From East to West.
August 11th marks a significant date this year as it was Bobby’s 40th birthday. With our intended plans of Croatia scuppered thanks to Covid we deliberated about what to do…
Our travel plans this year were supposed to be Manchester in February (which we did do), Antwerp in March, West Wales in April and Croatia in August. After looking at options from Scotland to Jersey, we reconsidered Wales and I dug a little deeper in the area. I was very pleasantly surprised.
We’d long admired Fforest so it was a toss up between the Granary Lofts (in town) and the Farm (in the countryside). We chose the apartment because we could be self contained as when I booked our holiday it was only a couple of days into the lifting of travel restrictions.
If I could go back in time, I’d probably choose the farm because, by the time we went away, I felt more comfortable around people (albeit at distance) but perhaps more importantly Stanley needed the social contact from other children. This preference is based on visiting the farm to enjoy their barbecue one evening where we met Sian and James the owners. The food and views are very special and the other guests we met and spoke to made us feel so welcome. It felt like a traditional wholesome family holiday.
Within days I was messaging friends saying we must come back together with our families.
Our holiday was the peak of the hot weather in Norwich (our home city), but it was far milder and changeable in Wales. When we checked the weather, the entire week was forecast with rain. We thought, okay, if that is how it’s going to be, there is no use moaning, we can do this, we’ll have to get creative. .
On some good advice we had packed for every eventuality from swimwear to waterproofs. We soon discovered that a day in Wales can go through an entire season. I found the fog in particular just breathtaking as it rolled across the land. It felt very filmic and reminded me of our January holiday to Dungeness.
From our home for the week in Cardigan on the river (Afon Teifi) we travelled no more than an hour or so in either direction to explore the beaches. Beaches that suited us/Stanley were Mwnt, Tresaith, Llangranog, New Quay and Poppit Sands. We travelled further south past Fishguard but the waves got a little choppier which Stanley doesn’t like, so we stuck to the bays and coves nearby. Of course the choppier waves would be perfect for surfers, so perhaps we can return when he’s a more confident swimmer.
On Bobby’s birthday we begun the day slowly and, before lunch, we headed to New Quay for our pre-booked dolphin spotting trip. Again the weather was really changeable and when we left the harbour it was foggy which only made for a more atmospheric journey. About half way on our trip we spotted a mother and her calf and then another and most incredibly a pair flanked the boat and followed us.
After, we headed around the town and luckily stumbled across a restaurant with a space for lunch (as it was a Tuesday, so firmly in the help out to eat out scheme). The rest of the afternoon we spent on New Quay beach which for Stanley was perfect. Shallow water and not that busy. Most people stayed in the harbour but we followed some steep steps and found a beach that felt like were in Greece. After an afternoon with Stanley’s newly acquired inflatable toucan named ‘purple’ we went to Tresaith to see the waterfall and finished the day with fish and chips overlooking Mwnt.
Other highlights of our trip were the sweet treats and coffee from Cwrst in Cardigan. A must. And I think my personal favourite experience was the boat trip with Heritage Canoes. The three of us were in a canoe, there were four other couples and a family. A really knowledgable guide (Dennis) took us along the river. Having canoed a lot around the Broads National Park, this was an entirely different experience. We likened it to a Welsh Amazon. My only disappointment is that I didn’t try any wild swimming in the river. I’d forgotten my costume that day. It looked so appealing. Still, now I have a very good reason to return!
A special mention for food has got to go to Pizatipi, I’m hungry just thinking about those pizzas. We customised ours and I love a bit of spice so I added in chilli flakes – oh boy, it was good. We couldn’t get a table at the Harbour Master on Bobby’s birthday but later in the week we visited and we both had delicious lobsters. We ate outside with views over the harbour and it was really good.
Overall west Wales surpassed all of our expectations. The landscape, the people, value for money, even the weather was better than predicted. There isn’t anything I could fault. Looking forward to a return trip (with friends) in 2021.
Words and pictures by photographer Fiona Burrage, images are mostly from my iPhone as well as my Sony A7riii.
Recommendations.
Eat
Sleep
Fforest Granary Lofts & Fforest Farm
Trips
Beaches
Poppit Sands
New Quay
Mwnt
Tresaith
Llangranog.
In 2018 I began a 12 month long project to document Winterton-on-Sea across the seasons and in all it's wild, raw and rugged beauty.