Several descriptions come to mind for today and not all of them suitable for all audiences, so I’ll boil it down to these four: windy, hilly, cold, and long. George picked a good day to skip.
We got up and hit the trail with only a breakfast bar and a cup of coffee to fuel us until we made it to New Gale; an easy 3 miles up the trail–right! The hills that started last night after Druidston continued all day today. They weren’t big–no more than 300 ft at a time–but they were numerous and steep. We were already dragging by the time we made it to the Sands Cafe in New Gale.
There’s a beautiful 2 mile beach right around New Gale. It was a climb down to it though. The last mile into town wasn’t too bad along the beach until will climbed over the rock break-wall and got on the road. Even behind the break-wall, it was windy and cold. It was a little before noon when we got in the cafe.
Pam and Karen wanted breakfast, but I decided on a burger. Pam changed her mind once I ordered. While we were waiting for our food, we started talking to the couple at the next table. We actually met through their dog, Barney, who charged a toll of a nice petting every time we passed their table. Derek was very interested in what we were doing with all the hiking. He was also very knowledgeable about plants of the area. Lynne seamed a little shocked with all of our hiking plans and had an “are you madd” look while we explained the master plan (not at all uncommon for 40-60 year old women–followed by 60+ year women who say they wish they had he’d the courage to do what we are doing).
Upon leaving the cafe, Karen went into a store to buy more fuel for her stove even though we had already tasked George to do the same–I guess we’ll be set after today. The trail was the same after breakfast: up/down, up/down. But with the added bones of a 40 mph wind from the north while we were walking west. It was constantly trying to blow us off the cliff. My ankles started hurting from the extra force from the wind.
If we ever found a break from the wind, we had to take advantage of it (even if it was in the middle of the trail). It was great Missouri weather today: rain, winds, sunshine, and sleet–all within 10 minutes of each other. Thankfully, I had the foresight to carry peanut M&Ms. They were a real “pick me up”. Pam and Karen insisted on having some as well which was a “huge let down”. What’s mine is Pam’s so they got MORE than their fare share.
We broke the day up into littler goals. Our next goal was the little fishing village of Solva which was a charming harbor town protected from the wind. We ran into lots of hikers in this area including more military personnel on training hikes. We rewarded ourselves with a stop in a charming cafe right on the harbor front. Just as we were about to finish up, Chuck and Betsy walked in. We were expecting them to pass us earlier in the day. This was their destination for the night.
By now, George had made it into St David’s and found us rooms for the next 2 nights. We still had 6 miles to go and it was already after 3. The trail didn’t vary after Solva. Up/down, up/down. The real benefit is the amazing views that you get at every point along the trail. The Welsh coast is amazing. The beauty just never stops. Every time you think you’ve seen everything, you round the next point and see another amazing bit of coastal artwork the sea has created.
We got into St. David’s about 7. We got a little disoriented coming into town (it’s about a mile inland and the trail just petered out once we got to town). We got straightened out and made it to the Coach House where we were greeted by Steve, the owner, and George. This is a charming B & B.
We dropped our packs and headed to The Bishop’s Inn for supper. As usual pint, food, (shower–added luxury step), and bed. George did well!
Tis section is quite a hard slog – you all did well and deserved the day off the next day.