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Aberaeron's
most striking feature is its architecture. One house in every four is
listed either as being of special architectural or historical interest.
The graciously designed town just invites you to walk around it and
feast your eyes on the subtle differences between this house and the
next, that street and the other..... A thriving port in the days of
commercial sailing, sailing still plays a major part in the life of the
town, its stonewalled harbour sheltering yachts from near and far for
much of the year.As well as being a most popular centre for yachting
Aberaeron is a popular port from which to set forth to marvel at the
wildlife of Ceredigion's Maritime Heritage Coast - the first offshore
conservation area of its kind in the United Kingdom. Aberaeron is a popular shopping centre for its surrounding hinterland and also
offers a selection of crafts and local produce at small shops within the town
and at the Clôs Pengarreg Crafts Centre.
Welcome to West Wales where traditional contemporary design meets traditional
craftsmanship. The Cardigan area is a hub of creativity, home to a large number
of talented artists and craft producers. Enhance your stay with a visit to some
of our local galleries and craft shops. There is plenty do for all ages. The area is difficult to match for its range of
coastal and inland walks, cycling, fishing, and coastal based activities from
lazing on our unspoilt beaches to trying your hand at Sea Kayaking and
Coasteering. There is plenty to do and see in the Cardigan area. Many of our visitors just
want to chill out and enjoy the breath taking scenery and unique coastline, but
don’t miss the opportunity to visit our wide range of attractions. Take a boat
trip out to see the dolphins in Cardigan Bay, visit our heritage sites, potter
around our galleries and craft shops or try your hand at a wide range of sea and
land based activities. Walkers can now enjoy a series of newly developed circular walks in the Cardigan
area ranging between four and a half and six and a half miles taking in some
beautiful sections of the Teifi Valley and the coast.
The Ceredigion coastline is variable and includes slow
eroding rock cliffs, erodable boulder clay cliffs, shingle beaches,
sandy beaches, long beaches (Borth) and pocket beaches (Llangrannog).
In addition the coast has a number of estuaries including the two
larger ones that delineate the Counties boundary; The Teifi and the
Dyfi. The shape of the beaches, sand dunes and estuaries are constantly
changing due to the action of the waves, tides and currents that move
sediment along the coast. Sand and silt that settle in the estuaries
can form banks and marshes, whose edges are shaped by meandering river
channels. Beaches and sand dunes are important natural coastal defences
that absorb the sea's energy, reducing the need for expensive
artificial defences. Sand blown from the beach forms and maintains sand
dunes. However, sand or shingle may cause problems when it blows or
washes onto promenades, the highway and residential properties.The
largely unspoilt nature of the coast, the variety of coastal features
and diversity of its geology and habitats makes the Ceredigion
coastline a place of significant environmental interest, at a local,
national and international level. These same characteristics make the
coastline a major tourist attraction of great importance to the local
economy. Over 47% of the population of Ceredigion reside on or adjacent
to the coast and these settlements have a long and traditional maritime
association. The agriculture industry in the coastal strip is important
to the region and the fishing industry is of economic and cultural
importance to the main ports and harbours.
Cwmtydu is a beautiful, secluded cave-walled beach with an equally impressive access route
along tiny lanes with hairpin bends winding down from the hill
above.Once very popular with pirates and smugglers, the beach is
predominantly shingle with an area of sand exposed at low tides. The public
footpath over National Trust land overlooks Cardigan Bay and if you are lucky
you may see seals, dolphins and porpoises on your walk to the beach.
Cwmystwyth was an
industrial village in the heart of the Cambrian Mountains. This is
now lovely wild countryside, but in the nineteenth century it was as
industrialised as the valleys of south Wales. Copper has been worked
here since the Bronze Age and the Romans mined for silver-bearing lead.
Later, the Cistercian monks of Strata Florida had mines and a grange
farm here. Remains of some of the lead mines are up the road to the
east of the village.
