Included on this page are:-
The National Park
The coastline and landscape of the Pembrokeshire National Park are regarded as one of the finest in Europe. The Park also includes the Preseli Hills and some wonderful offshore islands, home to many thousands of sea birds. The coastal path is 186 miles long. The flowers are spectacular, the most exposed areas carpeted with pink thrift or white campion and in more sheltered areas there may be a natural rock garden or herb-rich grassland. You can also see Gorse, Bell Heather, Tormentil, Orchids, Birds Foot Trefoil, Storksbill, to name just a few.
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Birds
The wild and varied coast provides a home for many sea birds and other kinds of birds as well. A trip to the islands of Skomer and Skokholm to see the puffins and manx shearwaters is a must for any visitor. A sighting of otherwise rare peregrine falcons and choughs is always exciting. At nearby Dudswell Mountain the autumn sees the spectacular sight up to two million roosting starlings swooping in unison to and from the roost. In May 2005 a guest recorded the following around the house blackcap, mistle thrush, spotted flycatcher, garden warbler, goldfinches and on Cuffern Mountain - stonechat, linnets, common whitethroat. A survey, by Fiona and Trevor of Pembrokeshire Bird Group, found 41 species in the vicinity of the house. Manx Shearwaters leave Skomer to fly to Southern Portugal in September and October. Some get left behind as once grounded they cannot take off from land and have to be released at night, because in daylight they would be attacked by gulls.
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Flying
The opportunities for flying clubs to visit us was amply demonstrated by the visit of Shoreham Flying Club in September 2005. They told us that landing fees at Haverfordwest (five miles away) were cheaper than most other airports. We have an arrangement with Anthony at the Victoria Inn to provide a minibus to here and to his very friendly local pub at Roch. Jill Scowles' account of their trip for 'Pilot' magazine gives a wonderful flavour of their experiences. A selected quote follows -
Go to top of page"We spent both our nights at the beautiful Cuffern Manor at Roch, a listed Georgian Manor house in three acres of garden and woodland. It was a wonderfully peaceful setting chosen by Judes, perfect for a good night's kip."
Click here for the full report
Riding
The area offers plenty of opportunity for horse riding, taking in the beaches or the quiet country lanes. East Nolton Riding stables are just two miles from Cuffern.
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Walking
The Coastal Path is just two miles from Cuffern Manor. There are five bus services which run around the coastal path, three of them all year round, so that you can walk and return by bus. A record 40,000 people used these services in 2004. The network of buses has been described by Colin Speakman, a sustainable transport consultant as "brilliant and hugely successful, and among the best and most innovative practice in the UK today." One service, the Coastal Cruiser, won a Welsh Gold medal in the Green Dragon Environmental Awards 2004. It operates on bio-diesel and is the first bus in the UK to carry bicycles, wheelchairs and surfboards. Another is a dial-a-ride service travelling round the Preselis enabling a variety of linear walks.
A new accessible path has been added in 2004 from Parrog-to-Cwm, near Newport. The mile long route includes large-print display panels, leaflets and Braille maps and a nearby accessible toilet block.
We can meet you at or near Newgale beach and drop you off again the next morning. But you can chose to stroll out from the Manor and up onto Cuffern Mountain behind the house, once belonging to the estate and described by Fenton after his stay at the house in 1814 as but "heathgrounds, and good for neither pasture or corn". We can provide you with route maps for many interesting local walks. From the top of nearby Plumstone mountain there are wonderful views across St. Brides Bay.
The grid reference of the nearest point on the coastal path is 851219.
www.pembrokeshirecoast.org.uk
is the National Park website with walking maps and transport information.
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Local Buses
The following local buses are available
The Poppit Rocket Cardigan to Fishguard The Strumble Shuttle Fishguard to St Davids The Puffin Shuttle St Davids to Milford Haven The Celtic Coaster Pembroke and Angle Peninsula 349, 350/351 Manorbier to Amroth
Cycling
Cuffern Manor is only a mile from the National Cycle Network Route 4 at Roch. Follow Route 4/47 of the National Cycle Network (Celtic Trail West). Copies of the map are available from www.sustransshop.co.uk. In September 2005 Sustrans named Pembrokeshire County Council as the most pro-active local authority in the UK for cycling. By the end of the year there will be 50 miles of traffic-free cycle paths and the council have produced great maps, available from tourist information centres or from us here at Cuffern.
