We ventured in to Wales at the weekend for the first time since being based in Shropshire (unbelievable really considering how close it is!). It’s also the first time since lockdown.
(see our YouTube Vlog about our weekend Here)
Admittedly we stopped watching the news a while ago, only keeping an eye on major updates. With this, we had only seen feedback online about touring in Wales. It didn’t read well unfortunately, with most reporting parking restrictions and a slightly hostile attitude towards Motorhomes and Campervans.
We didn’t let this put us off though and decided to go and see for ourselves. We are staying so close to Wales at the moment, it’s not a huge drive if we had to abandon plan.
We are so glad we went for it! The second we crossed that border in to Wales, we both had huge smiles on our faces. Anyone who followed last year’s travels on Instagram and Facebook will know we love Wales. We ended up touring there for 3 months on our UK travels last year.
We didn’t have a plan for this weekend (which is how all our best adventures have started). Jon simply picked a spot on google maps where he wanted to start and we headed there.
That place was the Pontcysyllte Aqueduct in Wrexham. Pontcysyllte means ‘the bridge that connects’ and is the longest and highest aqueduct in Great Britain. It carries the Llangollen Canal 126ft above the River Dee! Designed and built by Telford and Jessup, it was completed in 1805 when it officially opened for traffic. It is an engineering marvel and in 2009 was made a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
It’s so easy to visit because they have 3 car parks so plenty of space for the motorhome. We started out in the Coach Park, something we normally do if allowed as we know there will be room.
It was completely empty apart from one other motorhome. Now, it was 7pm so no surprise we were the only ones there. On a Friday night though, you can’t always judge it. Seeing how quiet it was we decided to venture to the main car park so we were a bit closer. There were a few cars and a couple of vans parked up but we managed to fit in fine.
UPDATE Oct 2021: The car park closest to the aqueduct is now a disabled only car park. The main Car park is located just up from the coach parking and costs £3.00 for a day ticket.
We went for a lovely evening stroll along the aqueduct and part of the canal. It was so serene! The evening sun was fading and made for some absolutely beautiful views. Aside from a few people sat around chatting and a couple of kayakers, we were the only ones there.
We needed to do a small food shop and we had spotted Aldi on our way in so we headed back to the van. Again, being later at night, the shop and car park was nearly empty.
After, we went back to the main car park. We decided to stay here for the night as we wanted to cycle further along the length of the canal path the next day. Originally we were going to stay in the big empty coach park (coaches are not operating at the moment) but it was along the main road. Also there were fairly fresh tyres marks and we realised it is probably a haven for car meets.
We had a perfectly peaceful stay and in the morning, we got up early to move. We moved back to the coach park (which serves as an overflow car park too) and got the bikes out. We then realised we hadn’t got Jon a new inner tube since his puncture on our anniversary at Hampton Court. He cracked on with a temp puncture repair and then we were off!
Going back along the aqueduct was much busier and navigating the bike along the tiny footpath around oncoming people was interesting. More so because I am afraid of heights and this was now the 3rd time in 12 hours I was walking this path. This time with obstacles!
It was all worth it though as we saw the canal come to life during the day. There were boats on the move and plenty of walkers and cyclists enjoying the sun along the tow path. The highlight of the day was stopping at ‘The Sweetie Boat’ floating shop. A beautiful canal boat called the Drifting Angel that serves as the owner’s home and business.
They offer hot and cold drinks, pick ’n’ mix sweets and locally sourced ice cream! We couldn’t resist a tub each of the Chilly Cow mint choc chip, delivered fresh that morning from the farm in Ruthin where it’s made. All for supporting local, Jon purchased no less than 3 (!) bags of sweets.
The weather was hotting up so we turned back to go and check on the girls and think about where to head next. We remembered that the Rhug Estate had shared a post on social media offering overnight stops. That decision was easy!
We arrived late afternoon to a beautifully laid out and thriving site. It’s more than just a farm shop. They also have a cafe, outdoor takeaway kiosk and a Drive-Thru. A drive-thru that a van can fit through … how awesome is that!!
We registered in the shop and treated ourselves to Angus burgers and fries for dinner. By the time the site closed, the car park had emptied out and we enjoyed another peaceful nights sleep. Surprisingly, the A5 is so quiet at night.
Being the ‘shop local’ heroes that we are, we opted to have a breakfast wrap too before heading off the next morning. It was insanely good!! We would highly recommend it. Next time, we want to try the Bison burger.
We decided to head off to Chirk. We knew it was part of the Pontcysyllte Aqueduct and Llangollen Canal World Heritage Site and wanted to see a bit more of it. We also wanted to go because it has a viaduct running 70ft above it. Plus, it is one of only two places along the water way where you can have one foot in England and One foot in Wales!
We managed to park up at the nearby Caffi Wylfa (they have overflow parking around the back and we fit no problem). It is next door to the Glyn Wylfa visitor centre.
We took the opportunity to order some drinks for the road and then walked to the nearby canal. It is literally a two minute walk and you join the path right at the Chirk Tunnel. Sadly because we decided to walk across the Aqueduct, we didn’t go through ‘The Darkie’. As Chirk Castle was closed, we’ll be back to visit there so we’ll tackle the tunnel another day.
To the left is the Aqueduct and Viaduct. Thanks mostly to the drizzly weather, we had this one to ourselves. Thankfully it is not quite as high so I wasn’t to concerned about the walk across!
We cracked on along the tow path and in to England. Then we decided to come off near the Bridge Inn pub (the last pub in England before the border!) and loop back round in to Wales towards the van again. It sounds so dramatic hopping between Countries but it’s one of those cool things you just have to do.
On our way back, we went through the town and suddenly could smell this amazing chocolate smell. Then we walked past a sign and realised we were walking past the Cadburys processing plant. It smelt amazing! Like a pan au chocolat warming in the oven.
Now we were hungry! So we made our way back to the van and decided to get back to our temporary base in Shropshire so we could settle and get dinner. Jon also needed to get ready for work on Monday.
All in all, what a cracking weekend. We’re glad we decided to venture back in to Wales, even if we were just dancing along the border. Thankfully we didn’t encounter anything negative, We definitely won’t hesitate to head back for another trip!
1 thought on “A Tale of Two Countries. Visiting the ‘Stream in the Sky’”