Lodge Life :: April 2023

Hi there everyone 😀

It was Saturday the 1st of April and day 5 of our Easter break in North Wales. It was lovely to have a full day with no rain forecast. In fact we actually had lots of blue sky and sunshine and it was warm enough to spend the day with pretty much all the doors and windows thrown open to let in lots of lovely fresh air.

We spent the day around the lodge. There was a load of washing done and two lots of batch cooking ready for our Easter visitors.

A beef ragu … just needing a macaroni cheese topping …

… and a spicy Turkey burrito mix ready for serving with salad, grated cheese, tortilla chips, sour cream, avocado and jalepeno chillis …

Martin got the jet washing bug again and did the skirt of the lodge while I did a bit of blogging …

We had an unusual event for us for a Saturday night. We went out. Yes … out, out.

We met up with some of my old school friends who live over this way and it’s been lovely to reconnect after many years of losing touch. 

They recommended a local curry house, Bombay Joes in Nefyn, literally just down the road from our lodge and it did not disappoint. The food was good the chat so good that I forgot to take photos of the food but we did take a few photos of our drive to meet them … not our normal view when going out for a curry I can tell you …

On Sunday the weather was good again but we were both feeling lazy so we just went for a bit of a drive back into Nefyn to have a look at the old ‘herring tower’, which our friends had pointed out to us on Saturday night …

We were also aiming for a look in the local maritime museum but were disappointed to find it all locked up.

We decided to try and capture some photos of sheep with their spring lambs and managed a couple, though they were all very shy …

We then had a Geocache on the cards called two bays view. We didn’t have much luck with finding it, even with Martin battling through the very prickly gorse. it was worth it for the view though … As you can see it was pretty impressive looking across to Nefyn and Morfa Nefyn …

On Monday we felt it was time for a bit of ‘a big day out’ and there had been somewhere that we had been wanting to see for a while so we headed over to Anglesey but this time, instead of taking the Menai Bridge and heading right towards Beaumaris we took the Britannia Bridge and headed left down to the Newborough Nature Reserve.

The place we really wanted to visit was Ynys Llanddwyn. It looked beautiful with old ruined chapels, ancient crosses and lighthouses. We didn’t really think that we’d be able to get that far as it’s about a four mile walk there and back, which is a fair way further than we’d normally attempt, but I was hopeful we may be able to walk part way and get some photos from a distance.

It didn’t disappoint and you will know from my previous post that we did manage to surprise ourselves and complete the walk … we didn’t half feel it for the next couple of days though …

Tuesday was very much a rest day but Wednesday we had cleaning on the cards, ready for Jackie and Phil, who were coming over for the first time for the Easter weekend … though we did decide to head out to a new Cafe to try out their breakfast first …

The weather was pretty rubbish and the lanes were pretty narrow but things were looking promising for some sunshine for Jackie and Phil at the weekend …

Thursday was a trip to the supermarket to stock up for the weekend … not the most pleasant experience as the supermarket was heaving ahead of the Bank Holiday weekend, but we were soon sorted and back home and awaiting our guests arrival.

They arrived safe and sound and were soon settled in and we were all looking forward to the promise of sunshine for the weekend, which did not disappoint. 

We had a lovely day out on Anglesey … this time with a visit to Beaumaris and the lighthouse at Penmon … 

On Monday our guests headed for home and we holed up in the warm against the weather … which was pretty much what we did on Tuesday too. Listening to the 60 mile an hour winds kept us occupied for most of the day. The only time Martin ventured outside was to rescue the decking furniture as it blew across the width of the deck. We ended up bringing the BBQ in before it toppled over.

And I know it’s beginning to feel a bit repetitive but Wednesday was very much the same, though we did have the excitement of the heating engineer coming to do the annual gas safety check. 

On Thursday we were so happy to see the return of the sunshine. It always seems to be the case that once the sun comes out it’s like we are seeing everything for the first time again. It is such a beautiful part of the country, especially in the spring with bright yellow gorse and frothy white hawthorn and cheerful daffs lining the narrow lanes. 

