Cribyn & N escarpment
from Pen y Fan100 The Great OutdoorsAugust 2019
them. The drivers are usually
very knowledgeable and happy
to have a chat, and today was
no exception: a most pleasant
way to pass the hour’s journey,
and a highly scenic one at that,
with sea views much of the way.
Dropped off at the north
end of Newgale’s great beach,
I enjoyed a warm-up stroll
along the sands before getting
going on the cliffs, following
the undulating path via
Rickets Head to Nolton Haven.
Spotting a chough on the way
I was, well, chuffed, you could
say. More fine clifftop walking
led to Druidston Haven, just
inland of which, built into the
earth, is a space-age-looking
grass-roofed home nicknamed
the Teletubby House.
At low tide, Druidston has
a fine expanse of sandy beach;
but the tide was now in, so it
was just the shingle exposed.
Seeing one or two people in
the water, and duly equipped
with swimming togs (popped
in the pack at the last minute),
I couldn’t resist venturing in for
my first sea swim of the year.
Wonderful! Just as I avoid the
crowds when walking, so I do
when swimming in the sea (it
beats me why anyone enjoys a
jam-packed beach). Druidston
proved an ideal spot: a lovely
unspoilt location with just a
few locals for company.
Duly refreshed, it was
upwards and onwards along
the next stretch of cliffs to
Broad Haven, bigger than the
previous two havens. At low
tide you can walk along thebeach from here to Little Haven,
but that wasn’t possible today.
This being the last opportunity
for refreshment, I called in at
the pub to get my water bottle
refilled, before heading back up
the cliffs again.
The last few hours were
blissful: great walking, superb
cliff scenery and not another
soul. Foxgloves, red campion
and thrift added foreground
colour, while honeysuckle filled
the air with its sweet fragrance.
Rounding Tower Point I
watched the sun set off Ramsey
Island in the far distance, but it
was that magical twilight hour
thereafter – the sky suffused
with ever-changing shades of
yellow, orange, pink and mauve- that proved the real highlight
of a delightful day’s walk.
Further information
Maps: OS 1:50,000
Landranger sheet 157
(St David’s & Haverfordwest) or
1:25,000 Explorer sheet OL36
(South Pembrokeshire)Transport: Puffin Shuttle
(400) bus from Marloes to
St David’s via Newgale, Richard
Brothers (01239 613756)i
Information: Visitor
Centre, St David’s (01437
720392), visitpembrokeshire.com[Captions clockwise from top]
Cliff scenery between Nolton
Haven and Druidston Haven;
Sunset across St Brides Bay;
View west from Borough Head