Taking advantage of a spell of fine weather this week, I booked a short stay in Trearddur Bay on Anglesey, planning to combine sightseeing with some relaxed birdwatching en route.
My first stop was Swallow Falls, just outside Betws-y-Coed, a place I hadn’t visited since childhood. The falls were as impressive as I remembered, and a fitting start to the trip.
Swallow Falls
A short drive up the road brought me to the Ugly House Tea Room for breakfast. While chatting with the staff, I was told that Pied Flycatchers had bred in the woodland behind the café. After breakfast, I headed into the trees and soon connected with three Pied Flycatchers, a pleasing bonus and a reminder of how productive these mature Welsh woodlands can be.
The wooded area behind the cafe
Pied Flycatcher
Continuing along the A5 towards Bangor, I drove through Snowdonia National Park, enjoying spectacular mountain scenery in the clear conditions.
Mountain views as I drove towards Bangor
On reaching Anglesey in glorious sunshine, I decided to visit Plas Newydd, the National Trust property overlooking the Menai Strait and Britannia Bridge. Renowned as a site for Red squirrels, I spent time exploring the gardens, though the squirrels eluded me. However, the house itself was stunning, with sweeping views back towards Snowdonia, and I enjoyed a good number of Small White butterflies in the grounds.
Plas Newydd house
The house backs onto the Menai Straits and overlooks the Britannia Bridge
Pressing on towards Trearddur Bay, I made brief stops at Aberffraw and Rhosneigr, both of which produced Stonechats and several Meadow Brown butterflies, adding nicely to the day list.
Small White butterfly
Aberffraw
Rhosneigr
Stonechat
Meadow Brown
I arrived at my accommodation shortly after five and spent a couple of hours relaxing before heading out again in the early evening to South Stack RSPB, one of my favourite sites on the island. The cliffs were alive with seabirds: Razorbills, Guillemots and Puffins packed the ledges, while the lighthouse and Ellen’s Tower sat atmospheric in the mist offshore.
Accommodation sorted
Razorbills and Guillimots
The cliffs at South Stacks, with the lighthouse in the distance covered in mist
Ellen's Tower
A walk along the clifftops also produced several Stonechats, two Choughs, six Six-spotted Burnet moths and Painted Lady butterflies. It was a classic South Stack evening, rich in both birds and atmosphere.
Stonchat
Two Choughs showed well
Painted Lady
Six Spotted Burnet
The day was rounded off perfectly with a good meal, a few beers and a cracking sunset over the Irish Sea.
A nice end to a cracking day
The following morning dawned bright and sunny. After a relaxed start, I began the journey home, calling in at Gronant to visit the Little Tern colony. These remarkable birds migrate all the way from West Africa to breed here, and the colony — 225 birds according to the on-site warden — offered stunning, close views of this scarce species.
Little tern
Although the trip ended with a soaking from typical British weather on the walk back to the car, it did nothing to detract from what had been a thoroughly enjoyable couple of days.