This part of the route is called the Celtic Trail and runs between Fishguard and Milford Haven. Cycling is a great way to enjoy the ever changing scenery using quiet country roads where cars are still happily a rarity. We can lock your bikes away for the night and set you on your next stage with a fine packed lunch.
We can provide the following service for cyclists:
Re-CYCLES will deliver fully checked bicycles to us from their base in Simpson Cross and you can see the quiet areas of Pembrokeshire for as little as £10 a day.
Recently opened Lon Teifi long distance route 82, 98 miles from Aberystwyth to Fishguard completes the link with the Celtic Train around the Pembrokeshire Coast. See www.cyclepembrokeshire.com.
Go to top of pageFishing
The National Park has some of the best sea fishing in Britain and the path provides some of the best scenic fishing points you could wish for. The beaches are perfect for beach-casting anglers, with good bags of bass and flatfish a possibility. Not far away the Llys-y-fran Reservoir and Country Park offers the largest game fishing venue in West Wales with 212 acres of mixed rainbow and brown trout. There are four main fishing rivers, the eastern Cleddau, the western Cleddau, the Nevern and the Teifi. The first three are principally sea and brown trout runs. Near Cuffern, smaller rivers Brandy Brook and the Solva hold reasonably sized trout. Coarse fisheries are found at Llawhaden and Bosherston Lily ponds.
Game Fishing
The rivers Cleddau, Nevern, Taf and Teifi offer local and visiting game anglers the opportunity to catch wild brown trout, sea trout (known locally as 'sewin') and salmon. Stillwater enthusiasts can enjoy a wealth of small stillwaters in superb settings, as well as boat or bank fishing on the reservoirs of Llys-y-Fran and Rosebush.Coarse Fishing
Tranquillity and scenic beauty are just two of the factors that entice coarse fishers from far and near to make regular return visits to the stillwater coarse fisheries of Pembrokeshire. Quality and diversity of fish stocks and outstanding value for money are two more good reasons to visit the network of small stillwaters.Sea Fishing
Famous for its bass fishing, the coastal and inshore waters of Pembrokeshire also offer outstanding opportunities for sea anglers interested in a wide range of other species. Bream, mullet, wrasse, conger, rockling, mullet, pollack, mackerel, sharks and rays are some of the more popular target species.
The Preselis
Away from the coast a trip to the Preseli Hills is a must, its ancient landscape is littered with some of the finest megalithic monuments in the country. The ancient standing stones and burial chambers, built as tombs 5,000 years ago by our prehistoric ancestors.
Use the Preseli Green Dragon Walkers Bus. This dial-a-ride service around the hills allows you to do linear walks. It operates in August and September and connects with other local bus services so you can enjoy a car-free day.
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The Islands
All the Pembrokeshire Islands are accessible by boat with trips from various locations around the coast.
Grassholm (owned by the RSPB) is the home of an expanding colony of gannets, the third largest in the world with 32,000 pairs.
Boat trips take you out the 10 miles to Grassholm and on the way search for risor dolphins, orca, minke, pilot and sei whale. May to September is the breeding season. "One of most outstanding wildlife experiences in the world today."
Skomer has iron age remains, victorian farm buildings and flowers and birds in abundance with the largest colony of puffins in southern Britain and in season 100,000 pairs of Manx shearwaters. Peak time for Puffins is May-July. The PCNAP organise a guided tour every Wednesday in the summer at 9.30 - this is the only boat that is bookable and it is often very difficult to get a 'normal' boat at the height of the season.
Skokholm also has large colonies of birds, particularly Manx shearwaters and petrels. Skokholm was bought in 2006 by the Wildlife Trust of South and West Wales who had leased it from the owners for the previous 50 years. Its 247 acres is an exceptional island for wildlife, its summer puffin colony being the second largest, after Skomer, in the south of Britain, its wild flowers being exceptional in May/ June. Grey seals are there all year but the absence of good breeding sites reduces the number of pups born.
Ramsey Island is the largest stronghold for the grey seal in southern Britain and upwards of 600 pups are born from the late summer onwards, on the beaches and in caves.
They are most visible at Aber Mawr and Porth Llenog beaches.
If you land on Ramsey, an RSPB warden will give you an introductory talk and map, and you are then free to explore.
Fields of bluebells and pink heathers, cliffs and sea caves, provide homes for hundreds of breeding birds and migratory visitors as well as red deer, rabbits and wild ponies. Thousand Island Expeditions 01437-721721 are the only company that will land you on the island but others will take you around it.
