Our Visits to Cenarth Falls Through the Seasons

Cenarth Falls is a picturesque waterfall on the River Teifi located in the village of Cenarth. It is on the border of Pembrokeshire, Ceredigion and Carmarthenshire. The Teifi is one of the longest rivers in Wales. It cascades over a series of rocky steps to create Cenarth Falls. The waterfall is particularly stunning during times of heavy rainfall when the water flow is at its peak.

Cenarth Falls in September.

The village is such a pretty place with a lovely riverside walk and plenty of cafes for a cream tea.

There are boardwalks along the riverside making the walk easy and accessible. There is a circular walk you can do along the river, then up through woodland and back through the village to the car park.

Cenarth riverside walk
Falls at Cenarth
Cenarth Riverside Walk

The area is also well-known for fishing, and the River Teifi is abundant with salmon and sea trout.

Cenarth Falls in November

In addition to its natural beauty, Cenarth is also famous for its history, with a long-standing tradition of coracle fishing. Coracles are small, round boats made of wicker and coated with tar or bitumen. Fishermen have used these unique vessels for centuries to navigate the river and catch fish. The National Coracle Museum by the river is worth a visit. 

Cenarth Falls and Coracle Museum

There is a Car Park at the Falls. Parking is £3 per car for all day parking (9am – 6pm). Cenarth is easily reached in around 30 minutes from Red Kite & Woodpecker Cottages.

We’ve visited Cenarth three times this year and each time has been so different. First time in May there had been so little rain that the falls were small and you could see much of the underlying rock.
In September they were perfectly flowing. This week after so much rain they are a force of nature, so powerful! Whenever you visit, Cenarth is very pretty.

Here’s a Reel I made for our Instagram showing the different seasons.

Visiting Amazing Aberporth Right After Lockdown

Monday 6th July 2020 was the first time we were allowed to travel more than 5 miles from home in Wales since the week after we moved here in March. We were so excited to be visiting Aberporth to explore the lovely beaches. It was really quiet with just a few families and surfers. So lovely to feel the sea breeze on our faces! The drive is very picturesque too and it only took us 40 minutes from Red Kite & Woodpecker Cottages.

Dyffryn Beach
Dyffryn Beach

Aberporth lies at the southern end of Cardigan Bay about six miles north of Cardigan and ten miles south of New Quay. It overlooks two sandy beaches both with European Blue Flag status.

Aberporth Beach
Dyffryn Beach from above

Dyffryn Beach is to the west of the headland and Dolwen Beach to the east. Aberporth Beach is often used to describe both of these beaches together.

Dolwen Beach

The beaches both have soft golden sand and shelve gently into the sea. They were both pretty quiet when we were there which is unusual for July. Probably because tourists weren’t allowed to visit until the following week .

Visting Aberporth.
View of the pretty houses in Aberporth from Dyffryn beach.
The beaches are popular with surfers.

We went in the afternoon when it was low tide, so there was more space to walk and we got to explore the rocks and rock pools. 🦀 🦐

Limpets and barnacles galore!
Rock Pools.

We walked on Dyffryn Beach as we had Ziggy with us – dogs aren’t allowed on Dolwen in the Summer months.

Visiting Aberporth - Dyffryn Beach
Ziggy loves the beach!
Dyffryn Beach is dog friendly all summer.
Ziggy enjoys getting his paws wet.

We also had a wander up the hill into the town and then walked down through a small wooded area back to the beach. A very pleasant stroll with views over the beaches.

Visiting Aberporth, Cardigan Bay.
View from the top of the hill back down to the beaches
Sculpture on the walk back to the beach.
Dyffryn Beach from the walk back down from town.

We couldn’t go onto Dolwen beach as dogs aren’t allowed in Summer.

Visting Aberporth - Dolwen Beach.
The steps down to Dolwen Beach
Dolphin Sculpture overlooking the Beaches – Sightings are common in this area.

The shops and cafes were still closed when we visited this time, but we went back a couple of weeks later and it was much busier with tourists and everything was open. We enjoyed a lovely salted caramel ice cream 😋

Aberporth - Dolwen Beach.
So quiet for July
Yes!! The joy of being able to have a day at the beach after lockdown!

I’m pretty sure we will never again see Aberporth so quiet in July…but come the Autumn when the crowds of tourists get smaller, we think it will be a great place to walk and chill out for an afternoon.

Walking at Pretty Penbryn Beach in the Spring

When we were planning our Big Move to Wales we did some exploring around the area and the beaches and harbour towns of Cardigan Bay were one of the deciding factors in us choosing to move to Lampeter. So for our first trip out in March 2020 we really wanted to take Ziggy for a walk at Penbryn Beach. We had been before in September when we had our second viewing of the Cottages so we already knew what a magical place it is.

Early morning walk at Penbryn. © Coedmor Cottages
Penbryn in September the day after we decided to buy The Cottages

“Social Distancing” was already in force but we weren’t yet in lockdown, so we were allowed to head to the beach for our daily exercise. Penbryn is looked after by the National Trust, so there is a proper car park which you pay a couple of pounds for and this goes towards the upkeep (and there are loos there too). The beach is a walk downhill – you have two choices here. You can walk down the road or go through the woodland. We chose to go the road route as we wanted to get to the beach asap.

Leigh & Ziggy at Penbryn.
Only Ziggy’s second time at the beach…ever!

As you reach the beach there is a stream that runs right down into the sea. Ziggy couldn’t wait to get wet…he loves water but won’t swim – he panics if he goes out of his depth. When we lived in Reading we were so far from the sea that we only took Ziggy to the beach once. He loved it, but couldn’t understand why the water tastes so bad ? At Penbryn he went crazy running on the sand – he loved the wide open space…and we were virtually the only ones there.

