On the Llyn Coastal Path north east of Trwyn Cilan - geograph

Activity for a cloudy seaside day - geograph

The Llŷn Coastal Path is a waymarked

long-distance footpath A long-distance trail (or long-distance footpath, track, way, greenway) is a longer recreational trail mainly through rural areas used for hiking, backpacking, cycling, horse riding or cross-country skiing. They exist on all continents ex ...

running along the coast of the

Llŷn Peninsula The Llŷn Peninsula ( cy, Penrhyn Llŷn or , ) extends into the Irish Sea from North West Wales, south west of the Isle of Anglesey. It is part of the historic county of Caernarfonshire, and historic region and local authority area of Gwynedd. ...

from

Caernarfon Caernarfon (; ) is a royal town, community and port in Gwynedd, Wales, with a population of 9,852 (with Caeathro). It lies along the A487 road, on the eastern shore of the Menai Strait, opposite the Isle of Anglesey. The city of Bangor i ...

Porthmadog Porthmadog (; ), originally Portmadoc until 1974 and locally as "Port", is a Welsh coastal town and community in the Eifionydd area of Gwynedd and the historic county of Caernarfonshire. It lies east of Criccieth, south-west of Blaenau Ff ...

Gwynedd Gwynedd (; ) is a Local government in Wales#Principal areas, county and preserved county (latter with differing boundaries; includes the Isle of Anglesey) in the North West Wales, north-west of Wales. It shares borders with Powys, Conwy County B ...

, north-west

Wales Wales ( cy, Cymru ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by England to the Wales–England border, east, the Irish Sea to the north and west, the Celtic Sea to the south west and the ...

. A large part of the Llŷn Peninsula is designated an

Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty An Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty (AONB; , AHNE) is an area of countryside in England, Wales, and Northern Ireland, that has been designated for conservation due to its significant landscape value. Areas are designated in recognition of th ...

. Devised and implemented by

Gwynedd County Council Cyngor Gwynedd ( en, Gwynedd Council) is the governing body for the county of Gwynedd, one of the principal areas of Wales, principal areas of Wales. The council administrates internally using the Welsh language. History The county of Gwynedd ...

and the

Countryside Council for Wales The Countryside Council for Wales (CCW; cy, Cyngor Cefn Gwlad Cymru (CCGC)) was a Welsh Assembly sponsored body responsible for wildlife conservation, landscape and countryside access authority for Wales. It was merged with Forestry Commiss ...

, the path opened in 2006, though it has since been changed and improved. This work is continuing as part of the path's integration into the

Wales Coast Path The Wales Coast Path ( cy, Llwybr Arfordir Cymru) is a designated long-distance trail which follows, or runs close to, the coastline of Wales. Launched in 2012, the footpath is long and was heralded as the first dedicated coast path in the wor ...

, an long-distance walking route around the whole coast of Wales from

Chepstow Chepstow ( cy, Cas-gwent) is a town and community in Monmouthshire, Wales, adjoining the border with Gloucestershire, England. It is located on the tidal River Wye, about above its confluence with the River Severn, and adjoining the wester ...

to Queensferry.BBC News Wales - All-Wales coast path nears completion
Retrieved 2 January 2012

Description

The route passes through hidden coves and beaches, along cliff-top paths, through small harbours and towns such as

and

, detours slightly inland where it rises to as much as and covers the coast of both north and south Llŷn.

Snowdonia Snowdonia or Eryri (), is a mountainous region in northwestern Wales and a national park of in area. It was the first to be designated of the three national parks in Wales, in 1951. Name and extent It was a commonly held belief that the na ...

, Wales’ biggest National Park, lies to the east and the

Irish Sea The Irish Sea or , gv, Y Keayn Yernagh, sco, Erse Sie, gd, Muir Èireann , Ulster-Scots: ''Airish Sea'', cy, Môr Iwerddon . is an extensive body of water that separates the islands of Ireland and Great Britain. It is linked to the Ce ...

to the west. The weather in these parts can be unpredictable. The Coastal Path is partly based on an ancient pilgrimage route to

Bardsey Island Bardsey Island ( cy, Ynys Enlli), known as the legendary "Island of 20,000 Saints", is located off the Llŷn Peninsula in the Welsh county of Gwynedd. The Welsh name means "The Island in the Currents", while its English name refers to the "Islan ...

