Llyn Peninsula Sea Kayak Trip – From Sunshine and Scenery to Big Waves and Big Fun
Saturday 1st June 2024
We arrived at Trefor to beautiful warm sunshine, a light breeze and smooth calm seas. It was looking like a very lovely paddle ahead.
We set off headed southwest along the coast towards Porthdinllaen. We passed high cliffs, secluded bays and about a zillion Guillemots and Razorbills. Sadly, trying to go around them took us so far out to see we could almost see Ireland and so plotted a course of least resistance through the birds, who ducked, dived and flew out of our way.
The landscape started to flatten out, with sandy beaches and small crashing waves. After elevenses on one such beach we headed to the beach right at the end of the headland and had lunch under the life boat launch ramp.
Enjoying the sun as much as we were, we eventually had to leave the beach and paddle the 12km back to Trefor.
As we launched, we soon noticed the wind had picked up and with it the sea had picked up. The flat calm of this morning had been replaced with a small but bouncy following sea.
We paddled across the bay towards a headland, the sea getting choppier as we went. At the headland, we came in close to shore and the waves bouncing back off the cliffs caused the sea to get even choppier. As we paddled the next stretch, the waves were about shoulder height and all over the place. I tried to get some photos and videos but they just don’t do it justice.
We decided to do a bit of rock hopping. Ian lead the way through one gap and everyone followed but by the time we got to the next opportunity, the sea had picked up even further and as Ian and I headed into the rocks beneath the cliff, the others all resolutely looked forward and refused to even look where Ian and I had gone! We were having too much fun though to back out now. As the waves surged in and bounced back off the cliffs, throwing us around like rag dolls, at one point I swear Ian was 6 feet below me.
Sadly, all too soon, we were back at Trefor, after one of the best days’ sea kayaking in a while.
Paddlers: Ian Bell, Catriona Hare, Martin & Nikki Aldridge, Roger Morgan