Saturday 4 June

Time to go home, but not before a visit to Liverpool, Albert Dock.
For the first time this week the sun wasn't shining but it was still warm and dry as we packed our belongings and boarded the coach after saying farewell to the staff and manager of the hotel.

We arrived at Liverpool Albert Dock at about 12.30 and had until 3.00 to explore and have lunch. It was very busy as it was the International Mersey River Festival and there were many events taking place. We had our lunch while watching Thundercat Racing on the river and then wandered around taking in the sights and sounds..

Thundercat Racing

Ferry across the Mersey

Jelly Bean picture of The Beatles

Rita and Frank with the Beatles

Liver Birds

Tall Ships

Canoe water polo-very physical

An interesting end to the holiday and back in Bradford before 5.00 pm.

Thank you to Sheila, Rita, Anita and Brian Humphrey for providing photos for the blog.

Thank you to all who were involved in organising this holiday with a special mention to Rita who put in a lot of work behind the scenes. Also thanks to the walks leaders who all volunteered (or had their arms twisted!) to lead the walks.

The hotel was excellent, the food was good and the weather was perfect. Also thanks to Alan the driver and Alfa Travel for getting us around in sometimes difficult circumstances.

Friday 3 June

Our last full day's walking and yet again the sun was shining. Weren't we lucky?
Today we were all walking on the Llyn Peninsular. The A party started at Nefyn and ascended a mountain on the way to Trefor. The B and C parties did similar walks along the Welsh coastal path from Tudweiliog to Nefyn.

Two photos of the C party

I chose the B party led by new leader Bill Saint. He was used to leading cubs and scouts so we were a doddle for him and nobody got lost.

We saw some seals

Lunch stop

The views are stunning and the coastal path here is quite easy to walk without too many ups and downs. We walked around a golf course and caught a glimpse of some dolphins before descending to the beach at Porthdinllaen.

Ice cream stop at the Ty Coch Inn, Porthdinllaen

Morfa Nefyn

The walk continued from here partly on the cliff path and then on quiet roads to Nefyn which was a bit of an anticlimax after all the beautiful scenery we had all day. Four of us managed to find the Maritime Museum which provided us with cups of tea or ice creams while the rest of the group went to the pub or sat in the sun waiting for the coach..

Thursday 2 June

The A party walked the Nantile Ridge from Rhyd Ddu to Garndolbenmaen while the B party took an easier route which was still tricky and the C party had a difficult time doing a circular around Garndolbenmaen which was very boggy and lacking in stiles. It was so bad they abandoned the walk and took the service bus back to Criccieth.
These are some of Sheila's photos from the B party.

I decided to take the steam train from Porthmadog to Beddgelert and Anita, Kath and Carol came too. The bus was a bit late so we had to run to the station and just managed to buy our tickets and board the train before it set off.

Taking on water at Beddgelert

I managed to find the cottage I stayed in all those years ago and then we set off to walk alongside the Aberglaslyn.

 The path started off wide and flat and then got a bit more challenging the further up the river we got!

We had a lovely lunch spot near the river with opportunity to cool our feet.

Of course you can't go to Beddglert without visiting Gelert's grave.

For anyone who doesn't know the story you can read it here.

The ice cream in Beddgelert was even more delicious than Criccieth. There was just enough time to view a few shops before catching the train back to Porthmadog and the bus back to Criccieth. Incidentally the Welsh bus service Caelloi was much cheaper than Arriva although it didn't run so often. The driver even let me on for free when I couldn't find my return ticket.

There was still plenty of time before dinner for a paddle and a rest on our favourite seats where we were lucky enough to see a seal pop its head up.

Wednesday 1 June

Yet again the sun shone all day while the folk back home were wearing their coats because it was dull, cold and drizzly.
The coach driver had a day off today but there were still three walks on offer. Some of the group took the mainline train from Criccieth to Aberystwyth or Machynlleth. Here are the lads enjoying the funicular at Aberystwyh.

I went with Jackie Wilkes on the bus to Porthmadog and then a short walk to Portmeirion where we spent the rest of the time.

children at play!

The Lighthouse

We went down on the beach to have our lunch and found a lovely quiet spot with the sand stretching out for miles in front of us.

Rita and Frank spent some time on the beach too and here is Frank enjoying a paddle!

Then back to the madness of the village which is bizarre and has to be seen to be believed. Well worth a visit though.
We all returned to Porthmadog at different times to catch the bus back to Criccieth

where I had tea and Welsh cakes in the Caffi Cwrt tea garden while Anita got locked up in the castle. They let her out eventually!