SITUATED ON THE COAST near the southern end of the Snowdonia National Park, albeit just outside the Park boundary, Tywyn makes an ideal base for a couple of linear day walks along the Wales Coast Path with good train and bus links in both directions.

It’s about 12 miles from Tywyn north to Fairbourne on the south side of the Mawddach estuary in one direction and a similar distance to Pennal on the north side of the Dyfi estuary in the other. A train or bus out and a walk back from each makes a good day’s walk with plenty of variety, although it has to be said neither stretch is a purist’s coastal walk.

Coastal train or bus?

However, although a little inland from the coastline itself, the upland stretches of the Wales Coast Path between Fairbourne and Tywyn, and indeed between Pennal and Aberdovey, do provide excellent views, with enough ascent to satisfy hill-hungry legs.

Having done the walk from Pennal to Tywyn a couple of times quite recently, I was keen to do the other again and looking forward to the train ride along the scenic Cambrian Coast line, which duly hugs the coast, especially along this section.

But the station platform was almost empty when I arrived, with the word ‘cancelled’ clearly displayed on the information screen. It would have been a two-hour wait for the next train, but fortunately there’s also a bus service between the two towns so I caught the bus and alighted at Friog just before Fairbourne (thus avoiding the road walk from the station bus stop).

Far-reaching coastal views

The initial stretch takes you up past the Blue Lake, as it’s known, an old slate quarry, accessed by a tunnel and used as an open air swimming pool when the weather is warm enough. Rather than go through the wet tunnel, I climbed up the bank, from atop which you get the best view of the ‘lake’. Thereafter I kept to the main grassy track heading south-west (rather than the official Wales Coast Path, which takes a rather roundabout route), rejoining the Wales Coast Path higher up along a lane. On a clear day such as it was, the views north are superb, stretching from Barmouth Bay and the Mawddach estuary to the distant Lleyn peninsula, its long slender arm extending into the sea with Bardsey Island at the tip. Snowdon was also clearly visible, too.

This fine and easily walked section of the coastal path brought me down to the village of Llwyngwril, where the ‘yarn bombing’, as it’s called, has become quite an attraction. The community fund raising project, which has been going for the past few years, involves decorating the village with knitting: benches, fences, lamp posts, you name it, get adorned.

Bridleways and bridges

Heading back uphill again, there were far-reaching views to enjoy once more as I continued along the waymarked route, which led across fields and then down to the A493 near Rhoslefain. After joining another lane a little further on, I found the next stretch south along the bridleway quite overgrown; this was the WCP route (and there are still waymarkers), but the OS maps website (much more up to date than my paper map) shows the WCP now continuing along the lane to Tonfanu: a shorter and certainly easier option, which I’d done on a previous occasion when pushed for time. Before the smart new bridge over the Dysynni was built, WCP walkers had quite a detour inland to cross the river at Bryncrug. (In fact at low tide, as I’ve experienced, you can ford the river and walk along the beach. Good for a swim, too, in summer.)

The last leg of the walk across the grass afforded beautiful views of the hills reflected in Broad Water with Cadair Idris visible in the far distance at the head of the valley. A lovely sunset from the promenade ended the day nicely.

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