Over the Christmas holidays, we spent some time in Pembrokeshire, where my family live. We decided to stay in an Airbnb for a change and came across the beautiful Mill House in Llangwm. We liked the way that it looked, comfy and cosy, as well as it being well kitted out for cooking for the family when they came over. We were not disappointed by our stay in this unique home.
We had an awful drive down, with snow, closed motorways and the feeling like we would never get out of the car again. As a result, we arrived in the dark and the house is at the end of a very narrow track. This made arriving at the house even sweeter, as the house was cosy and quiet and easy to relax in. The house has decent wifi, always a bonus, and is decorated beautifully. There’s lots of individual touches, especially with the woodwork, that really makes the house stand out and gives it a really home like feel. Lots of the woodwork has used reclaimed wood and it really makes the Mill House feel special. I loved the little reading nook on the stairs, as well as the mezzanine bed in the second bedroom. Such a cool little hideaway.
But that’s not even the best bit. The kitchen and bathroom really makes Mill House stand out. They are both completed to a high standard, beautiful finishing, but little touches make it really unique. For example, the rubbish and recycling bins are hidden away within a boxed in seat. The bathroom really took my breath away though. Everything about is beautiful. I would give anything to be able to have that bathroom in my home. (Sadly, only a lottery win and a new house would make that dream a reality!) The slate floors and subway tiles with grey grouting really gave the kitchen and bathroom a luxury feel, but the wooden shelving makes it extra special. There was also an abundance of plants, which has made us realise we need to improve our house plant game, quite considerably!
The house is set in lovely grounds, that contain a ruin of the mill and a gorgeous little boat, which you can sit in, if it’s warm enough. It wasn’t when we stayed. In fact, we had the first frost of the winter, which made the house look pretty magical. There’s a stream flowing at the bottom of the garden, which is lovely and sounds spectacular. I’d love to visit again in the summer, sitting out in the garden with a glass of wine, listening to the stream as the sun sets.
The kitchen was really well-equipped and we catered for six people one night, and a visiting Jasper, who loved the place! I think Poppy liked the open plan nature of the house, meaning she could spy on everyone all the time. She also loved, as did we all, the underfloor heating in the kitchen and bathroom. I am currently trying to work out how I can replicate this in my own home!
I loved the quirky nature of The Mill House. It’s in a lovely village in Pembrokeshire, which is well placed for exploring lots of the beautiful county. I would happily recommend it to anyone and I can’t wait to go back again.
Bosherston never disappoints. There’s always something to see and this time, there was a pair of swans with a nest full of cygnets. Despite the incessant drizzle, Poppy and I headed for Broadhaven South, where I had planned to do a spot of geocaching, but Poppy and the rain had other ideas so geocaching was abandoned in favor of hitting the beach. It was completely empty and the tide was right out, which meant I could let Poppy off the lead. She loved it! She spent the whole time running about, running back to me for treats and generally wearing herself out. If you ever get to go to this part of the world, make sure Broadhaven South is on your list of beaches to visit. It’s pretty much perfect.
We had time before lunch with my mum and as my geocaching plans had failed, I decided to head to 
West Angle bay is quite a small beach, but there are lots of rock pools to explore when the tide is out. Plus, you can get pretty good phone signal, meaning you can find out where the geocaches are hidden and I managed to find one (my first one!), pictured above. Am so proud of this! Parking here is free and there’s a lovely cafe and toilets too. There’s a decent circular walk via the coast path, but as the weather wasn’t great, I decided to leave that for another day.
After a quick coffee, Poppy and I headed for lunch with my mum and I’d spotted that the local tea room at the 
I parked at 
Whitesands Bay is absolutely gorgeous, though has dog restrictions during the summer, so we couldn’t enjoy it this time. (About a mile on the coast path is a smaller dog friendly bay, which is worth a visit, especially on a hot day). Poppy and I had been walking for about an hour by this point so we stopped for a snack and a drink. They have a drinking water tap there, by the toilets, which was very welcome, and outside seating in the shade, which was perfect for Poppy to rest her warm paws. The toilets cost 20p to use (cheek!) so make sure you have change for that, and there is a cafe that serves hot food, though as I had Poppy with me, I didn’t have anything there. We then headed up to the coast path, up on St David’s Head and round towards Abereiddy.
The views were amazing. Despite having grown up in Pembrokeshire, I never explored the county quite like this. There were bees and butterflies all around and birds constantly flying about. Because I was on my own with Poppy, I couldn’t take any close up pictures, as I was terrified that Poppy would try to track something and pull us both hurtling into the sea! All the pictures were taken on my phone and despite carrying the binoculars, it wasn’t really easy to get them out of my bag so I can’t tell you what the birds were! I had planned for us to walk to Abereiddy, as there’s a dog friendly beach there and I wanted to see the Blue Lagoon. Poppy, however, had other ideas! When we’d set out from St David’s it was cool and overcast. However, by about 11.30/12 o’clock, the sun was out and it was getting really hot. At one point, Poppy saw a bit of shade and lay down it. That was when I knew we weren’t going to Abereiddy! We stopped, rested, had something to eat and lots of water before heading back. By my calculations, we were only half way, which is a real shame, but we’d walked six miles so thought we’d better get back.
By the time we arrived back in St Davids, after a pit stop and water bottle refill at Whitesands, Poppy and I headed straight for the ford by the Bishops Palace. Perfect for cooling off hot paws! This was the first time Poppy and I had done a walk like this on our own. I’d never mapped out a walk for us before either and there were times when it was quite scary walking along the coast path on our own, as there can be some sharp drops down to the sea. Having said that, it was loads of fun! There were a few other walkers about, which was nice, especially when they pointed out seals in the sea. I was completely surprised by the terrain, as it kept changing and I hadn’t expected that. Despite not reaching the destination I wanted, I still walked further than I ever had. Poppy was really well behaved and took everything in her stride. I can’t wait to go back and maybe tackle the coast path from the other direction!
We headed down to Pembrokeshire last Tuesday, leaving behind a sunny Oxfordshire, heading into cloudy Wales and making our way straight to my favourite beach, Freshwater West. The tide was out, which meant for lots of exploring the rock pools, which is one of Poppy’s favourite things. She’s not that keen on swimming or paddling in the sea but loves to explore the rocks. Freshwater West has always been my favourite beach. As kids, it was always one we would go to, as it’s really long and wasn’t as popular with tourists as lots of other beaches so was nice and quiet during the summer holidays. Perfect!
I had planned on doing a spot of geocaching while we were, but sadly, a lack of signal put paid to that. So Poppy and I had a long walk along the beach, with spot of rock climbing and rock pooling fun thrown in to the mix. There was only a little bit of drizzle, which didn’t deter us, or the hoards of surfers, enjoying the waves.
I’m not sure who enjoys walking on the beach more, Poppy or me. I love being by the coast, it is my most favourite place. There’s something about being covered in salt that does wonders for my relaxation. This was the start of lots of walks, lots of coast exploration and lots of bad hair caused by the coastal breeze!