Visiting old memories and fulfilling a wish

My lovely Hubby treated me to a couple of days away in North Wales as an early birthday treat as we will be on holiday with friends on my actual birthday. 

From an early age St Asaph, Llanelwy in Welsh, was my holiday destination, camping in a field on Pen-y-clink farm with the scouts. I was only 11 months old on my first camp and I think the last was 1981 (although we did alternate with camping in Weymouth in the late 1970s)

This is a photo of me in the arms of one of the scouts at Caernarfon Castle on a day trip during that first camp in 1966, and of me at camp a little later. 

I also found a photo of a couple of 'end of camp under the flagpole' must have photos. I think the years are 1974 and 1976 but I may be wrong. All the photos were my Dad's but there were no dates on them.

This is the campsite and the farm as it is today, it was nice to see the name plaque on the fence. We used to get our water and milk from the farm. The water was in a huge metal milk run that we had to take down the lane to full up, it was hard work pulling it back up even on the trolley. The milk was fresh from the milking parlour in a smaller urn. 

I'm not sure it's fit for camping anymore ... times move on with campsites having plumbed in pitch services rather than milk churns, although it was nice to see that the field was not a new housing estate. 

Not far from St Aspah is Rhuddlan, we used to pass by to get to Rhyl for the day. There's a ruined castle there dating back to the 1200s, it is ruined due to being destroyed in the Civil War. It has always been known in our family as 'my tatty castle', it was so lovely to see it again ... even more amazing that our room looked directly over it, we hadn't requested it. 

Before checking in we visited Dyserth Waterfalls, it's quite an impressive drop. We did climb to the top via the steep stairway, with a rest halfway. The views were amazing, a bit hazy, but we could see as far as Llandudno. Unfortunately the river walk was closed due to needing repair but we had a lovely walk through the woods and down the lane to avoid going down the steep steps. 

It was so nice to be back in North Wales, if only one night, added to with our journey home being through Denbigh, Ruthin and the Horseshoe Pass. The weather was very misty, I think at 400m we were actually in cloud but you can see the road snaking down. After breakfast at the Ponderosa Cafe on the very top of the pass we travelled down into Llangollen for a very special birthday treat.

I have always wanted to cross the Pontcycyllte Aqueduct which carries the Llangollen Canal over the River Dee. It is only 13ft wide including one tow path (originally for the horses) and is 126ft high. There is only a rail on the towpaths side so it's quite precarious looking down from the boats. It is only wide enough for one boat and is just over 300m long. 

My birthday treat was a canal boat trip along the canal from Llangollen with Afternoon Tea as we sailed along. It was lovely if at times a little bumpy as the canal is very shallow so the boat bottom scrapes along, and narrow so the sides bump the walls. Our tea was super, of course we added a glass of bubbly each too.

Back in Llangollen we just managed to see the horse drawn trip leaving, this trips goes the other direction along the canal. On the way home we passed by the Aquaduct going over the small bridge in my photo, it is very high and amazing to have travelled across it. 

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We had a super two days, we love a road trip and it was so good to visit old places again. Thank you Nick for a lovely birthday treat!