Author: Paul Challinor
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Sand Castles
There can’t be many places in the UK where you can look down on a Norman castle from the top of a sand dune. You’ll have to look closely at the main photo above to see the castle among the trees. Candleston Castle may not be a major fortress, but as a fortified manor house…
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Grwyne Fawr – forests, hills, saints and revenge.
Today Cwm Grwyne Fawr seems to be a journeys end. The single track road becomes narrower and narrower snaking further into the hills. The farm houses we passed appeared less frequently giving a real sense of sense of remoteness even though this is only a few miles from Abergavenny. However, it was not always thus…
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Ffynnon Issui
Tucked down off the road near a sharp bend, and just above the Nant Mair Ffynnon Issui is one of the better preserved wells I come across in a while. Steps lead down from the road to a small dry stone alter enclosing a square basin which collects water running down from a stream in…
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St Issui Church, Patrisio
This is a long blog post but it is needed as this is an extraordinary church in many ways. Its setting, tucked into the side of a steep hill surrounded by farmland in seeming isolation provides it with a unique feeling of isolation. Though when this church was built there were many more people working…
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Canal to nowhere?
Isn’t it typical, after spending the week gazing out of the office window at wall to wall January sunshine the weekend brought the clouds hiding the sun. But that was not going to stop us. We panned a circular walk from Abergavenny along a canal and back. I like walking along canals, though Aunty less…
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Porth Neigwl – Hell’s Mouth
It’s taken me a while to get around to finishing this post. Aunty and I walked along this stretch of the coast on a cold and windy April day as soon as we could get away after the lifting of the COVID lockdown restrictions at the start of 2021. And it is now almost the…
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St Tudwal’s Lighthouse
On one of pair of small islands laying just off the southern tip of the Lleyn near Abersoch you can find the neat and small St Tudwal Lighthouse. The light was erected in 1877 to mark and protect shipping at the northern end of Cardigan Bay. By lighthouse standard sit’s not that tall at 10.7m…
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A Tomb with a View – Cilan Uchaf
If you take a short detour off the Wales Coastal Path by clambering over a style and trudge through a couple of fields it’s possible to find the remains of a chambered tomb dating back to the Neolithic period (c. 4,400 BC – 2,900 BC). As remains go there is not much to be impressed…
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Abersoch to Pwllheli
Hmmm….. i’m afraid I’m going to have to start this blog or a slightly negative note. I fully understand that most people would not agree with me, but this is my blog and as writer, editor and publisher (makes me sound like a megalomaniac) I retain the right to be irrational. I don’t like Abersoch.…
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Fish and Chips on Barry Island – Welsh 100 #62
It has seemed to be a long, long week staring out of my home office window at the sun. Finally Friday arrived and what better way to start the weekend than making a dash to Barry Island and have a Fish & Chips supper on Barry Beach. Apparently the place to go is O’Sheas and…
Travels With My Aunt 