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 (landscape), greenway) is a longer recreational trail mainly through rural areas used for hiking, backpacking (wilderness), backpacking, cycling, equestrianism or cross-co ...

running along the coast of the

Llŷn Peninsula The Llŷn Peninsula ( or , ) is a peninsula in Gwynedd, Wales, with an area of about , and a population of at least 20,000. It extends into the Irish Sea, and its southern coast is the northern boundary of the Tremadog Bay inlet of Cardigan Ba ...

from

Caernarfon Caernarfon (; ) is a List of place names with royal patronage in the United Kingdom, royal town, Community (Wales), community and port in Gwynedd, Wales. It has a population of 9,852 (with Caeathro). It lies along the A487 road, on the easter ...

Porthmadog Porthmadog (), originally Portmadoc until 1972 and known locally as "Port", is a coastal town and community (Wales), community in the Eifionydd area of Gwynedd, Wales, and the historic counties of Wales, historic county of Caernarfonshire. It li ...

Gwynedd Gwynedd () is a county in the north-west of Wales. It borders Anglesey across the Menai Strait to the north, Conwy, Denbighshire, and Powys to the east, Ceredigion over the Dyfi estuary to the south, and the Irish Sea to the west. The ci ...

, north-west

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

. A large part of the Llŷn Peninsula is designated an

Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty An Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty (AONB; , AHNE) is one of 46 areas of countryside in England, Wales, or Northern Ireland that has been designated for conservation due to its significant landscape value. Since 2023, the areas in England an ...

. Devised and implemented by

Gwynedd County Council Gwynedd Council, which calls itself by its Welsh name , is the governing body for the county of Gwynedd, one of the principal areas of Wales. The council administrates internally using the Welsh language. History The county of Gwynedd was c ...

and the

Countryside Council for Wales The Countryside Council for Wales (CCW; ) was a Welsh Assembly sponsored body responsible for wildlife conservation, landscape and countryside access in Wales. It merged with Forestry Commission Wales, and Environment Agency Wales to form ...

, 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 () 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 world to cover the entire len ...

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

Chepstow Chepstow () 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 western end of the ...

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 and National parks of the United Kingdom, national park in North Wales. It contains all 15 mountains in Wales Welsh 3000s, over 3000 feet high, including the country's highest, Snowdon (), which i ...

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

Irish Sea The Irish Sea is a body of water that separates the islands of Ireland and Great Britain. It is linked to the Celtic Sea in the south by St George's Channel and to the Inner Seas off the West Coast of Scotland in the north by the North Ch ...

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

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

bottle-nosed dolphin The bottlenose dolphin is a toothed whale in the genus ''Tursiops''. They are common, cosmopolitan members of the family Delphinidae, the family of oceanic dolphins. Molecular studies show the genus contains three species: the common bottlen ...

s and Atlantic

grey seals The grey seal (''Halichoerus grypus'') is a large seal of the family Phocidae, which are commonly referred to as "true seals" or "earless seals". The only species classified in the genus ''Halichoerus'', it is found on both shores of the Nort ...

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 goldfinch, ...

es, and

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

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 1 ...

chaffinch The Eurasian chaffinch, common chaffinch, or simply the chaffinch (''Fringilla coelebs'') is a common and widespread small passerine bird in the finch family. The male is brightly coloured with a blue-grey cap and rust-red underparts. The fema ...

es,

starling Starlings are small to medium-sized passerine (perching) birds known for the often dark, glossy iridescent sheen of their plumage; their complex vocalizations including mimicking; and their distinctive, often elaborate swarming behavior, know ...

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 Cape Verde or Cabo Verde, officially ...

s. The rare

chough A chough ( ) is any of two species of passerine birds that constitute the genus ''Pyrrhocorax'' of the Corvidae (crow) family. These are the red-billed chough (''Pyrrhocorax pyrrhocorax'') and the Alpine chough (or yellow-billed chough) (''Pyr ...

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 ...

:: Trefor–Penrhyn Glas :: Penrhyn Glas–Porth Dinllaen * Morfa Nefyn–

Llangwnnadl Llangwnnadl is a village and former civil parish in the Welsh county of Gwynedd. The parish was abolished in 1934, and incorporated into Tudweiliog.Aberdaron Aberdaron () is a community (Wales), community, electoral ward and former fishing village at the western tip of the Llŷn Peninsula in the Wales, Welsh county of Gwynedd. It lies west of Pwllheli and south-west of Caernarfon; as of 2021, it h ...

:: 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 2,600 residents, on the east-facing south coast of the Llŷn Peninsula at the southern terminus of the A499. It is a ...

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

Pwllheli Pwllheli ( ; ) is a market town and community on the Llŷn Peninsula (), in Gwynedd, north-west Wales. It had a population of 4,076 in 2011, which declined slightly to 3,947 in 2021; a large proportion (81%) were Welsh language, Welsh speaking. ...

:: Llanbedrog Beach–Pwllheli * Pwllheli–

Criccieth Criccieth, also spelled Cricieth (), is a town and community (Wales), community in Gwynedd, Wales, on the boundary between the Llŷn Peninsula and Eifionydd. The town is west of Porthmadog, east of Pwllheli and south of Caernarfon. It had a ...

–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