Criccieth to Harlech

 It's a cool but sunny spring day and we're back on the Coast Path with Criccieth Castle behind us.  (She'd already done the stretch from Llanystumdwy without me).  There are spring lambs and daffodils.

We set off on the promenade, then along the railway, over the hill and down to Black Rock Sands where there was a traffic sign!  We couldn't manage ten miles an hour but some of the cars were racing along the hard sand between the dunes and the sea. 

Lunch was on a seat with a view of the estuary and I got some of her sandwich.  Then we headed inland with great views of the mountains of Eryri and Merioneth as well as the distant shoreline.  

Then we met Ian on another well placed bench catching up on his correspondence.  

The walk from there into Porthmadog was very picturesque.  

We returned by train from Talsarnau the next morning and walked from the main railway station back to the Steam Railway and the continuation of the Coast Path.  (But they stopped for cake and coffee first.)

After crossing the Cob, and discovering that Madog was the person who built the crossing and made Porthmadog a port, we headed up a hill through the trees.  As he was with us we took a slower pace. 

The view from the top was great! Then we went down through the woods into the next estuary passing the edge of Port Meirion.  Just enough of a view to tempt some to pay the entrance fee.  They'd been before so we continued on towards Penrhyndeudraeth and a long footpath through the town and down to the station where we had lunch.  

From there it was more road to the river crossing and a lovely picnic spot (bit late for us) then onto the salt marsh where views of the mountains contrasted with the flat estuary.  I'm patiently waiting for him.

When we reached the station at Talsarnau we drove to the home and garden of the architect who'd designed Port Meirion (William Clough-Ellis) in the hills above Penrhyndeudraeth.  I had to stay in the car with him as she looked round the grounds and walked up to his castle folly on the hill.  Sounded quite exciting.  

The next morning, after being locked in the car for breakfast (I'd barked too much the previous morning) we returned to Talsarnau Station for a train to Harlech.  The weather forecast was bad and he thought we'd be better walking north with the wind behind us.  

She didn't take many pictures and this was the only one of Harlech after we'd left the train.   It was raining, cold and windy.  Even I wasn't excited about going for a walk.  It was flat for most of the way and the only exciting part was getting through a field of pregnant horses that weren't much bigger than me. 

We were all tired, wet and hungry when we got back to the station car park and didn't have any food till we got back to the accommodation, despite carrying it all the way.  I slept for the rest of the day.