I stayed in North Wales overnight following my trip to Anglesey Circuit, with the intention of photographing a few local spots on the Saturday evening and Sunday morning ahead of my long drive to Dorset for my hotel booking for Sunday night. The reason for the trip to Dorset, was that I was lucky enough to be selected for a photoshoot on the Monday with a Canon professional on landscapes and seascapes for a magazine article.
My plans for Saturday evening didn't work out at all. I checked in at the hotel I booked in Llandudno and went out in search of dinner. Having achieved that part, I opted for a quiet evening in the hotel and downloaded the Anglesey photos. I had intended to go for a short drive to Conwy and take photos of the Castle there all lit up at night. As it was quite windy, I would not have achieved the anticipated reflections in the river. It also looked more likely to rain heavily and I didn't fancy that combined with the strong winds.
A hearty breakfast on the Sunday morning got the day off to a fine start and soon I was checked out of the hotel and off to fill up with petrol for my journey.
My plans were to visit a couple of waterfalls in North Wales and then drive South in daylight hours.
Aber Falls were my first intended destination, not a long drive from my overnight hotel and easily signposted off the main road. I soon found the car park, but I must have read something incorrectly in a review of the Falls online when I was making my plans. I had read that the Falls were an easy 20min walk from the car park, but when I saw the sign at the start of the trail it stated about an hour and a half to 2hrs. I did not have 2hrs to spare for that, so I opted to shoot some photos around the Aber River near to the car park and where there was an old stone bridge over the river.
A few pleasing images were captured there from a couple of different angles, before I thought that I should be on my way to the second part of my planned morning.
That second part involved a drive a little way South to Llanberis in Snowdonia and to Llyn Padarn - a much photographed lake especially an image of a lone tree. Now, my plan didn't involve that lone tree - but it did involve a walk from car park to Llanberis Falls, again supposedly an easy walk and not far. I had two problems here, firstly I could not find any signs pointing me in the direction of the Falls and secondly the time was whizzing by. So, I decided against visiting the Falls that I couldn't find the route to anyway and opted for a few shots across the lake to Llanberis town and all the hills behind which were being highlighted by the patchy sunshine.
Thereafter, it was time to begin the long journey South to Dorset - a drive that I planned to use the A roads and take the scenic route instead of the quicker but boring motorway routes.
Driving from Llanberis to reach the A5 took me past several breathtaking scenes in Snowdonia and if I had stopped for all the ones that I would have liked to, I would probably have reached Dorset in time for breakfast the next morning. So I resolved to visit the area again sometime in the future with time to explore properly.
My scenic route drive continued to thrill me, while also frustrating me as I couldn't afford the time to stop and get the camera out, and I arrived at my hotel at 8.30pm.
I had been recommended to stay at a place that the Canon professional books his clients into regularly and would place me ideally for the Monday activities.
More in my next Blog past .......................
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