Sunday March 31st 2013 - Deganwy and Conway

Another gloriously sunny day arrived and after a dog walk up to the castle and back and a relaxing morning I set off for Deganwy, which was on the far side of Llandudno. I'd thought about going there the previous day but by that time I was on my way back from Llandudno so rather than turn round and retrace part of my route I'd decided to make a separate day of it, though when I got there I found there wasn't much to make a day of.

It was a very small place set on the Conway estuary and with less than half a dozen shops, a cafe and a railway station it didn't take long to look round. There was, however, a small development of modern town houses and a hotel just along the shore and at the far side was a marina, so my liking for boats and water took me to see what was along there. It was a very attractive area with many of the houses overlooking the marina and others overlooking the estuary, and with all the moored-up boats and a gorse-covered hillside in the background I got several nice photos.

By the time I'd finished wandering round I was ready for coffee and cake so I took the dogs back to the van and went to the little cafe to indulge. My next mission was to look for a certain camp site in the Conwy area mentioned to me in conversation with my friend, who had made a tentative suggestion that maybe I might camp there with her some time, so with the coffee and cake well and truly dispatched I went back to the van and headed out of Deganwy and round the estuary to Conwy.

I hadn't a clue exactly where this particular camp site was or even the name of it - that was assuming it still existed of course. All I had was the vaguest of directions from my friend who had last stayed there about twenty years ago, however I managed to find it with no trouble and as it seemed to be the only one in that particular area I thought I must be at the right place. Leaving the van just inside the entrance I went to explore; the site was on a hill and the access road was winding and steep but it levelled out eventually and I got a good view over the site. According to my friend this was only a small site but it had obviously been developed greatly in the years since she last went there as the road through it just went on and on into the distance, with small sheltered areas on both sides which had only half a dozen or so pitches in each one. If there was a tent area at all it must have been miles away as all I saw were caravans, and toilet/shower blocks seemed to be very scarce too as I only saw one, though there must have been others somewhere. Admittedly it seemed to be a well set out site and the views over the countryside and river were good, but it was quite a distance from anywhere and as nice as it looked I really couldn't see myself staying there, it was just too big a place.

With my curiosity satisfied I returned to the van and drove back down to Conwy where I found a parking space in a side road near the castle and set out for a wander round. At the far end of the quayside I discovered part of the old town walls with steps leading up to the top; always on the lookout for good photo opportunities I went to see what was up there and was quite surprised to find that I could walk right along, although not wanting to end up somewhere in the back of beyond I didn't go too far. The views over the quayside and estuary were good though and I got several nice shots before I returned to ground level.

Back at the van I gave the dogs a drink then set off back to Manorafon; I was starting to feel quite peckish by then so I would be ready for something to eat by the time I got back. The evening was spent relaxing with my book, watching a bit of tv and making a few vague plans for the following day. 

My visit to Conwy had been good, I'd found a camp site that I didn't want to stay at and I'd got some good photos, and having done some research since then I've realised that I missed several good photographic opportunities by not going further along the town walls, so another visit will definitely be on the cards in the near future.