Wales in a Whirl - by Laurie

We chose to hang out in Scotland beyond our allotted days so our time in Wales was severely truncated. In fact, we only stayed there one night, although we'll be going back today for the day. 

We got the last accommodation available in Aberystwyth--a somewhat seedy resort hotel along the promenade. Certainly not up to our new elitist standards. But Aberystwyth was well worth visiting. It's a college town and very lively. We used our time there well.

We explored the ruins of a fascinating castle, with standing stones, at sunset. Then we went to dinner at a local pub chock full of students and ambience, with a burger menu on a 2-story chalkboard that reached down from the second floor. I have been sampling the local draft (draught) cider at each pub while Dale checks out the local ale.

The castle. Note one of the standing stones to the right, a Bardic Circle.

Next morning (after breakfast of course--we never miss a breakfast) we went on a hike along the coastal trail. Just in the last year or so Wales completed a walking trail around the country--over 800 miles, I believe. Much of the trail follows the coast. This was a 5-mile, 2-hour walk from Aberystwyth to Borth. One of the great things about Wales is the train system, which goes to many small places, including from Borth to Aberystwyth, so we didn't have to walk back.

So we headed up Constitution Hill to the trail, vast ocean on one side and indifferent sheep on the other. We saw cormorant-covered rocks below and 4 to 8 (depending on whether second sittings were new birds or not) red kites flew overhead. The two hour estimate was highly optimistic. This trail went way up and then down and then up again over and over again. The trail description said there were 1 or 2 hills. This Sacramento girl would say 8 or 10 really steep hills. After we completed the trail there was still a mile or more walk to the train station in Broth. I was very pleased to have accomplished the whole walk and even more happy to take the train back.

A georgeous walk along the coast in Wales. 

Borth is a resort town that never quite made the big time like Aberystwyth. The small railroad station, built 150 years ago, is now a train museum. The man and wife who run the museum talked to us enthusiastically about their trip to the US 17 years ago when they put 12,000 miles on their railpasses in a month! We also learned more about Borth than we'd ever expected.

Borth back to Aberystwyth, picked up our luggage from the hotel, then back to the train station for the trip to Shrewsbury. When we first came into town we didn't even know which direction to take from the train station. Now, a day later, we knew that station and town like an old friend. 

Red kite flying overhead (note the forked tail), one of the highest points of this very high day.