We opted for a lunchtime visit to The Gallery Cafe in Llanbedrog where we had a lovely lunch and bit of a wander in the sunshine …

Friday, the rain was back, and it was time to come home … we weren’t really ready but then we couldn’t really complain … we’d stayed about three weeks and it’s only a couple of weeks before we are back 😁

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Easter with Friends

Hi there everyone 😀

Our good friends Jackie and Phil joined us at our lodge in North Wales for the first time for the Easter weekend and Martin and I had spent a couple of days having a good old tidy up to make the place presentable. We’d already had a good batch cooking session earlier in our stay so we were ready to make the most of the Bank Holiday weekend. 

Our guests arrived safe and sound on Thursday evening and were soon settled in and we were all looking forward to the promise of sunshine for the next few days. 

We decided we’d have a big day out on Good Friday, hoping to catch some of our favourite places whilst things were a little quieter, saving more off the beaten track places for over the weekend, when we were expecting everywhere to be pretty busy. 

We were heading back over to Anglesey … this time via the Menai Bridge and heading right to Beaumaris. As ever it was a beautiful drive alongside the Menai and we arrived to find Beaumaris with blue skies and warm sunshine and pleasantly bustling. Not too busy, no problem parking and a nice holiday feel in the air.

We parked at the far end of town just past the castle and walked back towards the front through the gardens …

We were chuffed to bits to see the big wheel as we’d never visited when it has been there before … though we had spotted it from Bangor pier previously. It looked lovely against the blue sky and whilst we weren’t planning on having a go we did take plenty of photos …

From the wheel we had a wander out along the pier which was just a little breezy today … 

… but nothing like when we visited in January with mum …

We then had a wander around the high street … mooching in and out of the lovely small independent shops, picking up a few bits and pieces here and there …

It was then back to the car to head further on to another of our favourite spots … Penmon Point. The tide was well in this time but the lighthouse was still as photogenic as ever …

We had a bit of a walk along the beach to the sea arch …

… before heading back for a pit stop at the cafe … where the chip cobs went down very nicely whilst sat in the sunshine with the loveliest of views …

The lime green of the vegetation was really popping against the clear blue sky and deep blue of the sea and I think this might be one of my favourite photos of the lighthouse so far …

It was soon time to start to head homeward but not before a quick explore of the priory, church, dovecote and well when passing through …

We did debate on calling at Bangor Pier on the way home but consensus had us ending up at the Treborth Garden Centre instead for a mooch through all of the randomness, before heading back to the lodge for turkey rice burrito bowls, which was nice and easy as we’d made the mixture ahead. 

Easter Saturday and there was more sunshine. We opted to stay local with a very short drive to the beach at Trefor, where we were really pleased that Jackie and Phil loved it as much as we did … in spite of there really being not that much there at all … but then I think that is why we like it so much. Jackie described it as mindful and I knew exactly what she meant …

From Trefor we took a short drive up and down the mountain to Nant Gwrtheyrn with a stop on the horseshoe bend for a look over the edge and down to the village …

We had been thinking it might be really busy but it was nice and quiet and we had the usual wander …

The plan had been for Phil to perhaps have a walk down to the beach whilst we availed ourselves of another very nice cafe but our plans were foiled as the cafe was closed as there was a wedding on.

There was only one thing for it … back to Caffi Ni. We got there just in time to grab a table before loads of other people arrived … the majority of whom we’d seen at Nant so we’d obviously all had the same idea. 

It was then back to the lodge for a bit of a chill out before heading out for the evening … I know, that’s two Saturdays in a row … for a meal at Dylan’s in criccieth. 

It’s the first time we’ve eaten there in the evening and we all really enjoyed it. It was pretty busy but the food and the service were just the job …

As it was such a lovely evening we’d parked along the front and it was a lovely walk back to the car and the first time we’d seen castle all lit up. It was really pretty …

Easter Sunday was spent around the lodge. It was quite a productive day with Phil very kindly using his expertise to do a few maintenance jobs for us.

On Monday, after the loveliest of Easter weekends, our guests headed for home and we holed up in the warm against the weather … which had seriously took a turn for the worse with Storm Noa bringing lots of rain and some very high winds. It ended up being Thursday before we ventured out again. 

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