Usually we stay in and around the St David's peninsula although we had a lovely short break in Pembroke after last year's firebreak lockdown, when everything was still pretty much closed.
A few weeks ago we booked an almost spur of the moment midweek break, staying in an Air BnB in Milford Haven - not because we wanted to go to MH particularly, but because it was a nice base for a couple of walks we wanted to do around Dale and Barafundle.
We arrived on Tuesday evening and found our Air BnB easily enough. It was a bit unusual in that it looked like it was previously a garage or some other outbuilding in a previous life, in the backyard of the hosts house. To be perfectly honest the house and garden looked a bit shabby. Our place though was clean and tidy although missing a few essentials - like somewhere to hang clothes, or a table to eat on (there was a small pull out table with a couple of stools, but it was small!). Nevertheless for £70 a night we weren't complaining too much, we weren't intending to spend a lot of time in the place.
We dumped our stuff and walked down to Milford Haven marina, only a 10 minute walk away as we were virtually on the banks of the Cleddau. On the opposite bank of the Haven the Valero oil terminal at Rhoscrowther loomed ominously, with tankers moored up on its jetties. A wander around the marina (with it's plentiful restaurants and bars) was nice with plenty of people enjoying a drink in the evening sun, and we took advantage of one of the aforementioned bars for a beer for me and G&T for my good lady.
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| Milford Haven Marina |
Wednesday dawned bright and sunny - not bad for the middle of September, and we set off for the 20 minute drive to Dale. Our plan was a 7 (or so) mile walk around St Anne's Head. We parked in the car park at Dale (thank goodness for phone paid parking - no more messing around for coins) and walked up towards Dale Point Fort, now a field studies centre, but previously part of several fortifications around the Haven put in place to defend the deepwater harbour from first Napoleon and latterly the Germans in WW2. Staying on the Pembrokeshire Coast Path we passed a tall navigation beacon just before the coming to the gorgeous Watwick Bay. This secluded bay on this sunny day could have almost been in the Caribbean. If it wasn't for the fact it's a bit of a hike to get there, it would be packed with beachgoers. We continued along the path to the West Blockhouse Fort, another fortification now a holiday rental and stopped for a coffee resting against one of three more tall navigation beacons as we looked over to St Anne's Head and light. All the while, tankers and ferries made their way busily in and out of the Haven.
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| Watwick Bay |
Continuing our walk we passed Mill bay where Henry Tudor landed just a couple of weeks before defeating Richard at Bosworth Field, and then onwards reaching St Anne's Head. Here the current light stands a small distance from one of the previous two lights, now used as a coastguard watch point. Our journey continued around the coast path and headland, before reaching Dale West beach, where we turned inland, back towards Dale where we treated ourself to an ice cream and cold drink. We were quite surprised how busy the place was both on the beach and on the coast path given it was well into September.
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| Tankers in the Haven, Stack Rock Fort and Dale from Dale West |
After driving back to our base, we ate at the impressive Impasto Pizza Bar in the Marina which we'd booked the night before. Recommended if you're in the area and like Italian food. The pizza was first class, the service good and the beers great! In the dark on the walk back from the marina, the Valero Oil terminal was lit up and looked far more impressive in the dark than it's industrial daytime look, especially with the light from the flames from the exhaust chimneys bouncing off the lowish clouds.
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| Valero oil terminal at Rhoscrowther |
The weather kept up as day 2 again dawned bright and sunny. We drove to Stackpole Quay where we parked in the large National Trust Car Park (for free as we're members!). The car park was already pretty busy by the time we arrived at 10am with walkers and beach goers and dog walkers. The NT cafe was open so we grabbed a sausage and bacon roll and coffee which we ate on a bench overlooking the quay watching a paddle boarding lesson taking place. From here it's a short hike up the hill and over to the stunning Barafundle Bay. We saw our paddle boarders on their way around to the bay in the flat calm conditions. We hadn't planned to walk far as we'd done a 7 miler the day before, but we did carry on all the way to Stackpole Head. The walking is easy but the cliffs here are pretty high and sheer, and there are climbing staked hammered in every few yards as evidence that this area is a haven for climbers, so it's best not to venture too close to the edge. As the sun cleared the haze, we could see across the bay to the Pembrokeshire beaches of Swanlake and Manorbier, and Caldey Island, off Tenby. In the far distance, still in the haze, the hills of the Gower and Rhossili Down in particular could be seen. From Stackpole Head, Lundy Island was also clearly visible rising out of the Bristol Channel off the North Devon coast. It's around 30 miles away in a straight line, but looked a lot nearer that that from high on the cliffs.
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| Barafundle Bay |
The cliffs around Stackpole Head are stunning, and looking toward the west another fine beach, Broadhaven South with it's classic landmark Church Rock just off the beach could be seen. On the grassy headland, we saw several distinctive Chough with their bright red beaks and legs as well as Rock Pipits.
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| Cliffs near Barafundle |
Wandering back to Barafundle, the beach now pretty busy, we settled down for a couple of hours chilling in the (by now) hot sun. A paddle in the sea cooled us down a little, before a number of people near us got quite excited when a snake (we think a grass snake) was seen slithering across the beach towards some rocks. It was around 2 feet long and moving pretty fast. It wasn't an adder, so I'm guessing a grass snake was the only other realistic option in the UK. I managed to snap a photo or two and a short video. I think it's the only snake I've ever seen in the UK outside of a zoo.
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| The snake! |
After that excitement, we walked back to the car, via the cafe for an ice cream, and then home. That evening, we again ate in the marina, this time at Martha's Vineyard which we'd pre booked before we came. Primarily a fish restaurant, it's got a quite broad menu. My wife had some huge garlic prawns to start followed by the house specialty bouillabaise whilst I had whitebait followed by a hanging kebab. The food was nice with some minor exceptions - a flatbread I had with my main was a bit like cardboard and the squid in the bouillabaisse was tough. That's being a bit picky though. Otherwise the food was great and the service excellent.
A stroll back to our base, and that was pretty much it for the break. The following morning on checking out we visited the marina for one last time to pop into a couple of the shops - there's a nice shop that sells home made chocolates (Trwffl), before driving home (and getting stuck in an enormous traffic jam at Carmarthen).
All in all, we had a lovely time. A relaxing (apart from all the walking) break, in brilliant weather in one of the most beautiful parts of the county.
We'll be back - again....
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