Lodge Life :: July 2026

Hi there everyone 😀

We had a lovely three week break at the lodge taking in the last couple of weeks of July and the first week of August. We packed an awful lot in so there will be lots more separate posts coming down the line but … for now … here’s a bit of what we got up to. 

We were blessed with the best weather I think we’ve had yet … we even got the outdoor rug out 😜 … and we really made the most of it … 

We had a couple of days just settling in, shopping and the like, before Jackie and Phil joined us for a short visit.

The weather meant they got to enjoy the full lodge experience, making the most of the pool and the sunshine. We packed plenty in on the few days they were with us … so much so that I will give you all the details in couple of separate posts …

On their last morning we had our usual breakfast in Spooner’s … at the Porthmadog steam railway station … and waved them off  We then had a very lazy afternoon back at the lodge. 

We didn’t do much the following day either … though we did manage to weed and resand the block paving on our parking patch, which was looking decidedly in need of attention.

We followed this with a ‘big day out’. We headed to Llanberis for a bit of a challenge. We have both really wanted to visit Anglesey Barracks ever since we first saw pictures of them on Facebook … but it’s another one of those places that we thought was beyond our reach.

I am pleased to say that we were up to the challenge and finally got to visit this incredible spot …

I can’t say we didn’t feel it in the knees on the way back down though. It’s definitely worthy of a ‘Walk with us’ post, which will be coming soon.

We must have been on a bit of a roll … as the very next day found us heading out for another uphill adventure. This time we wanted to try and see what was above the Cwmorthin waterfall. It was another challenging walk for us … but it was definitely worth it. Again, you will be able to read more about this one soon …

The next few days were not quite so strenuous … and I think we were both ready for a bit of a breather. We had a day topping up supplies and having a bit of a tidy up … followed by another good walk in Criccieth …

There was then a very productive shopping day … up and down the Porthmadog High Street … followed by a wander around Caernarfon …

We were then ready for another ‘big day out’ … this time to Betws-y-Coed, where we finally managed to visit Ty Mawr Wybrnant. It’s a tiny property … down a very long and narrow lane … and it’s where Bishop William Morgan completed the first translation of The Bible into Welsh. It’s said that this act may have ensured the survival of the Welsh language.

As well as reading about the property locally … we had seen it on a TV programme and were really pleased to actually be in the area on a day that it was open.

There is a small cottage, where William Morgan used to live …

… a Tudor garden …

… and an archive of bibles from around the world. It was just lovely and we are so glad that we got to visit.

On our way back into Betws-y-Coed village we stopped off for a walk to Conwy Falls … where the falls weren’t falling anywhere near as much as normal …

Once in the village we parked up by the Pont y Pair, which was really busy, with lots of people just messing about in the water. We found a good spot for our picnic … before having a good wander around the village and the railway station, which wasn’t looking quite as ‘green’ as normal … but the hydrangeas were doing well …

The following day we decided to have a bit of a coastal day, exploring some of the beaches on the northern coast of The Llyn. We started at Towyn, where we came across local chef ‘Flamebaster’, filming for the BBC on the beach …

We managed to also fit in Porth Ysgaden, Porth Iago… for the first time … and Porth Oer, which definitely deserve a post of their own.

We then had a relaxing day hanging around the lodge before starting off August with another visit to Criccieth … where this time we walked from the back of Dylan’s, along the railway line, to Black Rock Sands … then back along the beach. I will combine our two Criccieth walks into a ‘Walk with us’ post for later …

We then had another day not going very far but doing a short walk to the Pwllheli slate bridge … somewhere we’ve been wanting to see for absolutely ages.

Whilst it was pretty … it was obviously a hangout for some who were definitely not big on taking their litter home …

We had one last ‘big day out’ before heading for home. We were hoping to find the Nantcol waterfalls on another short walk near Llanbedr … followed by our first visit to Harlech castle.

I am pleased to say that we most definitely found the Nantcol waterfalls … which we both loved … though I think the heat made it just a little bit too much for me. We will definitely visit again and be more prepared for at least a paddle in the river … there were just so many good spots where it looked very easy to get in. It will definitely be the subject of a ‘Walk with us’ post at some point …

Having pretty much worn ourselves out at the falls, and with it being such a warm day, we decided to leave Harlech Castle for another time and, instead, opted for a visit to Shell Island. It’s somewhere that neither of us have ever visited before and I’d already checked on the tide times so knew it was a good time to visit …

It costs £10 for car to visit as a day guest and we spent a good couple of hours there … starting with a stop off at The Quay for a drink and a bit of chill time …

We then had a bit of a wander round the harbour area …

… before jumping back in the car and driving to the other side of the island … for a walk through the dunes …

… to the beach … which was just beautiful … with the sand stretching as far as the eye could see …

I was more than ready for a paddle …

It was so lovely to dip my feet in the sea. It really was the loveliest beach … plenty of pretty shells were picked up to take back too. 

