Pembrokeshire!

A short break with Sarah and Noah, her camper was on the cards. Back to Wales but, into Pembrokeshire this time. I’d booked a camp site last minute and as it was the weekend the schools broke up for summer, I was lucky to get that.
Our journey up was long and at least an hour over the time google implied so I was crossing my fingers that the camp site was OK and not too manic.
We arrived at Martletwy Campsite, situated on a working farm and shown to our pitch. Its couldnt have been better, in a field of wild flowers and the camping spaces were like little cut out crop circles. Our circle was not overlooked and we had wonderful views

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Noah has had an upgrade, a new kitchen pod has been added and he looks very smart and tidy, unlike like the chaos of the last trip. Sarah is used to her van now and justly proud of him.
Its been very hot so I opted to sleep in the awning and to try out my camping gear, intended for walking later in the year! Im sure Sarah was much relieved!
Getting the awning tent up was a farce but once up, was a great little space to pack me, chairs and a table into.
The weather forecast was thunder storms but with a text from Barney to say they may miss us the sun peeped out. With a cup of Prosecco we toasted our good fortune.
I slept alright, a bit patchy but to be expected especially when there are cows to be milked, cockerels to crow and sheep doing whatever they do at three in the morning Baaa!
After breakfast we headed to The Blue Lagoon. Sarah had looked this up for a place to swim and as we parked, people with boards were heading out but the sea was so calm and so blue.
We decided to walk and check out the coast line and heading from Abereiddy to Porthgain.
We looked at the Blue lagoon from several points, its a popular coasteering place and we could see people plunging from the sides. It looked terrifying to me!

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The coast path is above rugged slate cliffs and beaches only accessible when the tide is out and utterly beautiful! We walked approximately 5 miles to Porthgain, a small fishing villiage. As we descended down steep steps to the harbour we noticed an old building with a dirty pale grey cement roof. Ive never seen this before and the next day we saw more! Puzzled I looked this up and its a relatively common practice here of a ‘grout roof’. Its usually a slate roof that has seen better days and rendered with a cement material to make it last longer. Its peculiar to the west of the UK apparently.

We stopped for tea, (chocolate for Sarah) and cake. Neither of us had a mask and then struggled placing out order online but it was worth it when it came.

We strolled back the way we’d come to find the carpark (on the beach) full. We put on our costumes and went to swim in the blue lagoon which was pretty busy by now.
I didn’t feel comfortable leaving our bags so we went in one at a time.

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As I said Noah has had and upgrade and I think Sarah has also had one! All sleek and tanned in her bikini hopping down the rocks to the water!
Emerging a while later like someone out of a Bond movie! I don’t think I’m that pale but I felt a bit like the corpse bride next to her!
My turn for a dip and theres no hanging about acclimatising because the small ledge at the edge just drops away. Whooo it was cold…..
The Lagoon is man made. It was cut out for slate mining and then in 1910 at the end of its use, a channel was cut to allow the sea water in. Apparently a tram used to take the slate to Porthgain to be shipped out. The colour of the water is due to the slate which also makes the rocks around it black.
I swam, then climbed to the channel where the water was rushing out to the sea. There was a family with their paddle boards waiting for a seal to move so they could get into open water. The seal was in the water and clearly had come to gawk!
Once back at the point I’d entered I’m sad to say I didn’t look like a “Bond girl”, as I scramble up the rocks all disheveled and now with black slate dust on my costume just accentuating my luminous whiteness grrr!
Once relatively dry we thought we would wander up to a tower above the pool. this turned into a steep scramble and not something to consider when its blowing a gale.

The reward were more magnificent veiws, a little round tower and Chough’s. I had already heard them and Sarah got a good picture of one! My dad will be pleased that he’s not asked to identify what looks like a black bin bag because the picture was so bad last time bad!

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After lunch back at Noah, Sarah had another swim at the beach this time then we set off along the coastal path in the other direction.
The first section was road and we found this beauty. An Emperor Moth caterpillar trying to cross the road! I scooped him up and put him on the verge and hopefully out of harms way.

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Back to our campsite for dinner cooked by Sarah on Noahs stove, wine and a movie on my phone before bed!