Leaving Port Dinorwic behind I drove a few miles further south to Caernarfon, the intention being to park near the castle, have a quick look round the shops, then take a few photos around the harbour, but when I got there I found the parking fee to be £4 for all day - now that would be fine if I was going to stay all day but it was already gone 4pm and I didn't need much more than an hour, so I negotiated the town's one-way system and found my way round to the far side of the harbour where I was able to park for free at the roadside overlooking the straits.
Parking on that side of the harbour meant that I wasn't far from the golf club so on the spur of the moment I decided to pay a surprise visit to my cousin David who works there. I'd last seen him at a family funeral a couple of years ago, and though he knows I regularly camp on Anglesey he certainly wasn't expecting to turn round from serving a member at the bar and see me standing at the other side of it. He poured me a glass of Coke and we managed to have a good chat even though he had to break off a few times to serve various members. I left when he started to get busy, and as I got back outside I had to smile to myself; the dress code stated 'Smart casual is the order of the day in all areas of the clubhouse at all times' and there I was in cycling shorts, t-shirt and beach sandals with my hair tied up in a scruffy ponytail - not exactly the right sort of image for a golf club!
Back at the harbour I spent quite some time wandering round taking photos; at one point I managed to find a way to get right down to the water's edge and was rewarded with the sight of an oystercatcher pecking about among the seaweed. Back up on the lane I crossed the swing bridge to the far side and walked along the harbourside as far as I could before I found my way blocked by a tall metal fence. A bank of ominous dark grey cloud was gathering just inland and it looked like the heavens were about to open so I didn't linger too long, and with another half dozen shots taken I made my way back to the van.
With the sky looking so dark and the time getting on it wasn't worth going anywhere else so I just set off back to Anglesey and the camp site. The sky was actually much clearer when I got back to the tent and the bed time dog walk just before the light faded was quite pleasant; it was a shame I hadn't had sunshine for my afternoon off the island but I'd still got some decent photos, and there would be plenty of future opportunities to go to Port Dinorwic and Caernarfon again in much better weather.
After some heavy overnight rain the morning arrived fine but very grey and miserable with pockets of mist hanging low over the bay, although it was still very warm. It didn't bode well for a day out off the island and by lunch time it still showed no sign of clearing up, but as I needed to get a new camera card from somewhere I decided to go anyway, though not to where I'd originally planned.
My first stop was Bangor where I eventually found a PC World store and got what I wanted, then I drove a few miles south to the little village of Port Dinorwic on the Menai Straits. I'd been there a few years ago in much nicer weather, and though there was nothing there the harbour was quite attractive and worth a few photos. As I parked up by the village green, which overlooked the straits, I could see that nothing had changed about that part of the village, but it was a different story round by the little harbour.
Where the old dark harbour buildings and boat sheds had once been there was now a smart-looking row of harbour-side houses and a pleasant cafe with a small outside eating area and a few tables right beside the harbour wall. Round the corner was an Italian bistro, a hair salon, a beautician and a physiotherapy practice, and just up the hill at the far side of the harbour was a new hotel with apartments and a landscaped garden; with a very pleasant green area overlooking the outer harbour it looked like this place had undergone some regeneration in the few years since my last visit.
By the time I'd finished wandering round and photographing things it was time for a mid afternoon break so I thought I may as well try the cafe, and I have to say that the coffee and cake I had were very nice and not overpriced either. Walking back to the van afterwards I thought it was a shame that the day was still so cloudy and grey as I could have got some really nice photos round the regenerated harbour, but at least I've now got an excuse to make a return visit another time.