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The Beaches
Newgale is one of Pembrokeshire's finest beaches and the perfect place for beach and water activities. Surfing gear can be hired and the ice creams are fantastic. 20 Pembrokeshire Beaches have been awarded the very highest EU, Blue Flag, standard. These include Whitesands, Newgale and Newport.
The west Wales coast has been named as the third most popular destination surfing destination in Britain. Newgale and Whiresands are two excellent surfing beaches close to Cuffern Manor.
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After all this you'll probably want to relax in the gardens or, in winter, in front of the log fire in the sitting room.
Galleries and Artists
Not surprisingly the nature and landscape are an inspiration to many artists and crafts people and the area has a wealth of workshops and galleries.
At Solva the Raul Speek Gallery has Cuban/Welsh colourful paintings.
The Oriel Albion and the Scultpure Studio are two galleries in St.Davids.
There is an excellent guide to all of these published every year which we could send you.
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Food
Pembrokeshire prides itself on its own food. With its mild climate and fertile soil the county yields a wide range of produce, from fresh vegetables to wild fruit and exotic herbs. We can provide good local food for your lunch or evening meals and visits to the farmers' markets and fine restaurants in nearby Keeston and Solva are recommended. Haverfordwest Farmers Market, held on Fridays, has been chosen as the 2006 Farmers' Market of the year by the National Farmers' Retail and Market Association.
Why not visit us during the food festivals held in West Wales?
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May Fishguard and Goodwick Fine Food Fair Last week in June Pembrokeshire Fish week 3rd Week in August Pembrokeshire County Agricultural Show Last weekend in August Frenni Food Fayre, Crymych 1st weekend in September Really Wild Food And Countryside festival - St. Davids 3rd weekend in September Narberth Food Fayre End of September Haverfordwest Harvest Fayre 1st weekend in December Saundersfoot St. Nicholas Fair (a traditional European style outdoor Christmas festival)
Events
Why not time your visit to coincide with some of the many festivals and events held throughout the year?
For a full list of events go to www.visitpembrokeshire.co.uk or their RSS Events site As well as the food festivals listed elsewhere try these:
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May Day Maenclochog Chair Eisteddfod May Day Bank Holiday Weekend Newport Bay Spring festival-Music, Food, Walks, Cycling, Natural History and Archaeology/History and 10K Run End of May, 1st week in June St. David's Cathedral festival May Bank Holiday Fishguard Folk Festival Mid May Crymych and District Eisteddfod July Brunel week - Neyland Carnival July Haverfordwest Carnival Last week in July Fishguard International Music festival 1st weekend in August Celtic Blue Rock Festival, Llanfrynach Mid August Pembrokeshire County Show at Haverfordwest August Camrose Vintage Farming Day Last weekend in August Pembrokeshire Jazz and Blues Festival, Fishguard Last weekend in August Fiddle Festival of Wales, Stackpole Centre. 1st week in September Pembroke Arts festival Last week in September Tenby Arts Festival Last weekend in September International Firework Competition at Milford Haven. October Gwyl Bro'r Preseli at Crymych
Theatres
Two top class cultural venues are within half an hour drive from Cuffern Manor, the Queens Hall at Narbeth and the Torch Theatre at Milford (telephone 01646 695267) offer a varied programme of music, theatre and comedy.
The Theatre Mwldan in Cardigan (telephone 01239 621200) also offer a varied programme.
The Queens Hall in Narberth offers a variety of performing arts events, comedy, theatre, music and dance. A lively and innovative space.
We are not far also from West Wales finest concert venue, the striking new hall at Rhos-y-gilwen, which has a full programme of top class acts, jazz, folk and classical.
In the winter and spring top class music acts can be seen every month in the unique setting of Martletwy Chapel, a small, restored non-conformist chapel with tiered seating.
Also, in the winter, the Haverfordwest Film Society meets every week on Thursdays.
Sea Fair Haven 2008, 18th - 25th June, 2008
Links
Wales1000things Online photo and video gallery of great active things to do in West Wales
Monthly roundup Summary of bird sightings in Pembrokeshire each month
Sea Watch Foundation Sea Watch is a national marine conservation research charity dedicated to the protection of whales, dolphins and porpoises (cetaceans) around the UK.
Sea Trust Dolphin Porpoise and Whale conservation in Wales, UK
Dolphin Coast Welcome to Dolphin Coast Wales
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