Travelog for: Bernie

I have arrived and my first trip out was to an allotment, where my host hopes to grow fruit and vegetables and a few flowers.

Pretty crocuses

winter pansies

These are currant bushes

Pond with goldfish somewhere hiding

A pretty daffodil

Not much is happening...

A quick trip on the bus to Llanberis for lunch

The lake is very choppy in the wind.

The view towards Snowdon. There is snow at the top of them hills.

Brr...

We've come out for a drive, and there is a geocache near here.

The trees look pretty with snow on.

My host's son going towards the geocache

Brr!

Near the geocache

Some pipes


He's having fun in the snow.

Warmer now inside a cafe looking across the road at a popular sledging field.

Nice cup of tea.

Hits the spot nicely

Resting at Springfield Festival Gardens.

Plenty of walls to rest on...

and admire the shadows...

And bright colours...

Water features...

A fountain..

On the way back to Wales, we stopped to stretch our legs.

Snow still on the ground, brr!

I think we are heading for that rock thing.

More snow here...

Here's that rock thing.

We went Geocaching

There is one near this gate.

My host's son wanted this bulb out of the cache!

This is another cache we found.

Today, we've come to Porthmadog to go on the Ffestiniog Railway.

Looking out at the sea.

A pretty garden at one of the stations

Can you see the engine in front?

Trawsfynydd's old power station is over yonder.

A closer look.

We are going to do a loop.

Tanygrisiau reservoir.

A waterfall.

The train was slowing into a station...

So we were able to get more photos of it.

At Blaenau Ffestiniog. The engine needs to take on water.

On the return journey,. there's a bit of the loop again.

Passing another train at a station.

The tickets.

Returning to Porthmadog.

Today, we've come to Llandudno for the Victorian Extravaganza.

There were many old engines.

We listened to some music.

There's a little railway with little engines.

Choo choo!

We didn't go for a ride though.

My host didn't go on the chair-o-plane.

An engine.

Today, we went to the Centre For Alternative Technology in mid-Wales

We travel up to the centre via a little cliff railway.

The centre is in an old quarry high up in the hills.

Some herbs.

Inside the polytunnel, curly parsley

That is an education centre.

Details of electricity generators.

Closer view.

Small life.

Starting to look lush.

On the way back, we take a stroll.

while the sun is shining and the sky is blue

A bridge across the afon (river) Mawddach.

The railway also crosses here.

We went to the allotment today

The gooseberries aren't ready yet.

Neither are the peas... but there are lots of weeds!

On this nice day, we came to Bodnant Gardens.

Look at these pretty alliums

The flowers on this tree are pretty.

Bodnant Gardens is famous for its Laburnum arch.


The flowers are late out this year.

Different yellow flowers

This is pretty.

Beautiful

A little waterfall.

A little stream running through the gardens.

This is another iconic view of Bodnant, the lily pond.

Too early for the flowers.

Wisteria


Another lily pond.

Poppies

Garden is closing so we sneaked another look at the arch

We went for a walk, with my host after she had met some friends for lunch,

on the Uwchgwyrfai Common (Gwyrfai is a river, uwch means upper).

We are going to the red line, a road, by the map legend.

Rhos = moor/heath.  Pawl = pole/stake. A farm hand fell in love with the daughter of a nearby landowner but the landowner refused permission. He challenged the young man to spend a night naked on the slopes of Mynydd Mawr (lit. big hill). The young man did, but to keep warm, laboured putting a wooden pole in the ground with a hammer. He survived and he married the landowner's daughter.

We set forth to find some geocaches on route. Found one near this tree.

We found another one and inside, was The Traveler, a trackable on the Geocaching website.

That's Mynydd Mawr.

There's another geocache nearby.

Hello,
Today we went to the North Wales Agricultural Show just outside Caernarfon

A third placed chicken

This place has gone quackers..

Another placed chicken.

More chickens..

Guinea Pigs...

Inquisitive rabbits..

Sheep being judged..

Poll Dorset sheep

More sheep...

Even more sheep...

Wiltshire Horn Sheep...

Yet more sheep...

Different sheep..

Yet even more sheep..

Black sheep..

Owl crafts...

More exhibits in the tent..

Pretty pink things...

Vegetables..

Fruit..

Plants and potatoes and ...

A woodcutting demonstration..

What's he making?... It was a chair.

Vintage tractors..

More vintage tractors..

Yet more vintage tractors..

And even more tractors..

And even more...

Hello,
Today, we went to Stone Science.

There were fossils..

And rocks...

More rocks..

A little duck..

Pretty flowers..

Colourful feldspar and other rocks..

Bismuth crystals..

Calcite..