Postcards from Barmouth

Well - not really "postcards" as they're not on card, and I'm not posting them, but the sort of pictures you might see with "wish you were here" written on the back. Lisa told me the other morning that the Lonely Planet had listed the midWales coast as the number one spot to get away to, and here we are on the midWales coast.

Billy and Gypsy on the beach at Barmouth. This was the first time we've taken Billy, who hasn't been with us for six months yet, onto the beach, or indeed to the seaside. You may spot that by the time this picture was taken, he had been in the water!


The beach also offered Billy the chance to run in great cirles - or at one point the whole length of the beach. Does it tire him out? Well, yes to some extent, but it also helps make him very much fitter too, and I think as I write this (next morning), his batteries are recharged and he's all the more ready for a further outing.


A greyhound running flat out towards you (if you don't know the dog) can be a bit daunting, but here on the beach we had plenty of opportunities to make friends and enjoy the fresh air and lovely setting and scenery. Indeed, let me find you some more of that scenery ...


Barmouth's Victorian seaside hotels - built soon after the railway arrived, still stand and help provide an old fashioned quaintness to the town. Truely, much in Barmouth brings back memories of the past - set in previous centuries, yet bustling and active today too. I've visiting Barmouth, sporadically, since my teens and I expect I'll be back.


The Harbour. I can remember evening walks down to Davy Jone's locker after evening meal at the D,B&B, watching the quater past nine trains - the last of the day - rumble past on their way to Pwhelli and Machynelleth.


And the railway, with that great bridge over the estuary, is still very much in use. The trains have gone near-clockface even here, and that means a more frequent service too - every two hours, each way. Really excellent timing for a line serving sparse settlements - the sort of frequency where you'll be happy to move your travel up or down by an hour and still catch the train, rather than looking for an alternative.


You can walk over the Barmouth Bridge too, with views up the Mawddach estuary, in the heart of Snowdonia.


Avalanche shelters to stop rocks blocking the line, that great long bridge, sand blowing across the line, a section snaking through tunnels and along seawalls near Penhelig - truely this must have been an expensive line to build, and remain an expensive line to maintain. But it remains the lifeline for so many, and that "so many" is becoming more too. The trains are not quiet, but they are friendly.


And so, one last view of the estuary from the bridge as we head over to the station at Morfa Mawddach to get the train back to the town (population 2000) where we're staying. More thought from there to follow during the week.


(written 2012-05-20, updated 2012-06-02)

 Z203 - Cat and Dog
  [62] Technical Open House - (2004-09-25)
  [96] Variable Scope - (2004-10-22)
  [547] Taking the dog for a walk - (2005-12-29)
  [744] We can offer a room, but we can't operate on a dog - (2006-06-05)
  [771] From cat breeder to Cobol to Perl - (2006-06-21)
  [2029] Also for the eyes of the cat - (2009-02-07)
  [2132] Learning about Lurchers - (2009-04-18)
  [2138] Ski bore ... train bore ... dog bore - (2009-04-24)
  [2140] Beware - giving copyright away when you upload a picture - Dogs Trust - (2009-04-25)
  [2167] Watching the tele - (2009-05-10)
  [2252] Leaping dog, Leaping horse, copyright of old masters - (2009-06-20)
  [2271] Dogs Trust, Dog Show, Newbury - (2009-07-06)
  [2295] The dog is not in trouble - (2009-07-17)
  [2450] Family Gathering at 404, The Spa - (2009-10-11)
  [2451] Gypsy says - (2009-10-12)
  [2456] Bright Eyes - (2009-10-16)
  [2496] A better design of mouth - (2009-11-07)
  [2499] ourdog is Greyhound, Staffie and Ginger Cake - (2009-11-09)
  [2555] Bookkeeping - (2009-12-29)
  [2689] Can my dog eat potatoes? Doggie Dietary Research, and political sleaze! - (2010-03-23)
  [2787] Sleeping in on Sunday - (2010-05-30)
  [2897] The Land of the Black Labrador - (2010-08-01)
  [3096] Contrast in pictures - (2010-12-20)
  [3324] Rabbit Shelter - (2011-06-12)
  [3338] Return trip - Dogs Trust, Newbury - (2011-06-27)
  [3530] A typical weekend?? - (2011-11-28)
  [3533] No message - just doggy pictures of the new doggy - (2011-11-30)
  [3537] Letting the foster parents know ... too little or too much? - (2011-12-04)
  [3541] I loves Melksham - (2011-12-06)
  [3553] Changes to morning routines - (2011-12-16)
  [3561] Happy Christmas ... a Christmas morning walk in Melksham - (2011-12-25)
  [3606] Gypsy and Billy enjoy the snow - (2012-02-10)
  [3625] An update on Billy the Greyhound and Gypsy the Lurcher - (2012-02-25)
  [3674] Off to walk the dogs - (2012-03-30)
  [3675] Spring 2012 - (2012-03-30)
  [3906] Taking the lead, not the dog, for a walk. - (2012-10-28)
  [3908] Black dogs at Halloween - (2012-10-31)
  [3920] Challenge for a photographer - (2012-11-10)
  [3936] Lisa is home today ... - (2012-11-26)
  [3943] With us for a year already! - (2012-12-03)
  [4016] Red, yellow, green or pink dog? Yellow Dog Project - (2013-02-23)
  [4130] Soft furnishings up a Welsh Mountain - (2013-07-03)
  [4180] Exceptionally, I sign a petition - on a life and death issue for Irish dogs - (2013-09-20)
  [4189] Who are we - Lisa, Graham, Gypsy and Billy - (2013-10-07)
  [4316] Too many Staffies, too many lurchers - (2014-11-16)
  [4333] Misty Melksham Morning - (2014-11-30)
  [4417] Crisp morning, fast run - (2015-02-06)
  [4433] Different views of a Welsh Valley - but headed home - (2015-02-20)
  [4507] In favour of adoption rather than puppy purchase - dogs! - (2015-06-07)
  [4517] Black dog day - and Bobby still seeks his new home - (2015-09-26)
  [4526] Day trip to Lancaster - (2015-10-10)
  [4666] Spring at Well House Manor - (2016-03-27)

