Hi again people and pooches. Joe the Cocker here reporting on another short walk that I finally persuaded my human to drive me to. The weather was amazing for early December. It was cold, dry, and sunny with only a slight breeze. We have always loved this area, but we have never walked on the northern shores of the Mawddach Estuary. There are a few waymarked walks on this side of the water, and we chose the shortest one for this little outing. After sampling the area, we have vowed to return soon to hike some longer walks.
After a short but steep drive along a narrow road out of Barmouth or Y Bermo, we parked in the small roadside free car park. The walk starts at a gap in the wall a few yards from the bottom end of the parking area. We passed through a gate that my assistant opened for me and closed behind me. He has his uses. Admittedly, they are few but sometimes essential. Gate operation is a skill that I have yet to master. But, as they say,’Why have a dog and bark yourself?’
We walked along an old dry-wall lined lane with a gate at its entrance. I was horrified to see that my life was being threatened. I hadn’t done anything, your honour! Anyway, the big feller always puts my lead on me when there is livestock around.
The path continued through a wrought iron gate and gradually wound its way uphill. It was muddy in places, and there were a few rocky sections for the big lump to negotiate. We knew that the scenery would be spectacular when we eventually left the wooded area. While he was dawdling along behind me, I spent some time rearranging the sticks that were lying along the path.
When we did reach the highest point on the walk, the view opened up in front of us. WOW! Even I was impressed. To our left, we could see the estuary narrowing as it became the Afon Mawddach near Penmaenpool. Ahead of us, we could see Cadair Idris with its own weather system of cloud poking above the foothills. To our right, we could follow the estuary as it opened up into the Irish Sea.
The sun was blinding as we stared out to see. We could clearly see the newly renovated Barmouth Railway Bridge spanning the mouth of the estuary. We spent half an hour on the top of the hill. My human forced me to sit on a bench and pose for photographs. I think that he was photographing the scenery, really. I felt like I was being used as eye candy!
My human took a little panoramic video while we sat on the bench. He said that you would have to excuse the wind noise. It wasn’t even windy. Unless he was referring to something else. Not me, by the way!
Eventually, he had seen enough of the views, and we returned along the path that we had walked along. This was when we saw the first people on the walk. I would imagine that this path is really busy in the summer. It’s a lovely short walk, and we will be doing longer walks on this side of the Mawddach. Till next time!
Joe the Cocker's Hikes 