D197: LLANDUDNO to PRESTATYN
Wednesday 1st April 2026
Today miles: 21.0 Total miles. 3250.8
Left the hostel early and caught the first train back to Llandudno after a good sleep. The first mile is a continuation of the flat wide promenade until just beyond Llandudno Lifeboat Station. After leaving the road there’s an easy ascent up onto Little Orme. It’s a short but sweet walk around Little Orme and I’m back on yet another minor road in less than thirty minutes. This road runs adjacent to Colwyn Bay but luckily there’s a four mile long promenade between the road and the beach. After around a mile, close to Rhos-on-Sea I came across St Trillo’s Church. It’s a tiny and fascinating religious stone building measuring around 4mts by 2mts and can accommodate up to a maximum of six parishioners. It’s been on this site in various guises for more than 1500 years. It’s beautiful, if somewhat cramped inside.
After exploring the (tiny) church I carried on along the promenade at Colwyn Bay for a further three miles. The wide promenade was eventually replaced by a narrower concrete cycle path and the pretty sandy beach is replaced by a variety of different sea defence structures. There’s several sizeable caravan parks at Llanddulas and I stopped for a fizzy drink and my first proper rest break at a pub named The Beach House. I’d started to feel a little bit of pain in the heel of my right foot. It’s not somewhere I’ve experienced discomfort before and I’ll need to monitor it over the next ten or so miles.
Despite the discomfort I was still enjoying the walk along the footpath. As I approached Rhyl I stopped briefly to check the bus and train timetable back to the hostel. I then passed the Rhyl Caravan Park and had a sudden flashback to my youth. When I was around ten years old I had a family camping holiday at Rhyl Caravan Park and my abiding memory was when my younger brother Andrew, then eight years old, getting hit by a car on the A548. Fortunately he wasn’t seriously injured and we managed to enjoyed the remainder of our holiday.
I considered stopping at Rhyl but decided to push onwards for the further three and a half miles towards Prestatyn. I crossed the River Clwyd close to the Marine Lake and proceeded on along the footpath. I’d been on hard surfaces for the vast majority of today and my right foot was seriously sore. I didn’t linger in Prestatyn but headed straight for the train station. A tough but nice day.
