OMG it seems summer has finally arrived in England, so I did what any normal English person does and drove to Wales for a day.
As I live in Cheshire, I’m quite lucky that Wales is my neighbour, and that Welsh beaches are just an hour’s drive away. I set my satnav for the closest one to me – Talacre. The weather forecast for the day was sunshine and temperatures in the mid 20s, so despite it being a Tuesday, I knew that the beach would fill up fairly quickly with people also fed up of the lockdown lifestyle we’ve endured for the past 15 months. So I started the one day where I didn’t have to get up stupidly early for work by getting up stupidly early.
For anyone driving into Wales on the North Wales Expressway, visiting the OK Diner can be a tradition. I always like to stop by for a milkshake. Sadly, it was closed.
Last time I was here I had a Nutella Nut Job milkshake and it was deeeeeelish. At first I thought the closure was due to Covid. Thankfully, it was only closed cos I was there so bloody early. The OK Diner is open Mon-Sun, 9am-8pm. It’s worth a stop on your drive!
Not content with swapping an American diner experience for a McBreakfast, I drove on.
Approaching the north-western tip of Wales I found myself behind a camera car.
I’m regularly checking Google to see if I’ve made it onto the Map! So far, no sign.
It was lovely to arrive at Talacre Beach with only a handful of cars parked up. I must come across as a right loner but I do just prefer to be by myself without any crowds. I’d rather listen to the sound of birds and breeze than squawking children.
The Point of Ayr Lighthouse. Built in 1776 to warn ships entering the Mersey and Dee estuaries. I’d love to experience what it’s like inside a lighthouse. I’d love to spend the night in one, sleeping to the sound of crashing waves, cut off from everyone else. Again – why do I sound like such a hermit?
I had a nice snooze on the base of the lighthouse. In the pool below I could see little crabs and tiny floating jellyfish.
I’d come to the seaside to see the sea though. The tide was out so I had to work my way across the quicksand.
It stunk. At points I nearly went up to my knees. It was a little concerning, obviously – we all know the dangers. I just kept moving and managed to get to the sea.
Lovely brown water. I do miss the turquoise/crystal clear oceans of far off lands. I had brought my trunks but tbf, this water wasn’t that inviting. Take me back to the tropics.
On the sand were a load of these little jellyfish, commonly known as sea gooseberries. They are safe to touch, but still, I’d rather not. I don’t know or trust you, ocean alien.
With the beach already starting to fill up it was time to move on, but not before a customary whippy ice cream.
And you know what? It wasn’t stupidly priced.
A short 15 minute drive away is the town of Dyserth. It’s not on the coast, but it does feature a good ol’ waterfall. There is a car park next to the falls but it’s tiny, and I ended up having to reverse out over the narrow bridge and back into the main road. There are a few other places to park and I chose a nearby housing estate. I bet the locals are fed up of the likes of me.
The spray coming off the falls was lovely and refreshing on this pretty hot day.
Next door to Rhaeadr Dyserth is St Bridget’s Parish Church and in true Karl-Pilkington-on-holiday style, I went for a wander around the graveyard.
No really, I did. But with good reason. I’ve been here before and last time I tried (and failed) to find the grave of my nana’s birth-mother. This time I was determined not to fail again, and finally found her (after about an hour) buried with someone else in her family.
Sadly, her grey gravestone on the floor has weathered badly and it was really difficult to make out the name “Alwena Roberts”, but still, it was nice to sit down next to my Welsh roots.
No visit to the Welsh north coast is complete without a stop-off in the glorious seaside town of Rhyl… But I did a blog on that a few years ago and didn’t mind skipping it. So I drove half an hour down the coast to Conwy.
After walking the bit of wall that you don’t have to pay to walk, the next destination was the Smallest House in Great Britain, at just 72 inches wide and 122 inches high. You can pay £1 to go inside but the queue put me off.
It seemed everyone in the queue had forgotten the meaning of “social distancing”. The same could be said for all the fish and chip shops, each one with a massive queue out the door. Apparently, a lot of places have become victims to the pandemic and folded.
One place where there wasn’t a queue out the door was the Conwy Mussels Company. Whelks aren’t as popular as haddock.
I had never tried them but they were actually quite nice. Chewy and oceany, like softer calamari or giant bogeys if you’re into that sort of thing.
Sadly, the whelks just didn’t fill me up. I need a chippy dinner. Whilst walking down to one of the few chippies I noticed more victims of the pandemic.
It’s June on a sunny day in Wales and it breaks my heart to see these pubs boarded up.
Here I am hoping the 30 minute wait to be served was worth it.
Tbf, the chips were decent. And I didn’t get attacked by a seagull. A solid way to end the day.
I could’ve headed to Llandudno, but I’m an old man now who gets tired. Also, I wanted to beat the rush hour traffic. I’ve been travelling these roads for most of my life now, either by myself or with family. I’d love to hear some suggestions for places to visit on the north Welsh coast, places I may have missed or never even heard of. Feel free to leave a comment with your recommendation!
In the words of the great-grandmother I never met, hwyl fawr!
#VidOnTour 