Weekender: Anglesey Looking for a short break in a place they had not visited before, Joe and Elaine Ormerod explore the beauties of Anglesey and Holy Island
Joe and Elaine Ormerod enjoyed a short break exploring in the Welsh islands
WHERE COULD WE go that wasn’t too far from home, but was somewhere we’d not visited before? After consulting our maps, we decided on Anglesey. Neither of us had been there for more than a day and we both love islands, so it seemed a perfect choice.
We found the campsite easily, following owner Ian’s directions; but couldn’t help chuckling as we drove down the narrow, daffodil-lined driveway to Bryn Goronwy CL – the nodding heads of the flowers set off the car’s sensors all the way there!
Pristine sands
On our arrival, it was a glorious sunny day and we hoped this boded well for our stay. The next day lived up to our expectations and we wasted no time in driving down a twisting, narrow lane to Red Wharf Bay, a long, pristine stretch of sand.
We parked at Llanddona car park and walked along the beach to where a stream enters the bay. Crossing the bridge over the stream, we climbed up and over the headland until we had a super view of this huge and impressive bay.
There were usefully placed benches en route, all offering brilliant views, but we hadn’t brought lunch with us, so we kept walking until we headed downhill and back to the car – and a late lunch at the van.
Menai Straits
We were glad we’d made the most of the good weather, because the following day was cold and wet. But we’d planned for rainy days, so we set off for Plas Newydd, a National Trust property in a beautiful position on the banks of the Menai Straits.
From 1470, several families lived in this fine house, including Henry William Paget, who was created 1st Marquess of Anglesey following the Battle of Waterloo.
Sadly, the 5th Marquess managed to bankrupt the family, resulting in the
6th Marquess having to sell off a great deal of property, including a grand house in Staffordshire, and make Plas Newydd their permanent home.
The 7th Marquess lived there until his death in 2013, although the National Trust have run the property since 1976. His study remains just as he left it, with a desk for each subject he was studying, all piled high with papers and books.
The other must-see here is a landscape by Rex Whistler, which fills one wall of the dining room. This exercise in trompe-l’oeil depicts Italianate churches, Snowdonian mountains, castles and a harbour.
The rain had cleared by then, so after a stroll in the gardens, we decided to drive north to Amlwch Port, with the intention of visiting the Copper Kingdom Centre.
Sadly, it was closed at the time of our visit; this sometimes happens in the low season, but the benefit of going early
(or late) is that you miss the crowds.
Mountain and mine
Undaunted, we headed for a feature we’d spotted in the distance, and found a copper mine dug out of Parys Mountain.
Leaving the car in the free car park, we found a notice board showing two trails around the workings. Somehow, we seemed to do a combination of both.
The first view that greeted us was an enormous hole in the ground, excavated by gunpowder and men using picks and shovels. This lunar landscape is a strange mixture of yellow, orange, brown and red.
A local miner discovered copper deposits in the 18th century, and was rewarded with a rent-free house for life and a bottle of brandy (or whisky, depending on which story you believe).
At one time, this was the biggest copper mine in the world and Amlwch Port thrived on exporting the metal worldwide.
At the far end of the trail, we found the feature we’d seen earlier, a windmill that was used to pump water from the mine. It was an absolutely fascinating visit.
‘We walked along the beach and crossed the bridge for a super view of the bay’
Rounding off our trip, we went back to Amlwch, for a good lunch at the Sail Loft.
This listed building has a café downstairs and a museum upstairs, explaining how the ship-building industry grew to service the needs of the copper mine. The floor slopes, apparently to facilitate the making of sails.
Island birdwatching
Next, we drove to Holy Island, to the RSPB reserve at South Stack Cliffs. Here there are interesting walking trails, and at Elin’s Tower, you can borrow binoculars and telescopes, and observe the nesting birds at close quarters via CCTV.
These include guillemots, choughs, peregrine falcons, razorbills and puffins, although we were there too early in the season for much birdwatching.
We satisfied ourselves with taking one of the trails to South Stack Lighthouse. Built in 1809, it stands on a small island just off Holy Island, with 400 steps down to reach it – and 400 back up again!
You can visit the lighthouse, but you must buy a ticket at the top and the steps are not suitable for small children. No dogs are allowed, either. It’s best to read all of the instructions before setting off down the steps – some didn’t and were very annoyed when they were refused admission.
It was extremely windy at this exposed point, so we decided to continue our walk seeing the spectacular cliffs instead.
Afterwards, we headed to the café, which provides drinks, snacks and hot meals. Just down the road, we spotted a sign pointing to Hut Circles. This is another free visitor attraction on the reserve, where you can see the remains of prehistoric dry-stone huts. We drove back to the van past Trearddur Bay, admiring its beautiful beach.
Transport history
I’d picked up a leaflet about the Anglesey Transport Museum – Tacla Taid in Welsh. We arrived there to find a Ford owners’ meet in progress. The vehicles on display had been cleaned to within an inch of their lives and looked immaculate.
Joe, however, made a beeline for the military vehicles section. Seeing him take such an interest, a man came over to chat. It turned out that he owned the museum, which he said was a hobby, as he was actually a garage owner. Some hobby!
We found a really eclectic collection of vehicles here, and some very memorable ones for Joe! We had a good lunch in the museum café, then noticed a door leading from there to another world of cars (of our vintage), with tractors of a type that Joe drove in his youth, and even the odd plane.
Emerging from this amazing place, the heavens opened, so it was time to return to the caravan.
Beaumaris Castle was our next stop, but first, we had to call in on the famous place with the very long name (usually shortened to Llanfair PG). There was a translation into English of the whole name, but that is even longer! We found an excellent cheese shop here, too.
‘At the Transport Museum, a Ford owners’ meet was in progress; the cars looked immaculate’
Unfinished castle
Beaumaris Castle was only a short drive (nowhere is far away on Anglesey) and the first thing we learned was that building was never completed.
Edward I ran out of money while fighting the Scots in the 13th century and funds were diverted to that campaign – a shame, because this has been described as the most technically perfect castle in Britain.
It’s concentric in design, with a wall within a wall. The moated outer wall has 12 towers and two gatehouses, while the inner has six towers and two gatehouses.
The inner part was domestic buildings and accommodation. The then-huge sum of £15,000 was spent on building the castle, until funds ran out. Beaumaris gained UNESCO World Heritage status in 1986.
Spot the puffins
We drove just three miles east and for the second time on this tour, seemed to enter another world – the Penmon peninsula.
Entry here is by a toll of £3. The road runs onto a massive pebble beach, with a lighthouse and an island off the point.
This is Puffin Island and there are boat trips around it to spot the birds in season. The landscape is wild and unspoilt, save for a white cottage, the Pilot House café, where we enjoyed scones, cream and jam, and some great views of Snowdonia.
Returning to the toll road exit, we found the remains of Penmon Priory, dating from the 13th century and later reorganised by the Augustinian order.
Behind the priory is a church containing two medieval crosses, dating from the 10th century, which used to stand outside the original St Seiriol’s monastery. A path leads from the church to St Seiriol’s well, thought to date from the sixth century and believed to have healing properties.
Opposite is a dovecote with 930 nesting holes, built in Elizabethan times by the Bulkeley family, who converted the priory into a private residence.
This being our final day, we finished with a lovely dinner at The Old Boathouse, on Red Wharf Bay. We’d had some memorable visits on this trip, and now we only had a short journey home. Anglesey really did turn out to be the perfect choice.