Ceredigion Coast

Part of my intent this holiday was to head to the coast - and perhaps even go swimming. But the best laid plans don't always quite work out.

There are a lot of places to choose from along this section of coast and we only had time to visit a few.

First up, the nearest to our cabin - Aberaeron, a beautiful Georgian town with prettily painted houses, but at the moment there's a lot of disruption to the harbour as work on new sea defences takes place.

Next day we headed to Newquay. The sun shone, we had ice cream overlooking the bay and after a wander round looking at boats and shops, fish and chips later. A proper seaside-y afternoon, but it didn't feel warm enough for swimming.

Overnight the weather changed and the next day couldn't have been more different. In the evening we drove to Llangrannog nestled into a steep valley by the sea. 

The sea was rough and the wind whipped across the beach but almost unbelievable someone was out in the water, swimming! I wasn't tempted to join them and settled for exploring the caves and rock formations along the beach  - in fact as the rain increased I decided enough was enough and took shelter in Tafarn y Tan pizzeria.

Our last seaside stop was at Aberystwyth (on the way home) - the day was warm, the sun shone, and, although I didn't go swimming, I at least got my feet wet paddling. 

An early start to the day meant it was time for a second breakfast in the cafe on the promenade, followed by an amble past the pier and university buildings to the castle ruins before heading homewards.

 

Llanerchaeron

Llanerchaeron is a country estate, now owned by the National Trust, lying just a few miles inland from the seaside town of Aberaeron. The house itself isn't a huge stately home but a place you could almost imagine living in. Once the estate was safe sufficient, with vegetables from the walled garden, and crops and livestock produced by the farm. 

You can visit the old farm buildings and discover what life used to be like here but what brings me back time and again is the old walled garden. Its greenhouses may now be crumbling and definitely unsafe, but the ancient apple trees still survive, central beds are filed with vegetables, and the borders with flowers.

On a sunny day it's a wonderful place to just sit for a while.

If you feel like a short walk, there's a path around the lake next to the garden, and for a longer one, explore the woodland beyond the car park - you can follow a series of paths close by or join the cycle path which links Aberaeron and Lampeter.