Ha haaa! It feels good! Like a rebirth! We finally left the refineries and power plants and seeing the beautiful untainted Pembs coastline reemerge was great. Really uplifting. That isn't to say that Monkton, Neyland, Milford and Hakin weren't interesting, and of course the industrial plants carry their own merits as large employers in the region. They are bloody ugly though, and the contrast is stark. At one stage we could even see the rain clouds we had left behind on the industrial coastline opposite, while we basked in fantastic sunshine and a slight refreshing breeze.
The above photo, taken with an iPhone app, shows this view. We did still have a few Liquid Natural Gas terminals to negotiate, but putting those to one side and particularly once we had reached South Hook Point, things improved markedly.
We set off from our B&B, which we wouldn't recommend, at around 9.15, our earliest start yet. We encountered a tough but small incline to get us warmed up and then spent the next hour or so enjoying the views across the peninsular, looking back at the distances we had already travelled. We had walked what was basically a huge horse shoe shape. This meant that while we could see where we had been, we could also see ahead to where we we're going. The future looks great!
As we both have played football all over the county, most of our previous references were sport related; visits to away grounds for either football or cricket always the context. A few non-related memories for James included working with his Dad Nigel at Milford docks painting bridges, and Dan recognised a relic from Porthgain in the shape of The Elkstone, a boat owned by Matt, the owner of The Sloop in Porthgain (one of the sponsors for the walk by the way!).
We saw old stomping grounds such as Hakin's "The Obs" and later the pitch at Herbrandston. Odd seeing them without a sporting kit on of some description.
Our plan for tomorrow is to do 16 miles. It is certainly getting easier as the days pass by. I think we would both agree that over-confidence is creeping in, despite our respective niggling injuries. And if the weather keeps smiling on us as it has done, we will have to deal with higher temperatures than up until to now.
We will camp tonight on a lovely campsite on the hill in Sandy Haven. We have managed to wash some clothes and dry them just about. Small mercies.
We are now sitting in The Taberna Inn in Herbranston having a few well deserved drinks (Steve/Tim - this is pub number 11 by the way!). The last time we were here, it was after football and there was nearly a fight because Nicky Rowlands had stolen all the post-football sausages and wrapped them in a napkin in his pocket for the journey home. Luckily no such problems this time!
Finally a quick thank you to end with - Dan's mum Sheila has been up staying in Dorset with his Great Auntie Claire (GAC for short!) and she has added an extra £10 to the sponsorship fund. Thanks GAC, and see you soon!
James & Dan
- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone
Location:Sandy Haven
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