A Visit To Llangollen, North Wales

A Visit To Llangollen, North Wales

We made the short journey south to Llangollen on a somewhat chilly Sunday morning in late April.

Approaching as we did from the motorway gave little away about our final destination save for the last couple of miles of urban driving.

The bridge over the river Dee seemed to be a focal point for the throngs of visitors so early on a Sunday morning.

Bridge Over The River Dee

Parking up in the council run car park, we scrabbled for change for the ticket machine only to realise neither of us had brought enough.

A quick visit to the coffee shop across the road produced a warm drink and enough change for us to move on.

We spoke of the annual Eisteddfod, being unsure of when it was due to take place and were somewhat relieved to find that it was not due for a little while yet.

I'd had vague recollections of the BBC covering the event as a child and could only remember flicking the channel over, a bit Philistine perhaps.

Looking Upstream From The Bridge

Amongst the unusually colourful wildlife on display on the river Dee was this Mandarin duck.

Mandarin Duck

The river itself seemed quite low further up form the bridge, enabling some photos that would not perhaps be possible in wetter parts of the year.

Some Rapids That Seemed Popular With Kayaks

The weather brightened up around midday adding to the picturesque views back towards the bridge.

An Elevated Platform Ideal For Photographers

The river contrasted sharply at certain points being earily still in parts.

A View Across To The Opposite Bank

As the afternoon drew on, the clouds began to roll in, we were thankful for what sunshine we had seen.

Another View Up The River

The town seemed very popular with motorcyclists and cyclists alike.

On the way home we travelled via the Horseshoe pass, stopping briefly at the summit to observe the throngs of two wheeled enthusiasts.

Descending the summit we happened upon this lady cyclist and although we would like to have gotten past as she coasted at about 40mph, as anybody who has ridden will know, 40mph on a pedal cycle can seem like a white knuckle fairground ride, we decided to simply sit back and enjoy the view!