Z201 - Holidays and Business Trips
  [65] Ireland - (2004-09-27)
  [81] Caf[83][c2]á keyboards - (2004-10-10)
  [368] Vacation Week - (2005-07-04)
  [370] From Iceland - (2005-07-06)
  [373] Vik, Iceland to Melksham, England - (2005-07-10)
  [374] Instant availability - (2005-07-11)
  [420] Towards Tebay - (2005-08-20)
  [518] Passport office - a much improved system - (2005-12-05)
  [548] San Francisco - (2005-12-30)
  [620] Familiar names, close to home - (2006-02-23)
  [684] Staying in the country - (2006-04-13)
  [878] Easy criteria to meet - (2006-09-25)
  [1004] Old dog, old tricks - (2006-12-22)
  [1025] Tomorrow's keywords - London, Training, Course, PHP, Ruby. - (2007-01-08)
  [1120] 1200 miles in 3 days - (2007-03-28)
  [1143] A course in Helsinki - (2007-04-11)
  [1150] Helsinki - what comes naturally - (2007-04-15)
  [1231] Sur le Continent - (2007-06-13)
  [1291] Day trip to Weymouth - (2007-08-05)
  [1293] Weymouth - Sunny Summer Sunday afternoon - (2007-08-07)
  [1299] In the USA for a few days - (2007-08-11)
  [1308] Good to be home - (2007-08-18)
  [1454] From Sunday to Monday, from Melksham to the Balkans - (2007-12-03)
  [1457] A day in Ljubljana - (2007-12-04)
  [1657] Farewell, Newcastle to Stavanger, Haugsund and Bergen - (2008-05-29)
  [1740] Vertical London - (2008-08-06)
  [1746] London for the visitor, for free - (2008-08-09)
  [1868] Liverpool - a friendly city - (2008-11-03)
  [1992] A good time to travel - (2009-01-14)
  [2030] The final step to being British - (2009-02-07)
  [2090] Melksham to Georgia - (2009-03-19)
  [2098] A room without a view - (2009-03-22)
  [2100] Visiting Family - (2009-03-23)
  [2101] A B C D of GA and TN - (2009-03-23)
  [2198] On the road, at a Service area thats a cut above the others - (2009-05-25)
  [2200] England, Scotland, Northern Ireland - (2009-05-26)
  [2208] A beautiful coastline - (2009-05-30)
  [2265] A chance to do the tourist thing - (2009-07-01)
  [2269] Sipping at York - (2009-07-05)
  [2306] Melksham to Mexico for the week - (2009-07-27)
  [2313] Seeing Guadalajara - a first glimpse downtown - (2009-08-01)
  [2469] Beyond the Pale - (2009-10-22)
  [2759] Touching base - (2010-05-10)
  [2796] Sunday - waiting for the ferry. - (2010-06-06)
  [2797] Sur la T.G.V. - (2010-06-07)
  [2803] Travelling across Europe - (2010-06-12)
  [3300] Wildlife and other pictures from holiday - (2011-05-24)
  [3303] Flying tonight - (2011-05-26)
  [3306] Photogenic Place - (2011-05-28)
  [3321] Travelling around - (2011-06-09)
  [3345] Cruising - (2011-07-04)
  [3346] Gibraltar - said to have a few residents less than Chippenham - (2011-07-05)
  [3372] Wearing the new London uniform - (2011-07-28)
  [3381] Report - day trip from Swindon / Chippenham / Melksham to Weymouth - (2011-08-07)
  [3681] Kicking up a stink, the Victorian way? - (2012-04-02)
  [3742] Dysenni Valley, and nearby - (2012-05-24)
  [3853] Blanford Forum, Dorset - (2012-09-01)
  [3998] Travelogue - from the Netherlands to London via Hook and Harwich - (2013-02-07)
  [4126] Where are we now? On holiday! - (2013-06-29)
  [4215] Great beauty, but great natural danger - (2013-11-26)
  [4249] An evening in Glasgow - (2014-03-19)
  [4471] Leopardstown to Rosslare by train - (2015-04-23)
  [4472] Rosslare to Fishguard - foot passenger on the ferry - (2015-04-24)
  [4473] Fishguard to Melksham - third part of Dublin journey - (2015-04-25)
  [4478] Home in Melksham to Gatwick Airport - easy by public transport - (2015-04-29)
  [4513] Yesterday, Weymouth - (2015-08-02)
  [4643] From last July (2015) - (2016-02-08)
  [4728] Visiting Los Alamitos Bay Yacht Club - (2016-11-23)
  [4731] To Oceanside and San Clemente Pier - (2016-11-23)

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Low carbon and other environmental lessons for the Melksham Campus?
Looking and Learning - even on Holiday
Go green - business seminar in Melksham
Adoptive homes sought for abandoned babies
Postcards from Barmouth
Abstraction
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More hazards of modern life
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