I’ve been coming to Pembrokeshire since I was a baby, sadly over three decades ago now. It was an annual Easter or Whitsun bucket and spade trip as a child. I go less frequently now, yet it retains a magic, partly from ghost-tinged childhood memories, but also from the different place of life and the beauty of the natural landscape. From rugged coastline with many white sandy beaches, to deep wooded valleys and then the bleak beauty of the Preseli mountains, Pembrokeshire has everything the visitor could desire.
Below I will set out a few highlights from my most recent trip, where we were blessed with dry and mostly sunny weather, some well known, others more obscure, all hopefully of some inspiration for the visitor.
St Davids
A very well known tourism and pilgrimage destination, but even if the traveller did not know their final destination, the approach along the St Davids peninsula is memorable, a flat largely treeless windswept plain ringed by a series of rocky coastal hills on the horizon. You can sense the sea without seeing it.
This was the end of the known world for the medieval pilgrim, and an incredible sight greeted them when they came through the great gatehouse at the lip of the valley and saw the Cathedral and Bishop’s Palace laid out below them. After thirty years of visiting the view still has the power to thrill.
A monastic community was founded here by St David, Abbot of Menevia, in the 6th century, it survived centuries of raiders and in 1081 William the Conqueror visited to pray and thus elevated its status as a holy place. Under Henry I the first cathedral was developed and the Pope bestowed papal privilege upon it, making it a centre for pilgrimage. The present Cathedral was begun later in the 12th century, but changed much over the ensuing centuries, including a dramatic collapse of the original tower. It has since survived many challenges, from reformation and Cromwell’s puritan republic to disestablishment in 1923, but remains a place of pilgrimage for many.
St Govan’s Chapel
After the western edge of Pembrokeshire, we travel to near St Govan’s Head, the county’s southernmost point, across the open landscape of the Castlemartin military ranges (sometimes closed) to a tiny steep and rocky bay. St Govan’s Chapel may date back to the 6th century, but most of the present structure, a tiny hermit’s cell built into the cliffs, is from the 13th century. One can only imagine the souls who took shelter here over the ensuing centuries, seeking sanctuary and shelter from the ravages of life, of just the Welsh weather.
Manorbier Castle
Staying in southern Pembrokeshire, next we have Manorbier Castle, a Norman fortress which sits above a beach on one side of a small coastal valley. The castle’s outer walls survive largely intact and a number of pretty spartan interior spaces have also been maintained. Gerald of Wales was born here in 1146, writing of his birthplace: “In all the broad lands of Wales, Manorbier is the most pleasant place by far.” It definitely has a lot to recommend it, with a Norman church and a pleasant village along with the Castle and beach.
Newport
My family and I have been coming to stay at this large fishing village in North Pembrokeshire for several generations now, we still have relations in the neighbourhood and many more buried in graveyards dotted around this corner of the world. Aside from a range of good pubs and restaurants, Newport has plenty more to recommend it, a beautiful large beach, an estuary that provides a haven for wildlife, and easy access to the coast path and mountains. Carn Ingli towers over Newport bay and is a relatively easy climb for most abilities, the view from the top (above) is reward in itself for the effort.
Pontfaen Church & the Gwaun Valley
St Brynach’s Church at Pontfaen sits across the tiny Gwaun Valley from the Baptist chapel and the valley’s only pub, the Dyffryn Arms. Cwm Gwaun, as it is known in Welsh, is one of Pembrokeshire’s most secluded places. A long, narrow wooded valley with very steep sides, in the depths of winter the low sun doesn’t penetrate here much. Some 300 souls call this place home, in the farms and cottages that dot the valley bed, their loyalties divided between the Jabes Baptist Chapel and St Brynach’s. Pontfaen’s medieval parish church was rescued from decay in the 19th century and the interior now contains many interesting examples of Victorian high Anglican iconography. Any visitor to the valley should take a pint of Bass (all they serve) at the pub, popularly known as Bessies, after its late landlady, who died last year at 93 after 70 years of working there. Then just wonder along the river and through the woods and soak in the peaceful atmosphere of this place where time has stood still and they still celebrate the old new year, or Hen Galan, on the 13th January.
Cwm-yr-Eglwys
On the southern side of Newport Bay, at the foot of the great hill that makes up Dinas Head, is a small bay, sheltered from the prevailing winds and providing a microclimate for the hamlet located here. Small cottages and their exotically planted gardens climb up the hillsides on either side. In the middle of the valley, directly above the small sandy beach, lie the remains of the old church and graveyard here. Medieval in origin, the building and many graves were destroyed in a spectacular series of storms in the 19th century. Today the surviving west wall provides an evocative image of the power of the ocean, and the old graveyard a tranquil place to soak in the sun on better days.
Bard Land 