“To begin at the beginning: It is a spring, moonless night in the small town, starless and bible-black, the cobblestreets silent and the hunched, courters’-and-rabbits’ wood limping invisible down to the sloeblack, slow, black, crowblack, fishingboat-bobbing sea.”
Today is Dylan day; Thomas, not Bob! I can still hear Richard Burton narrating Under Milk Wood for my GCSE O-level.
It’s another grey, damp morning, and slow going through a succession of muddy, waterlogged fields, some with slippery, wooden boardwalks. At the end, I meet a woman wearing a northern soul t-shirt, who asks where I hiked from.
“St Clears.”
“Through the swamp!”
She knows the path well.
I divert off the coast path to visit St Martin’s Church, where Dylan Thomas is buried.
I was hoping for breakfast at Laugharne, but everything is closed. A coffee would be great. I’m directed to the rather upmarket Dylan Coastal Resort. Milk Wood House (of course) looks a little pristine for the state of my muddy boots; all gleaming stone tiles, glass, and polished chrome. I apologise, but they are happy to serve me on the terrace, with a stunning view over the Taf Estuary. There is mood music, people splashing in the pool below, and a latte for only £2.50. Hard to beat.
Just down the hill, the garage that Thomas used as his writing shed is closed, so I take a photo through the glass window, dappled with reflections from the trees behind me.
Leaving the town, I am forced to walk along a rather grim A-road as the lovely seven mile long Pendine Sands, home to various land speed records over the years, are owned by the MOD, with restricted access.
It’s starting to rain, so I nip into the Springwell Inn at Pendine. Lunch is superb; pork with black pudding, mash, and peppercorn sauce.
I’m not sure a heavy lunch was a good idea, as I struggle up the steep steps behind the pub, leading to a gorgeous cliff top walk. I soon hit another tough valley. This feels like being back on the SWCP.
After crossing several valleys, I’m tired on reaching the outskirts of Amroth. This is always the hardest part of the day. It’s dark, and I take a rough track, climbing for over a mile through the woods, before reaching Green Sheep Camping, who are closed, but were kind enough to offer me a pitch on their farm site.
Rhiannon, a mountain guide, spots my head torch beam and comes out to greet me. I pitch in a sheltered field corner, cook dinner, and crawl into my warm sleeping bag. I try to read, but it’s too cold, so retreat into my cocoon, and drift off instantly.
Walk distance: 18 miles.
Total distance: 1,397 miles.
Hi Tony, I also viited Dylan Thoma’s grave back in 2016. His wife Caitlin is buried alongside him. A brilliant, but flawed artist. When I reread his Wikipedia entry, the section describing Thomas’s death was the longest I had ever seen.
So now you begin the Pembrokeshire Coastal Path!
Hi Alan. It took me a while to find his grave, as I did not realise it was in the separate graveyard. Looking forward to the Pembrokeshire Coastal Path. I am planning my first week long hike, as the travelling is a little tricky, so the longer the better.
Tony, great write up and photos once again. Well done on reaching Pembrokeshire, now some truly spectacular coastline is ahead of you. Your photo of the Estuary from the terrace, as you previously mentioned is near one I posted. Our paths almost crossed, as we stayed last week at Dylan Coastal Resort, so if you’d have made it a day earlier then we could have rustled up a cooked brekkie for you! Perhaps we’ll see you along the way in Pembrokeshire! All the best.
Thanks Rich. It’s a small world. Breakfast would have been most welcome!
The MOD owning Pendine Sands is a useful bit of info. I watched a programme recently which showed the amazing rock formations there and immediately added seeing them to my wish list. I’ll have to investigate whether the sands are sometimes open to the public.
On checking the OS map it looks as though the caves are outside the restricted area, at the end of the beach where I had lunch. I completely missed them, although to be fair the weather was terrible when I arrived, and I was a little weary after the long road walk. Hence, the allure of a warm pub! 🙂