At Musselwick beach, the yellow sand, hemmed in by black slate cliffs, is an idyllic picnic spot, as we discovered after persuading our two scowling boys to walk the 20 minutes from Marloes village. They duly built acomplicated sand fort just in time for the tide to roll in and destroy it – the beach is only accessible for four hours a day, two either side of low tide.
As we puffed back up the steps, we passed a dreadlocked fisherman in black neoprene, clutching a harpoon, with a serious-looking knife strapped to his thigh. He was in search of sea bass.
Up the coast, the narrow cove at St Bride’s Haven is stony but sheltered, great for kids who want to swim, or practise sit-on-top kayaking and paddleboarding. There’s no hire place, but as it’s only a few metres from the free car park, it’s easy to bring your own. On an entirely different scale is mile-longMarloes Sands – well-used, with breakers for bodyboarders, but so vast it’s never crowded.
Our most recent discovery, after over two decades of visiting this small peninsula in the Pembrokeshire Coast national park, is little-visited Albion beach. Named after a paddle steamer wrecked off this coast in 1837, it’s just north of Marloes Sands. We scrambled down a narrow path between gorse bushes to find waves crashing on to rocks, and not a footprint in the sand. With Cornwall hitting the headlines this week because of overcrowding, the chance to discover empty beaches makes this remote coastline even more appealing right now.
Until this summer, anyone hauling themselves back up these cliffs, salt-stained and starving after a day on the beach, had to make do with a Mr Whippy from a van in the Marloes Sandscar park, or drive 15 minutes to The Griffin Inn in Dale. Marloes itself had just bog-standard pub nosh, and a sweet little cafe in the back room of the Village Stores.
That has all changed with the arrival of chef Charlie Langrick and his partner Claire Pepperell, new tenants at a National Trustfarmhouse, where they have opened a cafe called Runwayskiln (10am-6pm, kitchen opens midday, closed Monday), with views to Marloes Sands and Skokholm island and on the way to Skomer island.
The couple, who are west Wales natives, have updated this former youth hostel by transforming one of theblack-timbered barns into a cafe by day; at night they offer dinner for groups of 10 or more. (They may open for breakfast and as a full restaurant in the evening next year, but check the website for updates.)
Local artists’ work adorns the walls, and the atmosphere is relaxed and friendly. Charlie, who has cheffed all over the world, says this National Trust tenancy has allowed him to realise his dream of a contemporary foodie destination in this far-flung corner of Wales. We ate superb pakoras, fresh hake and locally sourced crab fish cakes (mains from £8.50).
Several of the local employees are on year-round contracts – Claire wants to keep people on in low as well as high season. It was a scramble to get the cafe ready for summer, so plans for bedroomsare on hold. Next spring, Runwayskiln will offer three rooms in the farmhouse – including a family room with double and bunk beds – with use of the kitchen and sitting rooms. More hostel-style accommodation will follow (until then try The Clock House in Marloes, doubles from £92 B&B), or West Hook Farm Camping (from £15 for a car and tent for two).
Next day, with Martin Leonard from Sea Kayak Guides, we paddled through the morning mist towards Skomer island, known for its bird life and managed by the Wildlife Trust. There is something magical about paddling through fog on a mirror-flat sea. The slap of our paddles and the whistle of wingsa few feet overhead were the only sounds. Gradually the island’s contours came into sight. A puffin skittered across the water, orange feet scuffing the surface, and headed to its burrow on the grassy cliff top.
As the sun broke through, Skomer transformed from sludge greens and greys to blazing emerald topped with swathes of pink campions. On the rocks, cormorants stood drying their wings alongside black and white razorbills. Higher up the cliffs, guillemots screeched, keeping their single egg – or chick – safe on narrow ledges. Rafts of puffins bobbed on the water, some with a meal of silver sand eels in their orange beaks. Skomer’s puffin population is flourishing at the moment (the best time to see them is from April to July).
It’s also good to know that these days it’s not just the puffins who stand a chance of decent food in these parts.
• Dale Sailing operates cruises to Skomer (adult from £12, child £8, pembrokeshire-islands.co.uk) until 30 September
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