A Walk From Porthgain to Abereiddi on The Pembrokeshire Coast Path

Porthgain walk
Circular Walk from Porthgain

Yesterday was one of the nicest days we have had for a while so we decided to go for a walk choosing a coastal walk because of the possibility of mist in the mountains.

To open this walk in Google Earth click here

This walk is slightly further north on the coastal path than the previous one and is about 45 miles from our house. Porthgain is a pretty village that was once a granite quarrying area and industrial harbour in the early 1900s. At the beginning of the walk we walked past the brick hoppers on the south side of the harbour and climbed some steep steps at the side of white building to reach the coastal path. The brick hoppers were used to store crushed granite before it was shipped. There are many ruined quarry buildings to explore at the start of the walk.

beach
Another view of Traeth Llyfn

We then continued along the path with the watch tower at Abereiddi in sight. Along this first section are high dramatic cliffs.

beach
The Beach at Traeth Llyfn

We then came across the tiny beach at Traeth Llyfn which is reached by some steps. This is a stunningly beautiful remote beach with sand and rocks making it ideal for some photographs and a very pleasant lunch stop. There are very strong currents in the sea here and apparently it can also come in very quickly. It is a spectacular spot.

We then continued onto the Blue Lagoon (Ed. looks more green in my photo – John!) where there are very steep cliffs. The Blue Lagoon was formed from an abandoned slate quarry which was filled with seawater through a breach in the outer wall. This area is popular with coasteerers and divers. The beach at Abereiddi is accessed by a winding path. The is a large car park here and just inlandĀ  a group of houses built for the quarry workers but abandoned in the early 20th century after a flood. The ones that remain are presumably holiday cottages. There are ruins of old buildings around the Blue Lagoon. The rocks of Abereiddi bay are easily eroded Ordovician slates and apparently there are fossils of graptolites in the rock. We will have to have a look next time we go there.

blue lagoon
The Blue Lagoon

We made our way back to Porthgain by an inland route following the yellow footpath arrows. There is a lovely view of the valley up to Llanrhian which was carved by glacial melt-water duringĀ  the last ice age.

The total distance walked was 4.5 miles. We did not time ourselves as we had several stops for taking photographs.

Share

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.