Day 3 - Barmouth and Harlech

The Rain has gone ! Last night we had a Biblical thunder and lightning storm extravaganza and it has worked ! Sunny day here . South again today past Caernarfon and onward to Harlech

Harlech has it’s 13thC castle high on a rock above the town which today is hidden almost by the fog ! Built by Edward I as part of his plan to subdue the Welsh ! 600 years ago the sea came right up to the base of castle - which explains the water- gate and most .... but today there is a very steep drive up the hill and the sea is half a mile away ! The castle has seen a lot of action and was held by royalists in 1642 civil war.

Morfa Mawddach station is on the south side of the great expanse of the Mawddach estuary . The estuary is spanned by the famous 1867 Barmouth wooden train viaduct. At the north end at Barmouth are two steel arches , one of which used to open for ships! Barmouth is an old seaside town but very commercial today with all its fun fair events and sandy beaches ! Today it’s very warm but the fog is still in ! Driving through Barmouth , our plans change as we witness the “living dead“ of hundreds of not socially distanced tourists and a couple are actually wearing masks ! The train ride across the viaduct , a 4 minute journey or so to Morfa Mawddach with a two hour stop-over for lunch is less appealing with the fog ! We decide to walk over the viaduct footpath there and back - Luna is happy ! It’s a good walk of around 2 miles ! The fog begins to clear and the sun will eventually appear ! The modern train trundles over the rusty rails.

After a leisurely drive through the mountains we try the pebble beach at Conway with Luna - that’s a no from here to waves crashing !
Conway castle still looks impressive .Read more