Tuesday 31 July 2012

Getting Wet & Wild at Plas Newydd


“You can do kayaking, canoeing, raft building, high ropes course or sailing”

The words were spoken by Jane, our Business Support Coordinator at Plas Newydd when I asked if I could join one of their Wet & Wild days. 

I paused and glanced out of the window towards the Menai Strait

“Mmm.  Let me think…” I ruminated.

Kayaking and canoeing? I can do this any weekend. 

Raft building?  Sounds a bit like hard work. 

High ropes?  Too terrestrial for a Coastal Engagement Project Manager.

And, Sailing..? 

Yes, I thought.  I’ve always fancied doing that, but never had the opportunities – financial or otherwise – to have a go.

So here I am, a month later, unglamorously clothed in purple waterproofs and life jacket with three families of friendly strangers on the quay below the Marquess of Anglesey’s ancestral home on the banks of the mighty Menai.

Ready to cast off
 For some time now, the Trust has been keen to complement the more cerebral attractions of the James Wyatt –designed 18th century mansion with activities that could appeal to people of all ages and interests.  And we didn't have to look far for ideas.  The Conway Centre which provides all sorts of educational, art and adventure experiences sits right next door.

So it was two teachers from the Centre, Colin and Charlie who were to show us land-lubbers the ropes.   They split us into two groups: the younger children and a father with Colin and the older children (including me) with Charlie.  A few minutes later our group was stepping carefully from the little motor boat onto the graceful lines of Jouster, one of two 8m long J/80 fixed-keel sailing boats that the centre owns.

Jouster, waiting at her mooring
Sitting attentively with my fellow cadets, Charlotte, Emily, Alfred and Alex, I learnt the names for the sails, ropes (some curiously called sheets), cleats and other vital equipment.  Soon we were setting off into a stiff south-westerly and learning to ‘beat a tack’, ‘come about’, ‘jibe’ and how to avoid the ominous-sounding “danger zone”.

Charlotte takes the tiller as Charlie checks the trim of the sails

Alfred and Emily off Felinheli
Emily takes a turn as helm
A dozen or so tacks brought us to the far side of Felinheli and in high spirits we made for home, securing the yacht to the mooring minutes before a squall hit us.  The final task – requiring the combined teamwork of both crews – was to haul the motor boat in one continuous motion up the steep ramp to the safety of the quayside.

And so we made our way back to the kit store, pleased with ourselves for taking the trouble of broadening our horizons in such an enjoyable way. 

Now all I have to do is start saving up for that yacht.

Why not go Wet & Wild yourself?  Trips continue until the end of August.  Click here for details.

Friday 20 July 2012

ABERDARON BOAT SAILS 50 MILES INLAND


After the longest voyage she's ever taken, Orion is hoisted onto the National Trust's stand at Builth Wells.  
A little bit of maritime history was made yesterday when "Orion", one the few surviving Aberdaron lobster and herring fishing boats arrived at the National Trust's stand at the Royal Welsh Show ground.

Orion, which is named after the local cove Porth Orion, is one of two boats now in the care of the National Trust that were originally owned by Guto Christmas Evans of Cae Mur .  The other boat – Annie – is awaiting restoration, but it is hoped that Orion can join the other surviving Aberdaron boats in the annual regatta next summer.

Guto Christmas Evans promised his father that he would make sure that  his boats would be looked after.  Both are now in the care of the National Trust.
The last people to carry on the age-old boat building tradition at Aberdaron were Siôn Tomos and Wil Jones; both worked through the first half of the 20th century.  It is said that Siôn Tomos, who at one time was also the village postmaster, had to be cajoled to build the boats by his wife when they needed the money. 

These little boats - of which 30 have survived - were built to a unique design favoured for its manoeuvrability in the rough waters of the Bardsey Sound, where willow lobster-pots were laid in deep water close to the shore.  Some say that the design retains features that may have been handed down from the Vikings.