Devil's Bridge is world-renowned for: the three bridges; the great little narrow gauge steam railway that climbs through the verdant
Vale of Rheidol from Aberystwyth; and the cascading waterfalls of the river Mynach.Devil's Bridge's most famous
feature is probably the unique arrangement of its three bridges -which are built
one on top of the other. The original bridge was believed to have been built
either by the Cistercian monks of Strata Florida abbey or by Knights Templar.
The latest bridge was built by the County Council during this century.
Hafod Uchtryd,.
12 miles south-east of Aberystwyth, is recognised as one of the finest
examples in Europe of a Picturesque landscape. Its most celebrated
owner, Thomas Johnes (1748-1816), built a new house in this remote
location and laid out its grounds in a manner suited to displaying its
natural beauties in sympathy with the 'Picturesque principles'
fashionable at the time, with circuit walks allowing the visitor to
enjoy a succession of views and experiences. Johnes also used the land
for farming, forestry, and gardening, in each case trying out new ideas
and experimental methods. Hafod became an essential destination for the
early tourist in Wales. Today the Hafod estate occupies some 200
hectares of the Ystwyth valley and surrounding hills. Most is owned by
the Forestry Commission who, in partnership with the Hafod Trust, is
managing a conservation and restoration project with public and private
funding.
An RSPB reserve, Ynys Hir is
made up of salt marshes, wet grassland and woodland - part of which is
said to date back to the 17th century.There are seven hides dotted
around the thousand acre sanctuary, offering spectacular vantage points
across the estuary. There are also several marked nature trails - the
shortest route is 0.5m and the longest three miles.Ynys Hir is probably
best known for its Greenland white-fronted geese. Every year, about 150
of them fly in to spend the winter in this part of the world. It's
their only regular wintering site in the whole of Wales and
England. Winter is also a good time to see other wildfowl. At this
time of the year, the estuary attracts thousands of ducks such as
wigeon and teal as well as Canada geese.In the spring and summer, the
oakwoods attract two species of woodpecker in addition to the usual
woodland species. The RSPB has put up special bird boxes around the
reserve which are used every year by more than a hundred pied
flycatchers.The Dyfi estuary is also one of the few strongholds for
breeding lapwing and redshank in Wales. Feeding cormorants, goldeneyes
and red-breasted mergansers can be seen from the Domen Las Hide. Even if you're not a keen bird-watcher, Ynys Hir is a lovely place to go for
a walk - especially in the spring when the woodlands are carpeted with
bluebells.
Tregaron Bog is
one of the few remaining examples of a raised peat bog in Britain.
Lying beside the river Teifi just above the small market town of
Tregaron on the edge of the Cambrian Mountains, there is now an
excellent walk through the heart of the Bog on a timber decked walkway.
A raised bog such as Cors Caron was once the site of a shallow lake
that became filled with vegetation. Its acidic nature was ideal for the
various species of Sphagnum moss which not only increase the acidity of
the water, but which are very absorbent and help to hold the water in
the bog and prevent excessive evaporation. The acid also prevents
decomposition, so layer upon layer of Sphagnum gradually builds up - in
this case over some 12,000 years to produce a shallow dome
characteristic of the raised bog. The acidic and nutrient
deficient conditions are suitable for a unique flora with plants like
the Purple Moor Grass dominating the landscape. In places can also be
seen the Cotton Grass, the Bog Asphodel and the carnivorous Sundew.Old folklore holds that if cattle ate the Bog Asphodel, their bones would
become brittle. This is because the Asphodel grows on land lacking in nutrients
such as calcium that are required for strong bones. This is reflected in the
plant's scientific name Narthecium ossifragum. The Sundew gets its nitrogen from insects that it traps on sticky hairs on
its highly modified leaves.Growing profusely in many areas of the bog is the lichen Cladonia. Lichens
are unique as they are composed of a relationship between an alga embedded
within the tissues of a fungus. The Cladonia lichen is closely related to the
Reindeer 'Moss'- an important component of the diet of the reindeer in northern
Europe.
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All photos © Crown copyright (2008) Visit Wales