Our week that was: Family weekend, sand spray and fruit picking

We had a visit from Justin’s sister this weekend; it’s been in the diary for ages, and we’ve been really looking forward to having her come to see us again.

Rachel’s visit

Rachel lives in Greater Manchester – a 4-hour drive away. She’s the one we stay with when we have our dentist appointments up in Todmorden, so we’re taking our turn in acting as hosts! We’ve been keeping our fingers & toes crossed for good weather while she was here. The weather forecast wasn’t great, but we did manage to enjoy a few dry and sunny spells when we were out walking.

We took her to the nearby Hafod Estate as she’d not been there before. We cobbled a walk together that took us through steep woodland, fields with highland cattle grazing and above and along the winding river Ystwyth.

Another trip to the coast

Whenever she’s visited in the past, Rachel has enjoyed going for a walk along the beach. So, even though the forecast wasn’t great, we took a drive out to Ynyslas. As usual, we timed it so we would be there at low tide; the dog went completely bonkers, galloping along the long, wide sandy expanse.

Although it was really windy, there was a great, big, blue sky. It was so windy, in fact, that there was sand spray all the way along the beach; that’s how the famous sand dunes were formed!

Blackberry picking

The local hedgerows are currently heaving under the weight of blackberries. They’re like little glistening jewels crying out to be plucked and made into jam, jelly or apple & blackberry pie or crumble. I’ve already picked around 2 kilos and have put them into the freezer while I decide how I’m going to use them.

Our week that was: Friends, food and farm animals

Last week, we had friends from Yorkshire come to stay with us for a few days. Like us, they do a lot of walking, so some of that was on the agenda.

They wanted a trip to the seaside, so we took them to Ynyslas for a few hours. We timed our arrival to coincide with low tide – to enjoy walking through the dunes and along the long, wide swathes of sandy beach.

Although it was quite sunny, it was a breezy day, so the kiteboarders were out in force.

On another day, we took them on one of our favourite nearby woodland walks. We promised them an encounter with a couple of pigs, and our porcine friends didn’t disappoint!

The sow and one of her piglets wandered over when we offered some apple pieces that we brought with us.

As well as walking, we enjoyed sharing food & drink with our friends. One of the dishes that went down well was a chocolate buttermilk hazelnut layer cake – Justin thinks it’s the best chocolate cake I’ve ever made. Deliciously moist and chocolaty without being too sweet or sickly.

Our week that was: Rose petals, new shop stock and a day at the beach

Over the past week, we’ve probably spent 15 hours or more each day outdoors; we’ve eaten brunch and dinner al fresco and done lots of gardening jobs. We’ve even taken our ‘home office’ and ‘photography studio’ outside!

Sugared rose petals

Last week, we mentioned that our Korresia rose was just coming into flower. They’re a lovely lemon yellow colour with a wonderful fragrance. Each bloom only lasts for a day or two before the petals begin to fall off, what a waste! Well, not this time, I used one of the flowers to make sugared or candied rose petals. All you need is an egg white, caster or icing (powdered) sugar and a pastry or small paintbrush. I’ll probably use the petals in the next few days to decorate a sponge cake, cupcakes or shortbread biscuits.

Shop stock session

As we said above, we’ve barely been indoors this week… not even to work! Justin did a shop stock photography session in the garden, making full use of the natural light. I’ll probably list all the items he did on our online shop tomorrow… while sitting on the garden bench at the front of the house… according to the MET Office, this run of sunny weather is set to continue for the foreseeable!

Ynyslas

We decided to make Thursday a day at the beach; it was mid-week, before the bank holiday, so it wouldn’t be crowded. We found out the low tide times, packed a rucksack with a flask of coffee and a couple of pieces of flapjack and aimed to get to Ynyslas for early afternoon. As you can see from our video clips above, other than a wind-surfer, a couple of kitesurfers (it was warm, but fairly windy) and a few other dog walkers, we had swathes of sandy beach to ourselves.

Out & About: Ynyslas

It’s been a long while since we did one of our ‘Out & About’ posts.

There’s been a big house move and lots of DIY jobs to do recently. Then, of course, the Covid restrictions we’ve had to contend with this year. So, all in all, it hasn’t been the best time for getting out and exploring. However, when time and opportunity allows, we still head off for walks or a short drive somewhere.

We have lots of new things and places to discover. One such location that’s been on our list since we moved to Wales is Ynyslas.

It’s a stunning area that encompasses a multitude of habitats for wildlife… and people!

It’s part of the Dyfi National Nature Reserve which serves to protect the landscape here.

There’s both sandy and pebble beaches, dunes, salt marsh, raised peat bog and grassland contained within it.

We arrived on a perfect sunny day, received a warm welcome from a warden and parked on the beach car park (normally £2 all day, but free on this occasion).

There are a number of way-marked trails that you can take – or just ‘freestyle’ and wander around.

Some people appeared to unpack chairs from the car and just plonk themselves right where they parked. However, you didn’t have to move far to get a bit more space if so desired.

We walked the 2½-mile ‘Ynyslas Trail’ which took in the dunes, beach, estuary and salt marsh, thus giving a nice taster of the scenery and various habitats. (It also means that you’ve ‘earned’ your cup of tea or ice-cream at the end).

Having done that, we spent a couple of hours on the beach taking in the fabulous views both out to sea and inland.

We really loved the place… and it’s less than half an hour’s drive from our new house.

We’ll be returning often to explore further or just relax with a picnic.

H is for Home Harbinger

Tag: Ynyslas