Wednesday 11 July 2012

Olympic Beach

Staff and Volunteers drew a huge Paralympic logo in the sand of Rhossili Beach under the watchful eye of a time-lapse photographer. Agitos on Rhossili Beach / Chris Russell-Jones

When the London 2012 committee approached the Trust to produce a time-lapse film showing the creation of the Paralympic logo, we knew we'd have to work fast. They'd seen the Oak Leaf Challenge film we did last September and were inspired.

We only had a short window of time before the tide would cover the beach so it was vital that nothing was left to chance in the planning stages.

On the day 27 adults and two classes from local Penclawdd Primary School helped us to dig the design.

"This is the second time-lapse film we've done on Rhossili Beach, so many of our digging team are getting quite professional at this." said organiser, Kathryn Thomas (NT Gower). 

"And our volunteer surveyors did an outstanding job marking out the grid for us. Then all we had to do was transfer the design from paper to beach!"

The film for this spectacular will be released to worldwide news agencies and be shown on London 2012 and YouTube websites, as well as the BBC Big Screens around the country.

To watch the video, click here



Tuesday 3 July 2012

Aberdaron Coastal Tourism Centre of Excellence

This blog post was published last July, so is totally out of date now.  However, it does provide a valuable insight into the architect's approach to the design of Porth y Swnt (as it's now called), which is due to open in March.

Aberdaron will be the location for a new heritage
centre.  But how do you design a building for such a beautiful place?
Photo: © Turtle Photography
 
"God is in the detail"  

So said the Aberystwyth-based architect Iwan Thomas at a meeting I recently attended.  We were considering sketches for a new building that will be built in the heart of the picture-postcard village of Aberdaron on the Llŷn peninsula.

The project will be one of the most exciting developments to take place on the Welsh coast over the next couple of years.  It will involve the creation of a new visitor building at the centre of the picturesque cluster of higgledy-piggledy white-washed houses that huddle around a beautiful medieval seaside-church 

The need for a building to interpret the area's rich natural and cultural heritage has been discussed by the community many times over the years.  But it was purchase of the village car park - together with Henfaes, a former guest house - by the National Trust that was the catalyst that enabled the project to be a possibility.  Then, a successful grant bid to Visit Wales for a Coastal Tourism Centre of Excellence ERDF grant, turned that possibility into a reality.


The Aberdaron area is exeptionally
rich in nature and culture.  Soon there will
be a facility that will help people learn
about it.
 When you consider that this will be the only new building to be built in the heart of one of our most beautiful villages for a generation or two, then you'll realise that the discussion with the architect could not have been more important.  

The discussion was an insight to the sort of questions that architects have to wrestle with when designing for a sensitive site: A contemporary building may disturb the visual harmony of the village; a vernacular building may come over as mawkish pastiche; a tailor-made building may be difficult to adapt if the purpose changes; a future-proofed building that's able to cope with any change may end up an undistinguished 'box'...

Luckily, Iwan Thomas was able to tap into the combined experience of a group of some of the most eminent architects in the UK, during a recent advisory visit of the Trust's architectural panel.  The result of that meeting was the realisation that the starting point for a new building should be based on a greater appreciation of what makes Aberdaron beautiful now.  

Looking at the village through the eyes of an architect is a revelation:  You notice that funnelled gaps in between buildings invite exploration; and how glimpses through gateways into small yards enclosed by whitewashed walls add to your curiosity; and how domestic and working buildings interact with each other to create pleasing diversity.  Above all, you begin to appreciate that the gaps between buildings – and the way that they relate to each other – are as important as the buildings themselves.

Fired up with these observations, Iwan summarised the situation nicely.

“We must work with the grain of the village…the building will only succeed through the quality of its detailing and the richness of its materials.”

With the benefit of this approach, Iwan has started to sketch out some tentative designs that will be shared with the community and the planners over the next few weeks.

Having been instrumental in this building’s conception, and possessing in equal measures a passion for its purpose and a wish that this special village retains its unique character, I was mightily relieved that we have found an architect who is prepared to work in such a sensitive way.

If you’re interested in coming along to see the sketches – and to have an opportunity to comment on them – there’s an open day at Henfaes, Aberdaron on the 13th of July.


Henfaes is located at the centre of the village.  The new visitor centre will be located near the car park behind this building