New angles on Anglesey | The West Australian

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New angles on Anglesey | The West ***********

Anchored off the north-west coast of Wales, the Isle of Anglesey is the largest island in Britain that isn’t in Scotland. And you don’t need a boat to visit. Landmark bridges carry cars, trains, bikes and pedestrians over the notorious tidal swirls of the Menai Strait, a sea channel in a submerged valley. Almost 38 times larger than Rottnest, and steeped in tales of ancient invaders, monks, druids and kings, Anglesey merits several days of exploration. Here are some potential pit stops.

MENAI BRIDGE

This snug little harbour town is synonymous with the world’s first iron suspension bridge, which was designed by that great Scot, Thomas Telford, and completed in 1826, finally connecting Anglesey with the mainland. Request a window table at Dylan’s, a trendy waterfront restaurant and deli with views of the bridge, plus a menu showcasing delicious Welsh ingredients, from Menai mussels and seafood chowders to pork ribs and lamb tacos. If the weather’s clear — fog sometimes shrouds the strait — you’ll get a terrific panorama of Telford’s bridge, with the mountains of Eryri (Snowdonia) in the background, from the lookout above The Swellies (Pwll Ceris), a particularly turbulent section of the strait about halfway between Menai Bridge and the Britannia Bridge, which was originally constructed by Robert Stephenson in 1850 and rebuilt after a ***** in the 1970s. You may also spot kayakers, canoeists or speedboaters bouncing past craggy strait islands like Ynys Gored Goch, which was used as a tidal trap to catch fish.

Camera Icon Beaumaris Castle is a must-see on any Anglesey visit. Credit: Steve McKenna/ BEAUMARIS

Drive 15 minutes in the opposite direction and you’ll soon see the brightly painted cottages and handsome crescents of Beaumaris. Nestled by the strait’s eastern entrance, the town developed around a castle that shot up on marshland in 1295 CE, commissioned by Edward I, king of England and scourge of the Welsh. Though never completed — it has been dubbed the “greatest castle never built” — there’s enough of it to warrant a visit, with a squat, near-perfect symmetrical design and a water-filled moat that once had its own dock. Sprinkled with cafes, restaurants, gift shops, galleries and a curving waterfront promenade, Beaumaris also has a handful of hotels and centuries-old pubs for resting up, including The Bull’s Head Inn, which counts Charles Dickens among its previous guests.

Camera IconThe Menai Suspension Bridge (Pont Grog y Borth, Anglesey), was completed in 1826. It was built by Thomas Telford to carry road traffic across the Menai Straits and the Welsh mainland. Credit: Visit Wales MELIN LLYNON

The quickest way to navigate Anglesey is on the expressway that powers on to Holyhead, which usurped Beaumaris as the principal port after the opening of Telford’s bridge and is on Holy Island, a much smaller island separated by the Cymyran Strait. Far more pleasant, however, is driving leisurely along the quieter lanes that meander by Anglesey’s verdant rolling farmland as the calming blues of the Irish Sea hover in the distance. Occasionally, a really distinctive sight will breach the view above your steering wheel, such as the sails of Melin Llynon, Wales’ last working windmill. Located near the village of Llanddeusant, it has recently been fully restored so it can now make flour like it did when it was first blasted by the breeze in 1775. If you’re here between April and October, have a look inside the windmill, peruse its mechanisms, and take in the other quirky attractions on site, including replica Iron Age roundhouses, a woodland with life-size sculptures of safari animals, and a cafe selling delectable doughnuts crafted by windmill boss and pastry chef Richard Holt and his team. They’re called Monuts in homage to Anglesey’s Welsh name (Ynys Mon).

Camera Icon Anglesey Sea Salt has won plaudits from top chefs. Credit: Steve McKenna/ ANGLESEY SEA SALT

After something sweet, you might appreciate something salty, so make time for Halen Mon (Anglesey Sea Salt), whose ability to transform Welsh seawater into a refined seasoning has earned plaudits from chefs like Heston Blumenthal and Gordon Ramsay. The company was founded in 1996 by a husband and wife duo who met while studying at Bangor University — just across the Menai Strait — and opened an aquarium (now Anglesey Sea Zoo) on this side of the water. You can hear more about their story, learn about the production process, crunch on different varieties of salt and sample the salt-infused Jin Mor (**** of the Sea) on a behind-the-scenes tasting tour at Halen Mon’s visitor centre. It has a store selling salt-infused products and recipe books, and you can also book open-air spa sessions that’ll have you bathing in upcycled ******** barrels filled with warm water infused with seaweed. You’ll be further soothed by vistas of the Menai Strait.

Camera IconStrap on your hiking boots for scenic walks on Anglesey. Credit: Steve McKenna/ COASTAL HIKES

You could ditch the car keys for a while and embark on the Anglesey Coastal Path, which courses 200km beside rugged cliffs, sandy bays, heathland and marshes. Part of the wider Wales Coast Path, it can be enjoyed in smaller chunks. For example, west of Holyhead, the South Stack Cliffs are ripe for stirring hikes. This dramatically perched nature reserve is managed by the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds, so watch out for seabirds, including puffins in the northern spring. By the clifftop, South Stack Lighthouse, built in 1809, looks across the sea and on a particularly clear day you might be able to make out the outline of the Wicklow Mountains in Ireland.

Further down Anglesey’s coast, Llanddwyn is another exciting spot to stretch your legs. Briefly cut off during high tides, this peninsula has the ruins of a chapel dedicated to St Dwynwen (the Welsh patron saint of lovers, who is celebrated across Wales on January 25, the nation’s answer to Valentine’s Day).

Scenic waterfront strolls can also be had in the gardens of Plas Newydd, a dapper National Trust-run country house by the Menai Strait. On its doorstep, incidentally, you’ll find the village with Britain’s longest place name (58 letters). Sometimes shortened to Llanfair PG, its full name — Llanfairpwllgwyngyllgogerychwyrndrobwllllantysiliogogogoch — spreads out on the signs at the train station, making this a good last stop for a souvenir snap. In case you’re wondering what the name means in English, it’s “St Mary’s ******* in the hollow of the white hazel near a rapid whirlpool and the ******* of Saint Tysilio of the red *****”. Ask a local if they would kindly pronounce it for you in Welsh.

+ Steve McKenna was a guest of Visit Wales and Visit Britain. They have not influenced or read this story before publication.

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+ To help plan a trip to Wales and Britain, see

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Camera IconHead to the train station with Britain’s longest place name for a memorable holiday snap. Credit: Steve McKenna/ Camera Icon Dylan’s overlooks the strait in the town of Menai Bridge. Credit: Steve McKenna/ Camera IconAnglesey is home to Wales’ last surviving windmill, Melin Llynon. Credit: Steve McKenna/ Camera Icon Beaumaris is an attractive base for an Anglesey stay. Credit: Steve McKenna/

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