Thursday June 4th 2015 - Part 1 - Trefor, Porth Dinllaen & Whistling Sands

Another sunny morning arrived and after the first dog walk of the day I made some breakfast then sat down with the map book to plan where I was going later on. This was to be my 'big day out' when I went off the island and explored further afield, travelling down the Lleyn peninsula in search of different, and possibly never previously visited, places to photograph. With breakfast finished I tidied everything away, settled Sophie and Poppie in the van and replenished their water supply, then set off on my voyage of discovery.

Across on the mainland I bypassed Caernarfon and headed south west down the A499, making my first stop at the little village of Trefor. I knew from a couple of previous visits that there was nothing much there other than a little beach and harbour but it was an attractive enough little place, and with a backdrop of the nearby hills it was worth another few photos.

From Trefor I turned onto the B4417 and headed for somewhere marked on the map book as Morfa Nefyn, which was a place I hadn't previously been to. Nefyn itself was quite a large spread out village with the B road being the main route through it and I fully expected to see a sign for Morfa Nefyn somewhere but there was nothing; I did however see a sign for 'beach' pointing down a long straight lane so that's the way I went - and ended up in a golf course car park.

With no other signs around I was totally at a loss, in fact I wasn't sure if I should even be in that car park, but a nearby board said that the clubhouse restaurant was open to the public so I assumed I would be okay parking there. As I stood wondering which way to go a couple who had obviously just finished a round of golf came to their nearby car so I asked them where the beach was and was told to follow the gravel track across the golf course and a fifteen minute walk would take me straight to it. So off I went, and almost at the end of the track I saw a beach just beyond a short, steeply sloping tarmac lane on the right.

The lane took me down behind a row of cottages and when I emerged onto the sand I discovered a tiny little hamlet with the cottages, a couple of houses set in a small courtyard, and a pub restaurant with an outside dining area, all set within just a few feet of the beach. I didn't know if this was actually Morfa Nevyn or somewhere else but it was such a quaint, unexpected and out-of-the-way little place and I was glad I'd found it. After spending some time wandering about taking photos I found a footpath leading round the headland at the end of the beach so I decided to follow it as far as the house I could see in the distance.

With a couple of shots taken from near the house I retraced my steps to the beach, then instead of going back up the lane to the golf course I walked along the sand, round a small headland and past another handful of cottages towards the far end of the bay. I was just hoping that there would be a way from there back to the car park otherwise I would have a long walk back the other way; I needn't have worried, as a concrete slope took me from the beach up to a tarmac lane which in turn brought me out at the beginning of the long lane leading to the golf course.

Just up the lane was a cafe with a few tables outside, and as my breakfast had long since worn off it was a good opportunity to stop for coffee and cake before returning to the van. It was also a chance to find out the name of the quaint little seaside hamlet I'd discovered, and on asking one of the young waitresses I was told that while the whole of the beach was known as Morfa Nevyn the hamlet itself was Porth Dinllaen. So I'd found Morfa Nefyn without realising it, and the delightful little hamlet had been an unexpected and lovely little bonus.

Back on the road I continued along the B4417 heading for Aberdaron, another place I hadn't yet been to, but before I got anywhere near it I saw a sign for Whistling Sands. This is a beach where the sand makes 'whistling' noises as you walk on it - I'd seen it featured on a tv nature programme quite some time ago but had forgotten all about it until I saw the sign. I just had to check this one out so I veered off down the lane in the direction of the sign, eventually ending up in a National Trust car park just a short walk from the beach itself, though unfortunately dogs weren't allowed down there so I had to make my visit fairly brief. The sand does indeed make a noise, though it's really more of a squeak than a whistle, and with just a couple of shots taken I made my way back to the van.

The remainder of the drive to Aberdaron passed with no further stops and driving through the village I found a large car park which was another National Trust one. That would do for me, so taking advantage of my membership yet again I parked up for free, gave the dogs a drink then set out to see what delights Aberdaron had to offer.