Coast Walking (Wales): Little Haven to Martin’s Haven 13 June 2015

We caught the bus (Puffin Shuttle) from Little Haven at 9.40am to Martin’s Haven, from where boats leave for Skomer. Bad weather, however, was preventing any trips because of the difficulty of landing. We walked round the headland just past Martin’s Haven to Wooltack Point. There was a cold wind but the rain was very light and not an inconvenience. There was not much vegetation of note except for prostrate broom, whose large yellow flowers on bushes flattened entirely to the ground at the cliff edges were very noticeable. We saw more on the cliffs just east of Martin’s Haven, but only for a short distance. We also saw a common shrew hunting in the grass. Although there were views across the sea to Skomer, none of the birds nesting there were to be seen. Apart from various gulls that were obviously enjoying the winds, the only seabirds we saw of note were fulmar (which nested along the mainland cliffs to the east) and occasional passing gannets whose large white wings, black-tipped, clearly separated them from the gulls.

Completing the circle of the headland back at the harbour where the boats were launched, we saw an example of a stone with the carving of an early Celtic cross and ring, probably C7-8^th, found in the foundations of a Victorian wall and incorporated in its replacement. The walk east was generally level along the cliffs with limited variety of plants, while creatures were difficult to see as the rain gradually increased and we had more and more to concentrate on the surface of the path just in front of our feet, which at least demonstrated changes in underlying geology, as we walked first over dark igneous rocks, then over slippery red clays from the more fissile red sandstones, and finally dark igneous rocks again with more peaty covering. We saw more primrose leaves than the previous day, but no cowslips or burnet-rose. Occasional streams descending were clogged with hemlock water-dropwort and water-parsnip. Both tall and white ramping fumitories were seen, however, that we had not seen the day before, and spring squill seed-heads continued, along with bluebells, sheepsbit and English stonecrop. We turned north for 3 kilometres past Musselwick Sands.

Finally we returned to the easterly route, descending into St Brides Haven, occupied by one small group of cottages and a large church. The porch of the church, which had the usual musty smell of old churches, at least provided shelter from the elements and stone seats, while a house martin made regular runs to its nest in the roof to feed its young. After St Brides the cliffs gradually became higher until the greatest height was reached immediately before the descent into Little Haven. We passed a sculpture by Alain Ayres called “Eyes of the Sea”, a roughly oval stone with a hole bored through, standing alone at the cliff edge. The last stretch was wooded, providing better shelter and a change of vegetation, with many varieties of fern, sessile oak, and great woodrush.

This evening, it was difficult to get a table for dinner, being Saturday night, and all the recommended pubs were fully booked. We ended up at the Galleon in Broad Haven where we at least obtained acceptable food (fresh hake) and had more of their large Americano coffees.