labyrinth of Lanes

We have been very lucky with the cottages that we have booked to date and the current one is no exception. Our cottage is what was the Coach House for a Manor House, the stables below now being the car shed for the big house. The Manor was built in 1842, the year my family moved to New Zealand, by a wealthy ship builder and has been in the current family for nearly a hundred years. It was used as a medical practice and when that moved "into town" the house was restored by our hosts mother and our cottage converted from the Coach House. The Manor is a listed building.

Our Cottage with the Big House in the background.

This is the first cottage that we have had which has separate dining room, two bedrooms, walk-in shower and everything one could want. 

It was from here that we went exploring on the Pen - Lynn a peninsular in Northern Wales and home top Pwllheli where we are staying. The peninsular is criss crossed with numerous lanes and I think we probably drove along most of them at some stage during the day going through small towns and villages and finding many excellent coastal walks on the windswept tip of the peninsular. Here the gorse can only struggle to a few inches in height and trees grow less towards the sun and more in the direction which takes them from the pursuing wind. There is not much over a meter in height. This, however, is still a great place for a walk. I am beginning to appreciate what makes a rambler want to do what they do. 

   

Mrs. Currin enjoying a wee walk amongst gorse and heather

    Bardsey Island     

Off the  end of Peninsular is Bardsey Island where in days gone by Pilgrims would flock to visit the place where 20,000 saints were supposed to have come from. There was no ferry to take us on our pilgrimage should we have so wished. Some of these windswept places take you by surprise when on rounding a headland is a bay with a small village. The National Trust have again fought the good fight and rescued many of these places from possible commercialisation by buying them and controlling their use.   

You never  know what will be around the next corner.

( An abandoned? fishing camp.)

All in all we had a fabulous day and all within a radius of 30 miles.

Tomorrow we are hopefully going to complete some unfinished business by doing the train ride to the top of Mt Snowdon, so an early start beckons and a wee prayer for the weather to be a triumph for the forecasters and stay fine and warm.

I will let you know how it goes.

             Around every corner is something different.

Oh! I almost forgot. We were going for a walk in yet another little bay when we spotted a couple of people engaged in what we thought was a little sketching, but on drawing closer they were revealed to be TWITCHERS. This was a particularly barren spot and not a bird was to be seen yet they had erected a white board on which they had noted some twenty species that they had spied today. They looked happy.....but.

Twitchers, their patience was rewarded.

Now that is all that we did today so once again I bid you farewell and wish you all the best.

Take care and for those who still need convincing........GO THE MAKOS!!!!!!

David