When you visit North Wales for an early spring break you’ll be welcomed by the sunshine-yellow petals of the daffodil and our rolling green mountainsides.
The daffodil, the national flower of Wales and one of the first to bloom after the winter, is a symbol of spring, followed by the bluebells in April and the blossoming fruit trees in May. So, if it’s thriving flora and fauna and picturesque walking trails from coast to country you’re after, there is no better time to visit our Llandudno hotel, the perfect coastal base for your springtime explorations.
As you walk listen out for the distinctive sounds of spring, the ‘chiff chaff chiff chaff’ of (you guessed it) the Chiffchaffs, and the spring songs of other migrant birds as they begin to return to our countryside. March is also one of the best months to spot the Goshawk, while they display their impressive ‘sky-dance’ above the trees.
From April you can look out for fascinating wildflowers like the fly orchid, resembling a fly to attract digger wasps, they mimic a female wasp’s pheromones and so ensure the male wasp gets a dusting of pollen which is then carried to other plants to pollinate. Fly Orchids prefer chalk or limestone soils; look out for them in woodland, open grassland, on roadside banks or in quarries.
The North Wales coast is rich and abundant with hardy plants and wildflowers that have grown used to the abrasive salty conditions, like sweet Alison, common milkwort, sea mayweed and sea rocket.
The Great Orme Circular Walk
For a coastal treat, set out from our Llandudno hotel for a 9km looped walk around the great limestone headland that is the Great Orme. Look up and spot black-headed gulls, oyster catchers, cormorant, shags and gannets, but don’t forget to look down to the shingle bays where you may spot some local grey seals. In spring and early summer, you can discover an array of wild flora species including thrift, bloody cranesbill and sea campion growing from the sheer rocks; wild thyme and common rockrose in the grassland, and a few rare plants like the Orme berry and spiked speedwell, only found on the Great Orme.
Llyn Crafnant Trail
A family-friendly trail, enjoy a scenic 40-minute drive inland to discover this peaceful walk that loops the serene Llyn (Lake) Crafnant in Gwydir Forest in Eryri (Snowdonia) National Park. The 5km waymarked Llyn Crafnant Trail climbs gently up the valley and showcases the area’s mining history, with derelict mining sites and waste tips now home amongst lush forest and fern, framed by a rare type of ash woodland that thrives on the steep cliffs and crags above.
Within a 5-mile radius of Llyn Crafnant, there are more than 70 known species of bird, including the Meadow Pipit, the most common songbird in upland areas, whilst a wide variety of plant species grow too, like native wildflowers, herb bennet and primrose, and the hardy, evergreen hart’s tongue fern seen among rocks and in woodlands.
Woodland Walkes in Newborough Forest, Anglesey
A wildlife haven, Newborough Forest, near Ynys Llanddwyn, is a National Nature Reserve and one of the most important Red Squirrel conservation sites in the UK, and certainly worth the picturesque drive from our North Wales hotel.
Set out from the car park (Maes Parcio Malltraeth) on the easy 2.4km Red Squirrel Discovery Trail and take in views of the wildlife lake and pine forest for your best chance to spot these rare and beautiful mammals.
Or if it’s a longer trail you’re looking for, opt for the Saint, Sand and Sea Trail. A 5-mile walk from the beach car park, it takes in the peaceful Newborough Forest before leading you to Llanddwyn Beach and then the legendary Ynys Llanddwyn (Llanddwyn Island). With its famous lighthouse and chapel, the island is steeped in history; once the home of St Dwynwen, the patron saint of lovers, a fourth century Welsh princess who had no luck in love and so became a nun to pray for true lovers to have better luck than she did. (It’s advised to check tide times before you go to ensure you don’t get cut-off from the mainland at high tide.)
There are endless opportunities to experience the abundant beauty of North Wales’s glorious flora and fauna when you visit our Llandudno hotel in the spring, whether you wish to venture sea-side for a day, to the mountains the next and along the valleys after that. Give yourself time to journey along our coastline and into Eryri, Wales’s largest National Park covering a total of 823 square miles, which only means one thing, that there will always be somewhere else left for you to explore next time.