along those very same routes and Pembrokeshire assumed an importance comparable with other notable devotional centres around the land, such as Iona off Mull and Holy Island off the Northumberland coast. Indeed, St David’s headland is one of the places from which it is claimed that St Patrick embarked on his Christian mission to Ireland in AD432, and by the early centuries of the second millennium, such had become its importance that two or three pilgrimages to St David’s had the same spiritual standing as a journey to Rome or Jerusalem.
The Vikings were less welcome visitors, but the Welsh never lost the thread of their independent culture, even with the later settlement in at least part of Pembrokeshire by the Normans. Under them, important trading ports developed such as Tenby and Pembroke, protected by great castles that sought both to establish authority over the land and define a frontier line of defence. Political quarrels with Spain and, later, France saw the strengthening of coastal fortifications, most spectacularly around the vast inlet of Milford Haven, where naval dockyards exploited one of the world’s finest natural harbours, and which Nelson considered second only to Trincomalee in present-day Sri Lanka.
Manorbier Castle (Walk 2)
The 19th-century heralded a period of massive and fluctuating change. The industrial upsurge elsewhere in Britain created a seemingly insatiable demand for raw materials, which immediately provoked a dramatic upsurge in quarrying and mining right around the coast. But hard on its heels came the development of the railways and the advantage of coastal access rapidly diminished in favour of places served by the new arteries. Quarries such as Porthgain and the coal mines of the upper Daugleddau quickly boomed but then declined, unable to compete with the previously unimaginable speed, ease and low costs of rail transport. But, while much of this corner of Wales was ignored, the early railways found in Pembrokeshire the quickest route from London to the western seaboard. It created a link from the first landfall with suitable harbour facilities for Irish and transatlantic shipping, whereby passengers, mail and cargo could reach London in the shortest possible time.
Under the engineering genius of Isambard Kingdom Brunel, new ports were built at Neyland and Goodwick. But even here the hoped-for prosperity was short-lived, an economic disappointment repeated during the latter part of the 20th century when the oil industry’s ambitions for the development of the Haven declined. Yet the people of Pembroke are nothing if not resilient; liquefied natural gas now rivals oil as the main import to the Haven terminals, surrounded by a new generation of developing light and high tech industries.
The national park
Remaining quiet and unhurried, Pembrokeshire is largely uncrowded by either residents or visitors, and has been spared much of the adverse consequence of the urban and industrial developments of recent decades. The unspoilt magnificence of its coastline, almost 200 miles (320km) of cliffs, bays, beaches and inlets, was recognised in its unique designation as a coastal national park in 1952. Only the industrial areas lining the Haven, and a short stretch abutting the Irish ferry terminal at Goodwick, were excepted. Many of Pembrokeshire’s other areas of outstanding beauty and important natural habitat were incorporated too: the Preseli Hills, the Gwaun Valley and the higher tidal reaches of the Daugleddau. But outside the park boundaries the countryside is not to be ignored either, for there is an abundance of natural woodland, hidden valleys and pleasant riverside to explore.
Forest covers the lower slopes of Foel Cwmcerwyn (Walk 20)
Pembrokeshire’s coast
For the rambler, Pembrokeshire is nothing short of pure delight. Long-distance walkers will already know it for its 180-mile (290km) Coastal Footpath, arguably one of the finest routes in Britain. But its ready accessibility and serpentine geography ideally suit it for those with more modest ambitions too, and many of the most beautiful and dramatic sections provide splendid part- or full-day excursions. From a gentle 1-mile stroll to a more challenging 12-mile hike, there is something for everyone in walks that follow the tops of precipitous cliffs or delve into secluded sandy coves. Examples of just about every type of coastal feature are explored, from cavernous blowholes to natural bridges, from solitary stacks to evidence of glacial erosion. Indeed, almost the whole geological history of the coast is revealed from the very earliest pre-Cambrian rocks exposed around St David’s to the sand dunes and shingle banks still in the process of creation today.
Stackpole Head (Walk 4)
For the most part undisturbed by large settlement, wildlife of one kind or another is an ever-present distraction. Wildflowers carpet the coastal fringe, and animals such as badgers, foxes and rabbits are commonplace. There are plenty of other small mammals too, while adders and lizards can occasionally be found sunning themselves on the rocks. These are food for the many predatory birds that patrol the cliffs; kestrels and buzzards hover and wheel in the sky, and the peregrine falcon is once again nesting at sites along the coast. Chough and raven are everywhere, as is the ubiquitous pigeon, but it is the seabirds that understandably command the greatest attention. In spring and early summer during the breeding and feeding season, inaccessible cliffs around the coast – as well as the offshore islands such as Ramsey, Skomer, Skokholm and Grassholm – attract countless birds. Umpteen species, both resident and visiting, can be seen, and include gannet, fulmar, Manx shearwater, storm petrel, shag, cormorant, kittiwake, tern, guillemot, puffin and, of course, the razorbill, which the national park has adopted as its emblem.
The cliffs are a superb vantage point for watching Atlantic grey seals, which appear at many places along Pembrokeshire’s coast throughout the year. They are most numerous during late spring and early autumn, when large numbers arrive to give birth to their pups. The rocky beaches of tiny isolated coves or the dark recesses of sea caves serve as nurseries, which echo to the melancholy cries of the white pups awaiting their mothers’ return. You might also see some of the coast’s less-common visitors such as porpoises or dolphins and, if you are really lucky, perhaps a minke or orca whale.
An unspoilt hinterland
Away from the coast the walking is equally fine and there is just as much to see. Bold in profile and totally unspoilt, the Preseli Hills impart a wonderful sense of remoteness. Yet they are easily reached and on a fine day offer relaxed walking that is hard to beat. The views extend from one end of Wales to the other, and the mountains of Ireland can be visible across the sea. Although lacking the rugged summits of Snowdonia or the English Lakeland hills, the tops are broken by enigmatic craggy outcrops, jumbled heaps of fractured rock that when half hidden by tendrils of swirling mist would not appear out of place in some alien planetary landscape. More mystery and conjecture is evoked by the numerous burial mounds, earthworks and cairns that litter the slopes, vestiges of civilisations that spanned 3000 years, from the time when the pyramids were built in Egypt until the Romans arrived in Britain in AD43.
Less well known – but equally fascinating – the tidal reaches of the Daugleddau have their own special magic. An abundance of birdlife is attracted by the rich mudflats exposed at low water, with many birds arriving to overwinter in the relative shelter of the estuary. Ancient oak woods cloak the valley slopes and harbour a lavish variety of flowers almost throughout the year. Largely deserted today, the woodland conceals clues to the industrial and social history of the settlements that sprang up along the river’s banks.
The waterway once teemed with barges and small boats, a trading route from the heart of the county to the open sea. But the area was busy in its own right too, for just below the surface are extensive coalfields that were exploited from as early as the 16th century. Many of the seams are of high-quality anthracite that was exported as far afield as Singapore, but although the industry persisted into the last century there is hardly any trace left today.
