Sunday, October 20, 2013

Preparing for Winter in Llanbedrog

You may remember that in July I wrote a post about the village of Llanbedrog on the Llyn Peninsular.  A couple of weeks ago whilst on holiday there again (see my last post) we went back to the village do the walk we missed last time which was up to the cliff top in order to find the 'Tin Man' statue.  As we pulled into the car park we saw some of the beach huts that I'd photographed and included in my post back in July, in the corner of the car park.  As we walked towards the beach we saw that they were all being moved up to what I assume is their winter quarters. 

We left the car park just as another two huts were brought up from the beach on a tractor and trailer followed by a fork lift.

This was used to lift them off the trailer in the car park and to lift them onto the trailer on the beach - two at a time.

We watched the manoeuvres for a while but were distracted by the sea birds at the shoreline

We heard the Curlew before we saw it - I've shown you a photo of it before a couple of posts ago - but it's worth seeing it again along side it an oyster catcher of which there were several along the sea's edge.

We then began our ascent of the cliff side, up the steep steps climbing right to the top with quite a few stops along the way to catch our breath.

We passed one or two old tree stumps and branches that had coins of all sizes, denominations and nationality hammered into them.  There was nothing to say why they were there.

It appears that much like throwing coins into water or hanging things in wishing trees these are for memories or offerings of some kind probably as good luck symbols.

From near the top there is a fine view of the village

They were still moving those beach huts!

At last, we reached him - Tin Man! This is the third statue to be placed on this site and replaced the second one a stature known as Iron Man which had replaced the first, a wooden one, thought to be a ship's figure head.  Beyond him lies the coastal path on its way down the peninsula.


Behind Tin Man, looking in the opposite direction, you can see Plas Glyn y Weddw which I wrote about in the earlier post on Llanbedrog

We then began the easier descent through the woodland back towards the village

It was a quicker and easier walk down through falling, rustling leaves towards the art gallery which and we had a look around again as the exhibitions had changed since those we saw in July.

By the time we got back to the car park it was time for lunch.  We sat in the car to eat as a slight drizzle had begun and noticed one or two others in the car park were doing the same including the drivers of the tractors moving the beach huts.

This was day three of our holiday!  Day two we spent the day travelling on the Ffestiniog Railway - see Paul's post here.


26 comments:

  1. Such a lovely place to visit even out of season, thank you for the post, I really enjoyed it. Now I need to get out more and explore.

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    1. We were lucky to have fairly decent weather so we could get out and about whilst we were there:)

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  2. A lovely post! I have never thought about beach huts being moved before and presumed they stayed on the beach year round! Nice to see the curlew and oyster catcher. I don't think I have seen them in the real before. The tin man is a fantastic statue. I like the fact that you can see through him and it is good to have a focal point in case you get lost! x

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    1. I think that they probably do stay in situ on some beaches where the tide never reaches them but the beach here is quite narrow in places so I guess a rough winter tide may get up to them. I was wonderinga ll the way up what the statue would be like but it is quite interesting and photogenic:)

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  3. What a beautiful place, you're photos are lovely.

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  4. A fantastic view from the top, well worth the climb. Love those beach huts!

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    1. It was well worth the climb and I was so glad we'd done it but I will take the easier route next time:)

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  5. I never thought of beach huts having winter quarters, fascinating to see them being moved like that.
    I love the Curlew and the Oyster Catcher, they are birds with such haunting cries.

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    1. It was wonderful to see the curlew especially. I hadn't thought about the beach huts being moved but I expect they could get flooded in the winter:)

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  6. What a lovely walk. Like Simone, I've never considered that beach huts might be moved for winter! I love the tin man and the view from the top look good too.

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    1. Another time we may go further along the cliff and continue along the coastal path for a way - something to look foreward to on another visit:)

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  7. A lovely Autumnal post. Funny how moving beach huts seems to fit in nicely with this. A definate statement that summer is over.
    Can't say I've seen a tree stump full of coins before.

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    1. When I was looking up the phenomenon of the coins I saw that one or two places had been recorded around the UK some in Scotland. I'd never come across it before! the moving of the beach huts must be a good indicator that summer is over the the locals as well as visitors:)

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  8. Fabulous walk Rosie although it looks quite high :( I do try with heights, but I think I'm getting worse as I get older. I also assumed beach huts were left in place, but I suppose it's good and helps preserve them moving them from winter weather. I've come across lots of tree stumps stuffed with coins on my travels, in the most strangest of places too. x

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    1. I think some beach huts do stay in place especially when they are well back from the tide line or out on the dunes but I guess these ones are close enought to the sea to need moving. When I looked up the 'coins in tree stumps' thing it would seem that there are loads of them around the country:)

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  9. Very efficient of the Llanbedrog officials to move the huts to a sheltered place.
    The views from the heights in different directions are great although you seem to be very near the cliff edge! That photo of the Tin Man against the backdrop of the sea I like a lot and the one of the houses below. They really fit into the landscape of the area.

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    1. I think the huts are owned by the National Trust so I expect their practice of 'putting houses to bed' for the winter applies to the beach huts as well. The cliff edge wasn't too far away but we wren't close enough to feel in danger:)

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  10. I never imagined that they would have to move beach huts! I suppose the tides get high and rough over the winter. Great shot of the birds xxxx

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    1. Yes, I expect the winter tides can wreak havoc amongst those beach huts and it is better to be safe than sorry:)

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  11. What a great post. It looks a lovely walk- and I'm intrigued that they moved the beach huts- I wonder if other places move them too:)

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    1. We walked along a beach on the opposite side of the peninsula and there the huts were smaller affairs and up on stilts against the sea wall, many of those had been removed for the winter season:)

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  12. If only moving house was as easy as that! How colourful too during the winter months that are to follow. xx

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    1. I sometimes wish I could move this house somewhere else as quickly and easily as that:)

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  13. Great post and photos. The views are gorgeous!

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    1. Hello Linda, thanks - glad you enjoyed the photos:)

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