Snowy Aberdaron

You would have to go back to 1983 to find the sort of wintry scene that we saw in Aberdaron at the weekend. After a very cold but dry week we had high winds and heavy snow beginning late afternoon on Friday. We awoke to this amazing snowfall on Saturday, something like 9 inches. The road in from Pwllheli was blocked at Rhoshirwaun with heavy drifts of snow blowing across from the valley. Until 4pm there was no way in or out of Aberdaron and I was able to get these photographs which will have to serve us for Christmas cards for the next 35 years!

Drifting across Manaros drive.

I must get that gutter fixed!

Not exactly BBQ weather!

View over the field from Manaros

There were only a dozen in church on Sunday, including the vicar!

Another candidate for the Edge of Wales Christmas Card 2018.

Not too many pilgrims at the Gegin Fawr.

An icy river Daron.

In extreme weather there is no better place to be than Manaros with its underfloor heating, good communications and a multitude of games including this 1000 piece jigsaw of the Speed Map of the Llyn Peninsula.

Our guests enjoyed snowy walks and magnificent food, all of which made for a very memorable weekend.

Merry Christmas from Aberdaron!

We've had a busy year here in Aberdaron for both Edge of Wales Walk and Manaros. During the spring we were busy with the filming of our new promotional video. This was produced in partnership with Anglesey Walking Holidays and Walkalongway in Pembrokeshire to encourage walking holidays around the entire coastline of Wales.

The early summer saw the annual RS Thomas Festival take place in and around Aberdaron. Peter has enjoyed Thomas' poetry for years and now serves as treasurer for the RS Thomas and ME Eldridge Society which organises the festival. We were particularly honoured this year to have the former Archbishop of Canterbury, Dr Rowan Williams, as our guest of honour.

The organisers and speakers at the 2017 RS Thomas Festival including Dr Williams in the back row and the Society Chair Susan Fogarty in the yellow top. Just behind them you can see the beautiful wooden gate that Peter had commissioned from Dafydd at Felin Uchaf. As you can see we've also replaced the rather ramshackle fence that used to be there.

The festival events were well attended, including this talk by Dr Williams at the village school Ysgol Cryd y Werin.

We were very lucky with the weather during August when Peter's adult children and grandchildren came for their annual summer holiday in Manaros. All the little ones had a fantastic time playing on the beach and in the sea.

We had 3 big groups of walkers this year, from Austria, the UK and Italy. The Llyn is fairly well set up for large groups thanks to hotels like the Woodlands Hall in Edern and the local coach hire companies such as CJS, Nefyn coaches and Berwyn coaches. However, we have plans to improve the offering even further for 2018. More on that later...

This was our Italian party from the walking club Walden Viaggi a Piedi

They mostly had excellent weather here, even in September, as shown in their crossing of Hell's Mouth at low tide.

The weather was good enough to visit Bardsey Island.

Now that the busy season is over we have time to make plans for 2018, and this year we have some big plans! Peter is planning to renovate 1 Dolfor, our office in Aberdaron, completely and convert it into B&B accommodation. We will be able to put up an extra 8 walkers in addition to the 8 in Manaros so we will be an ideal location for walking groups. You can see some of the architect's plans below.

The plan for the new downstairs with a large wheelchair accessible bedroom suitable for families.

We plan to have three ensuite bedrooms upstairs.

With regards to Manaros, we have decided to list it on Sykes holidays website as well as our own. Per their recommendations we have reduced our out-of-season prices, so if you are looking for a good value break it would be a good idea to book early, which you can still do on our own website www.aberdaroncottage.co.uk or over the phone on 01758 760 652.

We'll be sure to keep our blog up to date with any more news and events in Aberdaron but, in the meantime, we would like to wish you and yours Nadolig Llawen a Blwyddyn Newydd Dda!

4 bathrooms in Dolfor? You must be joking!

Ground floor plan

Our architect, Keith Dabson, has produced final building plans for our ambitious conversion of Dolfor into a 4 bedroom B&B with all rooms ensuite. It involves building over the path at the back and making better use of all the roof spaces at the back. It is ingenious and we looking forward to getting on with the work. Tenders are due back next week with a start during January.

First floor plan

Advance notice of an Extraordinary Event

Flyer for the event.

Readers will know that we at the Edge of Wales are very active in the R.S. Thomas and M.E. Eldridge Appreciation Society. For four years we have been part of an annual literary festival held in Aberdaron. As part of the Festival in 2018 (see rsthomaspoetry.co.uk) we are organising an extraordinary musical event in Bangor Cathedral on the afternoon of July 1st. This is to be called “RSThomas for a new generation” and will incorporate a World Premiere for a work composed by Ellen Davies, “Pilgrimages”, in which Ensemble Cymru (a small orchestra ) and the Royal Harpist, Anne Denholm, will perform. Following that there will be another World Premiere, a choral composition involving the Cathedral Choir, composed by Rob Moran from Philadelphia. There will also be a series of readings by the Poet Owen Lowery who was inspired by RS. This is entitled “The poet that prevails”. 


This will be an extraordinary musical and literary event and we would urge all readers to come to it. Normally, tickets for such an event would cost in the region of £40 each but, as it has been heavily sponsored and is to be held in the Cathedral-in place of Evensong- tickets are to be without charge but strictly allocated by the Society.
At the moment the tickets are with the Society. If you would like to reserve some places then please register with the Society Director, Susan Fogarty on susanfogarty@gmail.com or write to us. 

Bangor cathedral

Planning permission granted for extending and modernising Dolfor cottage

For many years our white cottage with a red roof, Dolfor 1, has been the poor relation to Manaros, the luxury house in Aberdaron. It shares the same plot but, as a base for our office and where Peter lives, it is not much different in facilities to what it was when it was first built in 1920, at the same time as the old, now demolished, Wembley Stadium. Like Wembley it was considered ultra modern at the time, and used the fashionable material of concrete for both the walls and the roof. Over the years, however, the tiles became porous and had to be painted with red oxide paint to keep out the rain; hence the distinctive red colour.

The architect for Manaros has now drawn up plans to extend and to modernise Dolfor to incorporate 4 ensuite bedrooms; one of which will be on the ground floor and fully accessible for disabled guests-large enough to be a family room and with a wheel in / walk in wet-room shower. 

When built we will be letting out these rooms on a B&B basis. Planning permission has now been granted. Watch this space!