An old man needed to see the sea

So he treated himself to the finest coastline Wales has to offer.

So he treated himself to the finest coastline Wales has to offer.

Not a bad way to start the day! Whilst the dog was having a ball I was asked to lead my timid new equine friend through the raging waves! The lady rider kindly allowed me to capture this rather lovely image afterward (Author’s Collection).

Hailing as I do from an island within an island and having grown up either a ten minute drive away or, for two halcyon summers in the 1990’s, a five minute walk from the glorious sights and sounds of a beach, I miss it more than I should perhaps publicly admit to here. I miss the sea too, and not for swimming or fishing but the simple pleasure of simply looking out as far as the eye dare see to see nothing but a blue/green tinged expanse of nothingness. A void. A never ending rolling wave I have no desire to be out in the middle of but rather a pleased spectator of the emptiness and freedom rather than confinement, beautiful nature versus a concreted nurture.

I’ve lived almost as far away from a beach as can possibly be on this island we collectively call the United Kingdom of Fear for over two decades now, and so my hankering for the seaside and the beach only serves to greatly irritate the 14 year old in me who refuses to even consider growing up. When I did kind of grow up and approach that 14th year of life I was either “bunking” the 11p bus ride to the seaside, playing football or cricket on the beach with friends or slowly realising that the only way off this island within a island, a fact which is often cruelly ignored when associated with my hometown of Portsmouth, was north, east or west. If you wanted to travel south you were either on your way to the Isle of Wight (highly recommended) or across the great expanse of the English Channel and onward to France.

But this edition isn’t about my hometown. It’s of a hometown Mother’s hometown Son. An unreliable narrator who’s stuck, stressed and subdued. A daydreamer wrapped in melancholia. A malingerer who works too fast for a quickening world to ever notice.

It comes down to a simple choice apparently: “Get busy living or get busy dying”. So said “Andy” in that epochal cinematic treat (and even better short story) The Shawshank Redemption. Well “Red” my old friend, the Irish Sea was (almost) as blue as in my dreams today. I may not have seen a man sanding down a boat whilst beaming with the widest of smiles but I did make brief friends with a rather reluctant horse, a joyful springer spaniel, a host of other dogs paddling and splashing and looking in vain for a rogue tennis ball, and I avoided the jellyfish whilst being staggered by the size of the seagulls!

And I found my smile again.

It was at the beach all along. Who knew?

Please picture Borth below Aberdovey and separated by that sliver of Cardigan Bay, and Tywyn (sic) just a smidge above Aberdovey and on the coastal journey to Barmouth. Picture courtesy of www.contours.co.uk

What this edition is all about are four separate Welsh seaside towns along the mid-Wales coast and hopefully the pictures you’ll begin to enjoy, and which start at the end of the following paragraph. These specific articles are always intended as a pictorial journey but first I’ll try to give you a brief flavour for the locations themselves before leaving you to enjoy the raft of images that follow, all of which were captured today, 20th June 2022.

Borth (Welsh: Y Borth)

My early morning first port of call was Borth and as above, just a slither of water, a large estuary perhaps, and across the bay from my second destination later, Aberdovey. I’d only visited Borth once before and many years ago to figure prominently in my memory so I was particularly pleased at how beautiful each end of the vast expanse of sandy beach it was. Easy early morning parking, as well as a huge beach parking area behind the sand dunes at the estuary end enabled a carefree couple of hours in the morning sun as well as a particularly lively springer spaniel and a horse I gleefully coaxed into the shallow waters! I vaguely remember seeing a horse on my previous journey here but today was a quixotically pleasing treat!

Aberdovey (Welsh: Aberdyfi)

A number of friends have recommended Aberdovey over the years and it didn’t disappoint (except for the jellyfish which littered the low tide). A picture postcard when viewed across the estuary from Borth, a small marina leads to a huge curving sandy beach and dunes which back onto a traditional promenade and faced by huge multi story seaside town houses. Aberdovey was/is beautiful and the pick of the four coastal locations today.

PS If you make the wise decision to partake of the culinary delights of the seafront chip shop, please be aware and vigilant of the dive bombing seagulls!

Tywyn (Welsh: Tywyn and previously known as Towyn)

Just four miles along the coast from Aberdovey, Tywyn is the smallest of my destinations today and much like Borth, a little rundown and in need of a lick of paint post pandemic. Lengthy beach with a quaint rock formation that affords a splitting of the beach and no doubt spectacular fountains and crashing of waves when at a higher tide.

