The lighthouse does great service to humanity; yet it is the slave of those who trim the lamps. ~Alice Wellington Rollins (1847–1897)
Some afternoons I enjoy just going for a drive and seeing where I end up! 9 times out of ten I end up in Wales because why the hell not! I am very lucky to only live an hour from the Welsh border (I wish I lived in Wales most of the time). One particular afternoon I ended up in Anglesey, luckily I love driving, I have a million driving play lists which I time up loud, have my windows down and just drive. I have been known to drive to Cornwall just to watch the sunset and drive back (it is an 11 hour round trip). I find driving super peaceful, luckily for me!
On this drive I ended up on a beach about ten minutes north of Beaumaris, wrapped myself up in a jumper and enjoyed listening to the sea! As I have gotten older my own company and quiet is something I treasure, between having two jobs, my blog, social media etc quiet time rarely happens. Even on holiday I am constantly snapping away things to share with you, after four years blogging it has become second nature. Not that I am complaining, I love sharing, I love all your beautiful comments and messages, to me blogging has become like talking to old friends, friends I want to share stuff with.
After exploring the beach and watching some dogs play in the water I googled lighthouses near by, isn’t there something super romantic about lighthouses! There was one about 30 minutes away so naturally I jumped in my car and headed over. So you can’t get to Trwyn Du lighthouse at Penmon without paying £3 to drive down the road, not going to lie it felt a bit dodgy, some random guy is just stood in a little shed asking for £3 and believe me they aren’t using the money to maintain the road!
This solid beacon painted in black and white rings, to improve daytime visibility, stands in the sound between Penmon Point and Puffin Island. In certain conditions the sea can get very violent, especially when the wind is against the tide, and at such times it is not advisable to sail too close to Penmon Sound.
On the north side of Penmon Point is a small beach which is quite sheltered in most wind directions except for north and north easterly winds. As you stand near the old pilot houses above the channel between the beach and lighthouse, you can almost imagine the tide ebbing away, the waters parting, and being able to walk across to the other side.
It doesn’t feel like I have been to the beach unless I step into the sea, after all what is the point of going all that way, to stop just before the sea?
Fun Facts about Trwyn Du Lighthouse:
- Established in 1838
- Automated in 1922
- It has a height of 29 m
- A light character of a white flash every 5 seconds
- The lamp has an intensity of 15,000 Candela
- The light has a range of 12 miles (19 km)
Tragedy off Penmon Point
As you explore our island coastline you will hear of numerous shipwrecks over the years. One such incident involved the old steamer, the Rothsay Castle, on its regular passage between Liverpool and the Menai Straits. It says something about the advance of technology when a steamer can be described as “old” in 1831. This ship left Liverpool with 150 passengers aboard and soon ran into very difficult sea conditions beyond the Mersey Bar. So fierce was the headwind that the ferry had not even reached the halfway point of her journey after 4 hours. According to passenger accounts, the Captain refused their request to turn back to Liverpool. The Rothsay Castle had left the Mersey at 11 a.m and it was now midnight, yet still she had not reached her destination. At about 1 a.m she struck the Dutchman Bank, bounced off and continued without much control along the channel. A further series of collisions with the sand banks finally resulted in her nemesis. She began to break up in the appalling sea conditions. Survivors recount how there was total chaos on deck. The funnel broke off and pushed the Captain and his officer overboard. In all the mayhem that ensued no fewer than 130 people lost their lives.
There were only 20 survivors who were rescued by the Beaumaris Lifeboat, supported by a pilot boat from Penmon.
The area is stunning, there were camper vans everywhere and people, couples, families all settling down to watch the sunset together! Perfect little spot for a picnic and a day relaxing!
I also didn’t know until this visit that, that is puffin island! I always get recommended Puffin Island as somewhere I should visit but literally had no idea where it was! Now I do, you can’t go onto the island but there are boat trips around it! So hoping this summer I will get to do one :). Before I knew it, it was time to start heading home, Etta James on loud in the car, windows down, hair down and enjoy the two and a half hour trip home!
