During the night I had woken up boiling hot in the tent and even chucked off the sleeping bag at one point. So, I had a feeling that the good weather was set to continue. As predicted, the sun was beating down as I popped the kettle on the stove to make the morning brew. The plan had been to pop to a supermarket for breakfast supplies en route, but as the campsite was so rural and we didn’t get there till late we skipped this plan and decided to head to Aberystwyth early to grab breakfast. Once we could prise the kids from the campsite park…..
Aberystwyth
Popping Aberystwyth in the sat nav the predicted journey time was 1.5 hours which would mean we would be there more for brunch than breakfast. Again those rural roads mean you don’t get anywhere fast but it was a lovely relaxing journey passing through the small university town of Lampeter which we know quite well. Parking on the sea front in Aberystwyth was straightforward and free for up to 4 hours which is a major bonus. We were soon chowing down on welsh rarebit, sausage sarnies and chocolate muffins in a local pub, which pleased the girls who had complained on rumbling tummies on the way.
We decided to take a walk up past the historic university buildings to the castle at one end of the bay. The castle is ruined and fully open to the public, so makes for a good climbing frame for the kids who visited and affords some cracking views up the coast line. The girls were keen to play on the modern park which was just down from the castle, and we spent a bit of time just relaxing while they flung themselves around.
Coming down from the castle we picked up the promenade which runs along the bay. Here you’ll find a historic pier with the small amusements, ice cream shop etc and a lovely clean paddling pool. If you like the hustle and bustle of Skegness and Scarborough this town is the polar opposite – it’s quaint and small with a few touristy bits thrown in. The hotels and restaurants line the street giving it a faded Victorian seaside glamour that is very picturesque. For being peak holiday season, the town was lovely and quiet with plenty of benches to sit and enjoy the views, which I took advantage of when Alan and kids headed down the beach to find an ‘Earth cache’ (essentially a point on the map you go to and answer questions on to gain!)
At the other side of the bay is the Electric funicular train which takes you to the top of the hill to the cafe and the camera obscura. If you have been on the one in Scarborough this one is probably twice as long but just a rickety and I got a bit of a sweaty palm as it cranked up the hill. Once at the top we followed the path along (to find a geo cache) and I found a spot to read my new book while they hunted for some more.
Our original plans were to head from here to a Gold Mine in Pumsaint, but as the roads were so slow we ended up running out of time. So, we re routed to Aberaeron.
Aberaeron
Next stop on the tour was Aberaeron just a short drive of 20 minutes along the coast. It’s a pretty fishing village which reminded the girls a lot of Balamory with its pastel coloured houses. It’s local delicacy is honey flavoured ice cream.
When in Rome as they say! So We had to try the ice cream. There was a queue spilling out of the roped barriers at the kiosk.
The ice cream was a Mr Whippy style, with a very subtle honey flavour. At first I didn’t even notice it, but eventually you start to get a Honey twang. It is very subtle though and possibly over hyped.
What Alan didn’t fully disclose about our destination, was that there were 3 Geocaches to collect! The kids and him ran off in there search.
The Weather started to turn rainy as we’d completed our visit – perfect timing! Back to Rhandirmwyn, with a visit to the local Pub for tea.
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