It's been an ambition for a long time to stay at the Lighthouse Cottages at St. Ann's Head in Pembrokeshire. There are two lighthouses at the Head, the high light was retired over 100 years ago and now has an observation tower where the lantern used to be housed and the main building has been converted to holiday accommodation. The low lighthouse is run by Trinity House and watches over the entrance to the busy Milford Haven waterway.
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St. Ann's Head Lighthouse, Pembrokeshire, Wales
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There is a row of lovely Lighthouse cottages adjacent to the Trinity House light and all offer wonderful views of the lighthouse overlooking the sea.
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St. Ann's Head Lighthouse, Pembrokeshire, Wales
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From the Head it's a delightful 50 minute walk along the narrow lane that cuts through sprawling sun-kissed fields to Dale, which is an unspoilt Pembrokeshire village in a picturesque natural harbour. Dale offers a quiet waterfront vista featuring a couple of decent restaurants, the Coco Brasserie at the Yacht Club and the excellent Griffin Pub.
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| St. Ann's Head Lighthouse, Pembrokeshire, Wales |
The three hour walk around the peninsula on the well-signed Pembrokeshire Coast Path takes in Dale, St Ann's Head, and the mesmerising Great Castle Head vista. The cliff top walk is a delight and highly recommended.
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| St. Ann's Head Lighthouse High, Pembrokeshire, Wales |
Another walk beyond Dale, heading further along the Milford Haven Estuary you'll find the Great Castle Head Lighthouse which is in need of a little TLC. Carry along the coastal path and after dipping into some splendid sheltered beaches you'll find the modern Little Castle Head Lighthouse doing it's job looking after the very busy waterway.
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| Little Castle Head Lighthouse from the Pembrokeshire coastal path |
An hours drive from St .Ann's Head is Britain's smallest city, St David's. It is a very pretty city boasting an ornate cathedral and a suitably dramatic ruin of Bishop's Palace nestled amongst a lush green canopy. There's a few decent pubs and most importantly to us it's the base for several companies that offer sea trips to the nearby islands of Ramsey, Skomer and Skokholm.
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| Dale, Pembrokeshire, Wales |
The boat trips depart from the nearby St. Justinian's and we joined an early evening boat trip which was essentially a bird watching trip but we got to see distant views of South Bishop Lighthouse on Emsger Island as we circled Ramsey Island admiring the puffins.
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| One of the three beaches at Tenby, Pembrokeshire, Wales |
Exploring Pembrokeshire further, the Victoria Seaside town of Tenby was a pleasant surprise. It's a busy bustling place but stretches over three beaches meaning there is plenty of room for everyone to find a spot to enjoy an ice cream in the sun. There's a lot do see and do, and the coin the old adage, Tenby has something for everyone.
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| Tenby harbour, Pembrokeshire, Wales |
Off shore from Tenby is Caldey Island and boats run from the main harbour to the island every twenty minutes or so. It's a lovely calming journey which is good preparation for the island itself. The island is home to a working monastery established over 1,000 years ago, a lighthouse and a plethora of coastal paths. The centre piece of the monastery is reminiscent of Port Merion and is suitably quirky with an old red phone box thrown in for good measure. The island is a bastion of clam and serenity. The only sounds are the sea and the birds and it is incredibly therapeutic. It provides almost instant relief from the day to day stresses of modern life. It was a real highlight of the trip and the lure of a life of a monk never felt so appealing.
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| Caldey Island, Pembrokeshire, Wales |
The visit to the lighthouse was a pilgrimage for my wife as she returned to where her love of lighthouses began on a visit to the island as small child. It was my first visit and the lighthouse is a beauty holding pride of place on the south side of the island.
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| Caldey Island Lighthouse, Pembrokeshire, Wales |
Next stop was another lighthouse return. This time to the lighthouse at Nash Point where we got married ten years earlier. I chatted about Nash Point in a previous blog which can be found here.
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| Burry Port lighthouse, Wales |
On route to Nash Point we dropped in on the small lighthouse at Burry Port lighthouse which had a lovely beach and a real community thing going on. It's definitely worth a detour and again it's somewhere that would have remained undiscovered to us if for not for seeking out a lighthouse.
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| Nash Point Lighthouse, Vale of Glamorgan, Wales |
Less enticing was the hunt for the pier lighthouse at Porthcawl. It was our first experience of summer madness on this trip and the seaside town was swarming with an army of very pink holidaymakers doing what they do best in the sunshine. Instead we opted to cruise the promenade from the safety of the car and swiftly escape to the isolation of our beloved Nash Point.
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| The Glamorgan heritage coastal walk, Wales |
It was fabulous to find the Horseshoe Inn in Marcross had survived the pandemic and it served a quite stunning pint of cold Peroni. It appears many local pubs and restaurants have survived lockdown after fearing the worst. A special shout out to Il Vesuvio, a family run Italian In Llantwit Major that hosted our wedding contingent (the night before), all the all those years ago. It was still there and serving up excellent food.
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| Nash Point fog horn building, Wales |
After a few days enjoying Nash Point and the Glamorgan heritage coastal walks it was time for our final stop on our South West Wales tour. We were heading to Cardigan on the west coast but there was a couple of lighthouses to bag along the way. On route to the main attraction was the Fishguard North Breakwater Lighthouse which can't be accessed directly but can be seen from several vantage points.
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Nash Point Lighthouse, Vale of Glamorgan, Wales
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Next up was the stunning Strumble Head Lighthouse which is at the end of a typical windy Pembrokeshire lane. It is an astonishing place, and in a very similar fashion to the Nubble lighthouse in Maine on the east coast of the USA, it's situated on it's own proud little island a stone's throw from the mainland.
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The two Nash Point Lighthouses, Vale of Glamorgan, Wales
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Onto Cardigan and we stayed in a pleasant country house hotel a short walk from the coastal village of Tresaith. Tresaith is connected by the Ceredigion Coast Path to Aberporth and both villages have a pub called the Ship Inn. And we can recommend them both!
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Strumble Head Lighthouse, Pembrokeshire, Wales
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South Wales promised and delivered a much needed laid-back break. The UK was taking the first cautious steps to re-opening and and the seclusion we enjoyed was complimented perfectly with the opportunity to a enjoy several decent pints of beer sat outside (or inside) a pub. I'll never take a draft pint in sunshine for granted again.
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St. Ann's Head Lighthouse, Pembrokeshire, Wales
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