, now a National Nature Reserve. Wildlife is abundant in this area, and

bottle-nosed dolphin Bottlenose dolphins are aquatic mammals in the genus ''Tursiops.'' They are common, cosmopolitan members of the family Delphinidae, the family of oceanic dolphins. Molecular studies show the genus definitively contains two species: the comm ...

s and Atlantic

grey seals The grey seal (''Halichoerus grypus'') is found on both shores of the North Atlantic Ocean. In Latin Halichoerus grypus means "hook-nosed sea pig". It is a large seal of the family Phocidae, which are commonly referred to as "true seals" or " ...

can often be seen in the coastal waters. In the dunes there are stonechats,

goldfinch Goldfinch or The Goldfinch may refer to: Birds * European goldfinch, ''Carduelis carduelis'' * Some species of the genus '' Spinus'': ** American goldfinch, ''Spinus tristis'' ** Lawrence's goldfinch, ''Spinus lawrencei'' ** Lesser goldfinc ...

es, and

sand martin The sand martin (''Riparia riparia''), also known as the bank swallow (in the Americas), collared sand martin, or common sand martin, is a migratory passerine bird in the swallow family. It has a wide range in summer, embracing practically the ...

s. Migratory birds pass this way too, so autumn brings the arrival of

redwing The redwing (''Turdus iliacus'') is a bird in the thrush family, Turdidae, native to Europe and the Palearctic, slightly smaller than the related song thrush. Taxonomy and systematics This species was first described by Carl Linnaeus in his ...

s, chaffinches,

starling Starlings are small to medium-sized passerine birds in the family Sturnidae. The Sturnidae are named for the genus ''Sturnus'', which in turn comes from the Latin word for starling, ''sturnus''. Many Asian species, particularly the larger ones, ...

s and

skylark ''Alauda'' is a genus of larks found across much of Europe, Asia and in the mountains of north Africa, and one of the species (the Raso lark) endemic to the islet of Raso in the Cape Verde Islands. Further, at least two additional species are ...

s. The rare

chough There are two species of passerine birds commonly called chough ( ) that constitute the genus ''Pyrrhocorax'' of the Corvidae (crow) family of birds. These are the red-billed chough (''Pyrrhocorax pyrrhocorax''), and the Alpine chough (or yello ...

breeds in small numbers.

The route

The route can be split into seven main sections, though the official guidebook divides it into nine. * Caernarfon– Trefor :: Caernarfon–Llanfaglan :: Llanfaglan–Groeslon :: Groeslon–Aberdesach :: Aberdesach–Trefor * Trefor–

Morfa Nefyn Morfa Nefyn is a village on the northern coast of the Llŷn Peninsula in Gwynedd, Wales. It lies on the crossroads of the B4417 and B4412. The village has seen a rise in popularity as house prices in nearby villages on the Llŷn Peninsula such as ...

:: Trefor–Penrhyn Glas :: Penrhyn Glas–Porth Dinllaen * Morfa Nefyn– Llangwnnadl :: Porth Dinllaen–Porth Ysgaden :: Porth Ysgaden–Porth Widlin * Llangwnnadl–

Aberdaron Aberdaron is a community, electoral ward and former fishing village at the western tip of the Llŷn Peninsula in the Welsh county of Gwynedd. It lies west of Pwllheli and south west of Caernarfon, and has a population of 965. The community inc ...

:: Porth Widlin–Porth Orion :: Porth Orion–Aberdaron * Aberdaron–

Abersoch Abersoch is a village in the community of Llanengan in Gwynedd, Wales. It is a popular coastal seaside resort, with around 800 residents, on the east-facing south coast of the Llŷn Peninsula at the southern terminus of the A499. It is about ...

:: Aberdaron–Plas yn Rhiw :: Plas yn Rhiw–Porth Neigwl :: Porth Neigwl–Machroes :: Machroes–Llanbedrog Beach * Abersoch–

Pwllheli Pwllheli () is a market town and community of the Llŷn Peninsula ( cy, Penrhyn Llŷn) in Gwynedd, north-western Wales. It had a population of 4,076 in 2011 of whom a large proportion, 81%, are Welsh speaking. Pwllheli is the place where Plaid ...

:: Llanbedrog Beach–Pwllheli * Pwllheli–

Criccieth Criccieth ( cy, Criccieth ) is a town and community on the Llŷn Peninsula in the Eifionydd area of Gwynedd in Wales. The town lies west of Porthmadog, east of Pwllheli and south of Caernarfon. It had a population of 1,826 in 2001, reducing ...

–Porthmadog :: Pwllheli–Pen-ychain :: Pen-ychain–Criccieth :: Criccieth–Porthmadog

References

External links

Gwynedd Council information of The Llŷn Coastal PathPhotos of the Llyn Coastal Path on geograph.org.ukMap
{{DEFAULTSORT:Llyn Coastal Path Recreational walks in Wales Tourism in Gwynedd Long-distance footpaths in Wales Coastal paths in Wales Llŷn Peninsula

Description

The route

See also

References

External links