ron-t kayaking blog
06 June 2014 ............ Penrhyn Mawr
I went back to Penrhyn Mawr for another play around during the Neaps flood tide - the innermost race wasn`t as good as a couple of days ago.
On the way out I stopped by to have a look at the cave and the arch at the back of Dinas Stack - the rock at the entrance to the cave was just showing, but I managed to sneak past it between the swell surges.
I then had to paddle backwards back past it again to get out.
The rock in the middle of the arch was pretty much blocking my way through - if it had been flat calm I could have got through, but there was a bit too much swell.
This is a fairly quiet swell surge, you don`t really want to sitting at the back of the arch if there is big swell around, it fairly crashes over the rock, then causes mayhem in the rocky area behind the arch.
The middle race at Penrhyn Mawr was fairly chunky, and I had a brief play around the edges, then decided to head off in the direction of the Stacks, to see what I could find.
Just after I left, a group of paddlers came through, presumably on their way back from the Stacks - they headed off to the outer race, which was biggest somewhere around the Fangs.
I then headed back out again, and there is a good cave along there -
As you head along that bit of coastline there are some great features, especially with some swell coming in - here is a good pourover -
An outlying rock was picking up the swell nicely -
A recent rockfall - well, recent in geological terms.
The swell breaking over a rock slab -
The hidden channel is an amazing place, but I couldn`t go through it because it needs a high tide level to be negotiable - however I could get into it through a gap in the middle.
At each end there was a seething mass of white water which was rather difficult to photograph because I was being pushed around a bit too much.
I was trying to take pictures and suddenly a huge pourover came just behind me - it was very unexpected.
Somewhere around there, there is a wonderful section of cliff face with the most crazy distorted rock layers.
Along a bit, and there is another example -
As you head towards the last headland of the Penrhyn Mawr peninsula, the view opens up towards South Stack - I wonder how many photographs of South Stack lighthouse there are in the world ?
As I headed into Abraham`s Bosom, it was clear that the forecast east / southeast wind was getting up with a vengence - so I reckoned I should turn and go back.
Penrhyn Mawr has the same view that Rhoscolyn Head has - the fabulous backdrop of the mountains on the Lleyn Peninsula - this is looking past Rhoscolyn Beacon and Rhoscolyn Head to the mid section of the Lleyn Peninsula.
The sea was quite lumpy around Dinas Stack from the combination of wind and swell.
By the time I got to the entrance of Porth Dafarch, the swell was producing massive whitewater on either side of the entrance as it crashed onto the rocks - and I didn`t try to take any pictures, I was too busy trying to get in !
After packing up, I popped back down to the beach and had my first swim of the year - being a wimp, I did of course still have on all my neoprene stuff - the sea was surprising cold on any bare flesh.
A useful reminder to me when going sea kayaking about dressing for immersion !
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