Hands up who has had the good fortune to visit Anglesey? Do you know where it is? Well, I have to admit I wasn’t entirely sure of its exact whereabouts until I started planning our early summer holiday from which we have just returned. Anglesey (or Ynys Môn in Welsh) is an island in Wales, off the mainland’s northwest coast accessed by the 19th-century Menai Suspension Bridge and the Britannia Bridge. With its stunning landscapes and mountain views across to Snowdonia, Anglesey boasts more than 125 miles of coastline, almost all of which is designated an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty and with bucketfuls of beautiful award-winning, dog friendly beaches, it’s no wonder it makes for an inspiring island getaway.
As you can imagine, Jasmine and Flyte have had the most fantastic week, exploring the Isle of Anglesey Coastal Path, chasing each other across huge expanses of golden sandy beaches, paddling in rock pools and swimming in the calm, sheltered (if a little on the cool side!) sea (absolute heaven for a Flatcoated Retriever!). Everyone has their favourite beach and our particular favourites were Lligwy, Rhosneigr and Llanddwyn. Llanddwyn is particularly special as it is flanked by Newborough’s wonderful forest and the marram grass tufted dunes, where you’ll find wild orchids in the summer months and if you are lucky enough you may even spot a red squirrel or two which sadly on this occasion we didn’t. There are some super eateries too, many of which are dog friendly all serving delicious local fayre with highlights including a five star dinner at the Marram Grass Restaurant and the homemade lemon cake at the Plas Cadnant Hidden Gardens which could actually be the best I have ever tasted!
As well as exploring all the delights that Anglesey had to offer, we were also able to take time out of our busy sightseeing schedule to pop along to a Kennel Club agility show that just happened to be on whilst we were on the island. Ok, admittedly I may have engineered the holiday around the agility show, but what a great opportunity it was to sample agility in a different part of the country! This turned out to be a delightful show full of really friendly and welcoming agility folk, set in an idyllic rural location and organised and run extremely efficiently by Ynys Môn Dog Training Society. The Welsh air must have agreed with us as both Jasmine and Flyte and myself (for a change!) didn’t really put a foot wrong all day. Jasmine’s Veteran Jumping class was first up with course walking from 8.15 am (no holiday lie in for us!). The early morning call obviously agreed with her and she pulled off a super run over a lovely fast and flowing course crossing the finish in the second fastest time and collecting a blue rosette for her super effort. Flyte had three runs spread out across the day. All very nice courses designed to be flowing with a little challenge here and there to keep us on our toes. Team Flyte were definitely singing from the same hymn sheet all day and to my amazement we won all three of our classes which I have to say is no mean feat. Fingers and paws crossed that our winning streak continues throughout the summer. Thanks to the generosity of the sponsors we brought home some lovely rosettes and special trophies made out of Welsh slate which make a lovely memento of our time at the show.
As you can imagine, it was sad saying goodbye to Anglesey but we have some wonderful memories of our time there, both sporting and recreational and I’m sure we will return soon. Oh, I almost forgot to mention the weather ….. 7 days of glorious sunshine in Wales – who would have thought it!!!