Part 2 of the LCC double weekender, Saturday 11 May 2024 Anglesey #1
48 hours at home baking and sorting out kit and it was time to head to Anglesey. A Thursday arrival at Anglesey Outdoors to facilitate a little project for work meant I had the opportunity to paddle on Friday. Happily, for me, Neil M also arrived on Thursday, so after trip planning in the Paddlers Return, it was a leisurely start to the day with an 11.30 start from Porth Dafarch. That gave me time to chat with my campsite neighbour, Dave. He was on a course for 4 days with a friend of the club Nick Cunliffe, Dave paddled around Arran solo in 2022 and we realised that he had met a group of us, me included on one of the beaches that year as we also did the Arran circumnavigation. Small world sea kayaking.
Socialising done it was time for 3 LCC paddlers (Frankie, Neil and Andy) to head to South Stack and back, the weather was rather better than the forecast, but the words Penrhyn Mawr meant I was wearing my dry suit even if we were on the last of the flow.
A stunning day to be out on the water, there were a few groups from the Anglesey Sea symposium also out and lots of overhead action as fighter jets roared above from RAF Valley. Spot on tidal planning by Neil made for a very pleasant trip around into Abrahams Bosom, there was a bit more swell than anticipated but all in all lovely conditions. There are 2 possible landing spots on Abraham Bosom, one that can be a surf landing in the right (or is that wrong) conditions and one with a much easier landing. So elevenses in Abraham’s bosom – let’s land through the surf. Sending Andy in first – well he was in a plastic boat I approached the shore expecting Andy to be ready to catch my boat to ensure a gentle landing. The action shot was Andy’s priority but he did catch my boat too. I haven’t seen the action shot yet.
After a snack and a leg stretch, we headed back out to nose our way around to South Stack, taking care not to get too close to the colonies of nesting birds. We’d opted not to go further than South Stack so after posing for some photos (not taken by me) we headed back to the easy landing beach for lunch. The fruits of my labours in my 48 hours at home were shared. Ginger cake
A leisurely return to Porth Dafarch later we met Ian Bibby on the beach, Andy opted to do some more paddling with Ian, whilst a trip to Holyhead for BBQ and lunch supplies was required by 2/3rds of the paddling trio.
Back at Anglesey Outdoors, there were signs of the arrival of more LCC paddlers and eventually, there was a congregation of folks at the Paddlers Return. What is the correct adjective for a group of kayakers? Keith called a leaders meeting and the plan for Saturday was formed. Including the formation of the Ladies that Lead duo. More on that later.
So as the day drew to a close, with the Aurora watch alerts pinging on my phone when I had a signal, I headed back to my tent, fell asleep and missed most of the amazing show. Ah well, at least I was well rested for my minor role in the performance of the Ladies that lead.
Saturday
The departure point for the trip was Porth Dafarch, and the plan was to be parked up and off-loading boats by 9. Parking is in short supply at Porth Dafarch, so there are many early departures from the campsite to grab a spot. The weather was beautiful and even though the water was cold it was T-shirt weather for most. Once the boats were unloaded the paddling groups were sorted out. So the Ladies who led were Nikki A assisted by Frankie A. There were a total of 6 in the group and once all the groups were sorted, one with Neil M and Phil L, one with Gary E and Eamon, it became obvious we were missing people as there was no one left for Martin and Keith to lead. So they took up an observation brief.
Little did I know at the start of the weekend there was going to be an assessment element to proceedings. The trip was to Rhoscolyn/Borth Wen, the timings of the tide turning at Rhoscolyn head were important, we were paddling against the tide both ways, which because there isn’t much tide for most of the trip can be done provided you hit Rhoscolyn Head at the right time. The coastline between Porth Dafarch and Borth Wen is stunning with the White Arch and many other arches and caves and rock hopping opportunities. We quickly realised just like on Friday there was more swell than may have been expected with the prevailing weather conditions, and every now and then the swell was quite big. Some exciting moments were had by all, and there was lots of practice at getting the time right so you didn’t run of water as you rock hopped (the observers weren’t observing when I ran out of water the first time – maybe that means it doesn’t count). As always there was the obligatory elevenses stop at almost eleven for a change and of course, the White Arch was visited though some of the caves were out of bounds due to the aforementioned swell.
With time creeping past lunch was called at the bay just before Borth Wen that is across from Rhoscolyn Beacon. You can walk over to the main beach if desired. The tidal window meant that lunch was just 30 minutes, long enough to grab some food and a drink before getting back on the water to make sure we rounded Rhoscolyn Head before the tide picked up, which we did and then a more leisurely return to Porth Dafarch, with a second stop at elevenses beach and an ice cream stop at Treaddur Bay, placing my order with the group ahead of us was an utter failure, there was no Sea Shanty sorbet waiting for me. As the final leg of the journey unfolded Keith announced that some rescue assessment was required. A really timely reminder of the importance of practising on the sea. Keith had cooled off with some casualty role play and a roll or two he just threw in, it was off the water after another lovely day and back to the campsite for a cold beverage and the BBQ.
Sunday for me was a day of travel, but I heard that there was an excellent North Coast paddle
Thanks to Keith for organising the weekend, I can’t wait for July and the next LCC Anglesey weekend.
Click or tap below for all the photos of the day`s paddle……..