Our son is in love it turns out. A dangerous yet intoxicating drug. One that understandably means a(nother) week away with just his elderly parents & a needy dog, in the countryside, on rural Wifi has all the draw of a Wednesday night in February, playing Stoke away.
It’s a long drive, made longer by the heat. But what a joy it was to see parts of the journey sunlit beyond anything we’ve seen over the last 35-plus years (for Jane much longer) that I’ve been making this journey down to Pembrokeshire, the bestest part of South-West Wales, and one of my favourite parts of the UK.
Setting off (some reluctantly) at around 10:30am, our route is one that is “sat-nav unconventional”, but is one that has been honed by our forebears since the early 1970s. It’s a balance between fastest arrival & most interesting for driver & passengers! Basically, it’s A & B roads all the way from Queensferry.
Mold, Ruthin, and Corwen, where we stopped at the Rhug Estate (think it’s on telly tonight as one of the poshest farm shops), where we had Bison Burgers for lunch (& I bought a couple of bottles of local ale).
Next it’s Bala, Dolgellau, then Machynlleth, on through Aberystwyth (I once knew a girl who wore an Aber’ Blazer, in the Merry month of May, but that’s for another day), Cardigan and then down past our friends in Puncheston, to Haverfordwest* before heading out to the coast at Little Haven.
[*where Jane spent much time in Withybush Hospital one summer in the 80s, after badly dislocating her elbow in a riding accident.]
We’re staying a few hundred yards up Strawberry Hill, from the centre/beach in a newly renovated 2-bed bungalow. It’s lovely! Sprawling gardens, tucked away, out of view, and really well fitted out. Particularly taken with the electronic reclining sofa & chairs with integrated USB chargers!
We only arrived about 40 minutes before our table in the dog-friendly Castle pub was booked, so a quick unload of van & bowel, a change of tee shirt, a splash of cover-up deodorant, and we strolled down the hill to the pub, just about on time.
The Castle is really nice. Friendly staff, great service, nice timing of food (even when rammed full of folk), and the portions are mahoosive! Fish & Chips with proper mushy peas (the ones with pea-wet on top) for me. Jane had a pan-fried salmon with crayfish tails & salad, and Charlie seemed to have ordered a garlic bread loaf, and then more gammon than there is in the House of Lords.
Sated, Charlie beat a hasty path back to the cottage to ‘charge his phone’, whilst Jane & I sat on the beach with Toby & watched the sun set, before scaling Strawberry Hill & crashing out on the electric sofas!
That said, I couldn’t resist trying a bottle of the beer I bought at Rhug, a 5.2% Snowdon Craft ‘Summit’ ale.
Goosed after the drive, so an early one for me.
Night folks, so should I say “nos da”!
x