Penbryn Beach © Coedmor Cottages
Penbryn in March – gorgeous soft sand.
Penbryn Beach, Cardigan Bay © Coedmor Cottages

The beach is about a mile long so you can have a decent walk along it. There is a cave to explore at the right hand side of the beach if you visit at low tide. At very low tide there is another beach further around the headland, but beware as there is no other way to get off this cove so if the tide turns you could be stranded!

Caves on Penbryn Beach. © Coedmor Cottages
Cave at Penbryn

We took the scenic route back up to the car park through the enchanted valley. It really is a wonderful walk although it is quite steep in places. But there’s no rush. Take your time and enjoy the meandering pathways that take you through woodland and fern-clad terrain with a stream babbling below you.

Ziggy at the woods in Penbryn.
The stream down to Penbryn Beach. © Coedmor Cottages

Then just as you thought it couldn’t get any better, you come upon a bridge and a waterfall! Seriously, if fairies are real, this is where they live.

The Waterfall at Penbryn. © Coedmor Cottages
Penbryn Waterfall

Penbryn is about a 40 minute scenic drive from our cottages. If you want to make a full day of it you can also get onto the Wales Coast Path from Penbryn in both directions and offers gorgeous views across the bay. We like to visit the  Plwmp Tart Cafe next to the car park for a spot of lunch or a cake after our walk.

The remote location and lack of light pollution make this an ideal spot for stargazing in the summer months – Penbryn Beach is a designated Dark Skies Discovery site and dusk is a great time to see seals and barn owls in the area.

Penbryn’s Claim to Fame is that it was used for a scene in the James Bond “Die Another Day: movie! You can see why in the clip below – it looks stunning.

Dolaucothi Gold Mines

Dolaucothi Gold Mines

History and Nature Trails








Information

Location: Pumsaint – 9 miles – 18 Minutes drive

Website: Dolaucothi Gold Mines

Description

These unique gold mines are set amid wooded hillsides overlooking the beautiful Cothi Valley and have a 2000 year history. Between 70 AD and 80 AD, the Romans began the first extensive mining of Dolaucothi, creating large open-cast workings and digging several tunnels to exploit the gold veins. The most active period of mining at Dolaucothi in the Victorian/Edwardian Age occurred around the turn of the 20th century and carried on sporadically until the 1930’s.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nA2NacrE2qM

There are lots of activities to take part in. You can pan for gold, take a self-guided audio tour of the Roman Goldmines, explore the 1930’s sheds and machinery, shop for Welsh Gold jewellery or take an underground guided tour. These tours take visitors right into the Drift Mines, perched on the hills above the Mine Yard. There are 5 underground tours per day to the Victorian and Roman mines and these take about 1 hour. The season runs from 1st April to the end of October. The site is run by the National Trust and opening times vary through the seasons so check online. Entry price is currently £10.50 for adults.

If you don’t fancy going down the mine or you want to spend longer exploring the area, there are also a number of nature trails to follow ranging from very easy to challenging. These are open all year round and are a haven for a multitude of wild birds as well as red squirrels and pine martens.

Just 10 minutes walk away is the Dolaucothi Arms pub – voted Rural Pub of the Year by BBC Countryfile in 2019. It offers a traditional pub menu in the Winter and a Mediterranean style menu from April to September. N.B. the pub is closed on Mondays and opening hours change in the winter months so check their website.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tSUWrYuPL_4

The National Botanic Gardens of Wales

The National Botanic Gardens of Wales

A Delightful Day Out with Flora & Fauna












Information

Location: Llanarthne 28 miles – 45 minute drive

Website: https://botanicgarden.wales

Description

Set in the beautiful Carmarthenshire countryside, the National Botanic Garden of Wales is spread over 560 acres with an amazing collection of over 8000 different plant varieties. With the largest single-spanned glasshouse in the world and the best display of Mediterranean climate zone plants in the Northern Hemisphere it is easy to see why it has been voted No 1 Garden to Visit in Wales (by BBC Gardeners World).

The garden also has a wide diversity of wild plant and animal species across its mosaic of lakes, meadows, streams, woodland, and marshes. It boasts over 100 types of moths & butterflies, over 50 varieties of birds, 20 species of mammals (including otters, dormice and bats) as well as frogs, toads, newts and lizards.

New for 2020, the Regency Restoration project has restored the legendary landscape of one of the finest Regency Waterparks in the UK. The garden will feature a necklace of seven lakes, cascades, falls & weirs first created 200 years ago.

Along with the themed gardens there is also a Butterfly House and Waun Las Nature Reserve – with wildflower-rich meadows. There are two cafes and a restaurant on site as well as the Garden Plant Shop selling plants and gifts and a craft shop and art gallery too.

2020 prices are £11.50 for adults (including Gift Aid).
Opening times: 10:00am – 6:00pm 1st April to 31st October
10:00am – 4:00pm 1st November to 31st March
Postcode is SA32 8HN Telephone: 01558 667149

As if all the gardeny goodness wasn’t enough, there is now also the brilliant British Bird of Prey Centre on site for extra entertainment. There are daily flying displays with the 20 native birds of prey – you can even see a Golden Eagle flying. Displays are 11:30am and 2:30pm with the Owl Show at 1:00pm. You can also book private experiences to have time flying the birds – bookable in advance at info@britishbirdofpreycentre.co.uk

There is a packed programme of events and courses held throughout the year from exhibitions, gardening courses, art classes and photography tuition. You can easily spend a whole day exploring this delightful place.