Thursday 4th August       Ynys Gifftan                                                  

 

 

The sat nav took us off the fast road towards Portmaddog on almost single track, hilly, winding and across uninhabited high moors. The views were spectacular and I had to consciously concentrate so as to not be distracted as I was the designated driver for most of the 2 days away. Bob had been digging out a pond in the garden and this resulted in a strained tendon. This in turn made him walk awkwardly and put his back out. We almost cancelled the trip but then he thought he would make it after all.

  We were travelling first to Ynys Gifftan, a tiny island near to Portmaddog, then staying in Caernarfon before driving the Llyn Peninsula for Bardsey Island the next morning.

The best place to cross is about half a mile from Talsarnau Station where we parked the car. We saw a small group of people walking across the sand from the north and also a few from the south though. You could see there was less sand our way. The tide was right out when we arrived and there is a window about 3 hours either side. I believe I could see Harlech castle on the south side.

We crossed the railway line ( by which we noticed you could travel to Birmingham, surprising us somewhat) There was a stony but wide track that took us down to another gate and across what must have been fields but now is a maze of gulleys cut into the mud.

 

 

 

Some are deep with water, others too wide to leap across. Above is a lush grass but the whole area is a puzzle to solve if one doesn’t want to get uncomfortably wet. The grass here is reputed to have been used for the courts at Wimbledon, the quality is so good. We thought these rivulets were made by rain but then we noticed seaweed and shells and thought the tide must sometimes come this far. Wellies, to our mind, are essential. Some of the area is polluted with cow pats making the water foul.

It seemed to take for ages to either jump from tussock to tussock or climb down to wade through (though the water came over my wellies) pinpointing the easiest route to the sands. Bob and I took different routes both thinking ours the best. We looked back to see the white building of the station and decided that that would be the place to make for on the way back. This” marsh” as it is marked on the map is a wide area and featureless except for the fences and intricate veins of water set in the green field. This was far harder to cross than the causeway.

Reaching the sand there was a channel that apparently always need to be waded. Then it was virtually dry but soft sand that our boots sank right down into. There is a view of Portmeirion that could be seen from the start of this walk. This village built between 1925 and 75 in Italian style was used for the TV series The Prisoner in the 1960s.

We reached the island and walked up through the rocks to the bracken covered path. The island was gifted by Queen Anne in the early 1700s to Lord Harlech. She added a caveat that it should never be sold on. It is now owned by the 6^th Baron of Harlech and although there have been tenants the island is uninhabited now. The small house and garden can be seen amongst unkempt trees and foliage.

From the top we could see the Italianate buildings, colourful across the bay. It was impossible to walk far as the brambles, gorse and bracken dominated the island.

 

 

There was rusting farm machinery on the shore line and looking back towards the station were 2 egrets. A miniscule crab scrabbled in a puddle. We didn’t explore behind the island as rounding a bend the sand tried to swallow my boots. Also we knew the tide came in rapidly so we headed back in the direction of the station that stands out on the mainland being pure white. There is a gateway just to the left of, though not level with it, that leads up the lane , over the train track to the “car park”

  We tried to retrace our steps in the marsh but it was impossible to remember our previous routes. I slipped on the mud and had to be given a hand by Bob who was managing really well despite his back and leg. We were exhausted by the leaping about – at least I was- but we enjoyed it nonetheless. The adventure in this island is definitely in the travelling to and from it. It took us more than an hour and a half but less than two altogether and we were grateful for our waterproof boots.