192 Stackpole and Bosherston

Posted on July 16, 2015 by Ruth Livingstone

The bus driver is highly critical of my plans. Why am I walking to Castlemartin on a Thursday? I should wait until Saturday when the firing range will be open to the public and I can walk along the coast. I should go and walk somewhere else today.

When I explain I must walk the coast in sequence, and can’t pick and choose, he raises his eyebrows in disgust. ‘Oh, you’re one of those,’ he says.

The bus – the Pembroke Coastal Cruiser – bounces along the country lanes, going down every dead-end and visiting every beach it can find along the way. It takes 90 minutes to cover the short distance from Pembroke to Stackpole Quay,  so my walk begins rather late. It’s nearly midday by the time I reach Barafundle Bay.

01 Barafundle Bay again, Ruth walking in Pembrokeshire

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191 Manorbier to Stackpole Quay

Posted on July 15, 2015 by Ruth Livingstone

I catch the bus back to Manorbier and spend a long time on the beach, just soaking up the views and taking photographs. It rained last night and the humidity of the last few days has been flushed out of the air. Everything is crisp and fresh.

Manorbier beach, Ruth's coastal walk through Pembrokeshire

In fact, today is one of those glorious summer days you dream about, with hardly a cloud in the sky. The sea is a tropical shade of turquoise and the air dazzlingly clear. Continue reading →

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190 Tenby to Manorbier

Posted on June 12, 2015 by Ruth Livingstone

The humid weather continues, and the BBC forecast predicts thunderstorms arriving at around 1pm this afternoon.

I was planning to walk from Tenby to Freshwater East, but instead I decide to cut today’s walk short. My new plan is to be safely under cover in a pub in Manorbier by lunch time, just before the storm breaks. So, anticipating an easy 8 mile stroll, I set off from Tenby and begin my walk along the magnificent South Beach.

01 South Beach, Tenby, Ruth walking the Pembrokeshire Coast Path
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189 (pm) Amroth to Tenby

Posted on June 11, 2015 by Ruth Livingstone

After lunch, I ask the bartender to refill my water bottles. Then I leave the pub and cross the road to walk next to the shore. I’m looking forward to reaching the next village – Amroth – and passing over the border into Pembrokeshire, because this will mean I’m finally joining the famous Pembrokeshire Coast Path.

It comes as a surprise to find a marker plinth and realise I’m already there! So this is the start of the official Pembrokeshire Path? I feel a tingle of excitement. I’d been looking forward to this moment. A photograph is necessary…

Beginning of the Pembrokeshire Coast Path, at Amroth, Ruth's coastal walk around the UK

… and it’s also time to swap maps. I put away OS 177 and open up OL 36. Hello, new friend! The double-sided OL36 map should see me through almost as far as St Davids, by which time I will be more than 1/2 way along the Pembrokeshire Coast Path. Continue reading →

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189 (am) Pendine to Amroth

Posted on June 11, 2015 by Ruth Livingstone

Last night I moved, by train, from Carmarthen to a B&B in Tenby, and this morning I have to catch the bus back to Pendine. The journey takes an hour, with the bus rocking and rolling along the narrow lanes in a drunken fashion. I’m always surprised so few people travel by bus because it’s a great way to see the countryside. A funeral party gets on and then off somewhere near Amroth, and a couple of walkers a few stops later. By the time the bus reaches Pendine, I am the only passenger left.

I walk along the beach and take some photographs. Straight ahead is Dolwen Point with Gilman Point behind.

Pendine and Gilman Point, Ruth walking the Wales Coast Path

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188 pm Laugharne to Pendine

Posted on June 10, 2015 by Ruth Livingstone

What’s so special about Laugharne? The poet, Dylan Thomas, lived here during the last years of his life, and is buried in the churchyard. The rest of the world seems to know this (including many of my fellow coastal walkers), but it was news to me!

Below is a photo of the Boat House, where Dylan and his family stayed. They would have enjoyed  the unspoilt and wonderful view across the River Taf. It’s a familiar landscape to me, being the route of my walk yesterday.

Dylan Thomas's boat house, Ruth walking in Laugharne

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188 am – St Clears to Laugharne

Posted on June 10, 2015 by Ruth Livingstone

I set off from St Clears on a bright and sunny morning, heading down the east side of the River Taf, back towards the sea.

The buildings along the A4066 are somewhat unloved. I pass a dilapidated shop and a closed-down pub. But, further along, a cheerful garden makes me smile. Check out the flowerpot men.

flowerpot men, Ruth walking through St Clears

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187 Llansteffan to St Clears

Posted on June 9, 2015 by Ruth Livingstone

I catch the first bus of the day from Carmarthen to Llansteffan. It’s two weeks since my last walking expedition in Wales, and this time I have left both my husband and my car behind, so I am relying totally on public transport. (Thank goodness for Traveline Cymru – which takes some of the pain out of the planning process.)

Llansteffan is both a seaside resort and an agricultural community. It has an old Norman church and, nearby, a strange white building with a curved front looks like a shop, but is actually the Old Pound; not used for dogs, but for holding stray sheep.

02 Llansteffan church and pound, Ruth in Wales Continue reading →

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186 Llangain to Llansteffan

Posted on May 25, 2015 by Ruth Livingstone

I set off from the church in Llangain, and walk along narrow country lanes, where nature is busily reclaiming the central section of tarmac. The verges are lined by spring flowers and I’m surrounded by the heavy scent of cow parsley.

01 country lanes near Llangain, Ruth on the Wales Coast Path

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185 pm – Carmarthen to Llangain

Posted on May 24, 2015 by Ruth Livingstone

The town of Carmarthen lies on the west bank of the river Towy. I walk past the station (on the east bank) and over a new-looking pedestrian bridge that arches delicately over the river. From the span of the bridge, I have a good view of the road bridge, further  upstream.

a01 Carmarthen bridge, Ruth walking the Wales Coast Path

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