Before finally heading back we had a wander to have a look at the marshland from the causeway … it was really difficult to imagine it all under water …

We’d had the loveliest of days but it was time to head back to the lodge for one last time. 

We spent our last day packing and cleaning, with one last trip out for lunch at Nant Gwrtheyrn. It had been a really good three weeks and neither of us were really ready to head for home but hey … it won’t be long before we are back 😀

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Homeward Bound :: At the Seaside 🌊

Hi there everyone 😀

A trip to the seaside was very much NOT on the agenda for our journey home from Durham.

The plan was to call in at Mount Grace Priory, the National Trust property that we would have visited on the way up … had it not been quite so hot.

On the day we were heading home we just happened to be up and ready for the off pretty early. In fact … had we driven straight to the priory we would have arrived an hour before it opened.

It was a very easy decision to call in at Seaham on the way … it barely took us out of our way at all … and I’ve long wanted to see the ‘Tommy’ sculpture on the seafront.

Driving in along the coast it was this view that made us decide we wanted to stay awhile, rather than just have a fleeting visit …

I just had to walk along that promenade … so that’s exactly what we did. We put a couple of hours on the car park and headed for the prom, with this the view looking back up the coast …

… and this looking back up to the car park. I mean … how often do you see a car park wall as beautiful as that …

It was another glorious day … not too hot … and the views out to sea were fabulous. It was so lovely to be beside the sea on such a lovely day …

We could see the lighthouse in the distance and wondered if we would have the time and the energy to walk that far … we both do love a lighthouse …

Towards the end of the promenade we headed up and away from the beach … stopping to take in the view through the wildflowers and across the bay …

We stopped to admire the Howitzer …

… before stumbling across ‘Tommy’ … or Eleven ‘O’ one, to give him his proper title …

Having wanted to see the sculpture for so long, I was not disappointed …

It was lovely and quiet, the weather was perfect, so it was a great opportunity to take plenty of photos …

The memorial fence was pretty poignant too … covered with hundreds of personalised memorial plaques, poppies, and tributes to commemorate Seaham's fallen servicemen and women …

It was a really lovely spot, with fabulous views out to sea and of the lighthouse … which still seemed a fair way off …

As time was getting on, and we were conscious that we had a good walk back, we decided that we would walk down to the harbour, but leave the lighthouse for another visit …

Down at the harbour we found another fabulous sculpture … The Coxwain …

It serves as a dedicated tribute to the Royal National Lifeboat Institution (RNLI) and specifically remembers the George Elmy lifeboat disaster of 17 November 1962. On that day, the lifeboat capsized just yards from the harbour entrance, claiming the lives of five volunteer crew members, three rescued fishermen, and a nine-year-old boy.

We also found a very nice spot for breakfast … The Lookout … and managed to find the perfect spot to sit for a while …

There was plenty of colourful yarn bombing to be seen …

… as well as the lifeboat station and a few little shops which were good for a mooch.

It was soon time to head back to the car … we didn’t want to end up with a parking ticket. We opted to walk back along the road, rather than going back down to the promenade.

We got a totally different perspective of ‘Tommy’ …

There were certainly plenty of lovely looking benches for a bit of a sit down along the way …

… and more interesting art to stop and look at …

Just before we were back at the car park, on the opposite side of the road, we spotted some more steel sculptures and we couldn’t resist having a closer look. These were the Jewels of the Sea sculptures … 34 pieces of enlarged micro marine life made from weathered Corten steel and you can read all about them here …

We would have loved to have had time to look at them all but our time was running out so we only saw the few that were close to the road.

We just made it back to the wiggly wall of the car park in time …

We were sat in the car with about 10 minutes to spare … as the parking warden wandered past 😅

We both absolutely loved Seaham and will definitely go back. We love outdoor sculpture and Seaham certainly had an abundance to see in such a small area … and it is just an absolutely beautiful spot. I’m so glad we got to call in 😀

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