Barmouth (Welsh: Abermaw)

My only previous visit to Barmouth was well over a decade ago and on a forgettable wet and windy winter’s day. I was therefore incredibly pleased to rediscover a quite beautiful seaside town that, at first glance, appeared to be a small fishing and yachting town but which explored further expands to yet another huge and sprawling beach. Beaches plural actually as there were three or four distinct sandy expanses split by sand dunes and somewhat quirky walkways that gifted some magnificent views of the town. As with Aberdovey above, Barmouth is highly recommended on such a gloriously sunny day as today was.

Minimal commentary from hereon in and I sincerely hope you enjoy the following pictorial tour and snapshot of a beautiful stretch of Welsh coastline.

The sun and the moon (look closer), the first picture of the morning at Borth, the first of a beautiful stretch of sandy beaches to come and the first of many images of the famed hills and hillsides of Wales (Author’s Collection).

One of a large number of personal favourites from Borth this morning (Author’s Collection).

See above comments! (Author’s Collection).

Still at Borth and a distant view of Aberdovey and the Welsh hills in a faraway distance (Author’s Collection).

View from the far end of the beach toward the estuary separating Borth from Aberdovey (Author’s Collection).

Wider view capturing the entire coastline of nearby Aberdovey across the estuary (Author’s Collection).

Another favourite from today and my new equine friend(s) are approaching (Author’s Collection).

A rather lovely immediate memory (Author’s Collection).

A little piece of heaven (Author’s Collection).

First view of Aberdovey near the yachting marina. This is essentially the beginning of the lengthy coastline seen from Borth in the pictures above (Author’s Collection).

View toward the yachting marina and some beautiful Welsh hills and mountains. Better views from the marina follow when the cloud cover drifted away! (Author’s Collection).

View from Aberdovey beach across the estuary to Borth (Author’s Collection).

The tip of Borth and out into the beautifully pale blue green of Cardigan Bay (Author’s Collection).

I fell in love with this view and treated myself to a lengthy paddle (Author’s Collection).

Beautifully picturesque Aberdovey (Author’s Collection).

View from the yachting marina and Borth across the bay (Author’s Collection).

Locally known Dovey Yacht Club the beginning of a quite beautiful beach and views out to sea (Author’s Collection).

Far more sand but a more traditional feel that reminded me of my hometown beaches in Portsmouth. Your first view of Tywyn (Author’s Collection).

And the opposite view from Tywyn and back toward Aberdovey just along the coast (Author’s Collection).

The humpback whale shaped rock formation at Tywyn (Author’s Collection).

From the rock formation and another particularly favourite image captured today (Author’s Collection).

Always time for another paddle (Author’s Collection).

Barmouth, and a first view from the promenade leading to the marina (Author’s Collection).

Captured from a small slipway on the marina. You can either squint your eyes in search of the train or just enjoy this rather lovely image (Author’s Collection).

View from the marina of the seaside town of Barmouth (Author’s Collection).

Another favourite image captured today showing a wider shot of the railway bridge, presumably another estuary of sorts leading into Barmouth and those picturesque Welsh hills again (Author’s Collection).

Known as the “Dolphins of Cardigan Bay” and which stands at the end of the marina (Author’s Collection).

View from a lengthy walkway separating the marina from the enormous sandy beach to the right of the picture (Author’s Collection).

One of Barmouth’s 3 or 4 distinctly separated beach areas. Please picture an older lady on the far side of the slip of water on the left and a shaggy haired dog this side. They would constantly swap sides as the lady threw a tennis ball for the dog who raced after the ball, splashing and paddling to his hearts delight, and right up to the ball itself, before leaving it and paddling back to the sand. Rinse and Repeat! I couldn’t stop watching or smiling (Author’s Collection).

Another small walkway leading back to Barmouth and separating the distinct beach areas (Author’s Collection).

The Good, The Ugly and The Bad. Or just a Radiohead obsessive fooling around with a Quentin Tarantino obsessive and his new toy. Images captured on Sunday 19th June. I thank you for reading and I hope you enjoyed the pictorial journey.

A pictorial stroll along the River Severn
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A pictorial stroll along the River Severn
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