Following on from the success of mini break, we decided to take the terrific twosome on a slightly longer break. We spent a week in Pembrokeshire in July (yes I am very late updating this but that’s a whole other set of posts), and we took into consideration some of the lessons learnt from mini break.
We booked a self catering barn conversion for the week – all on one level so need to consider stairs or lifts, large secure garden to allow the dogs freedom to roam and a nice quiet rural location, as quiet always makes it easier to settle. A quiet week away was something all four of us could get behind I think! after working out if we had enough tablets and food for the week, did we need a first aid kit, had we looked up the local vet numbers… all of these things it had never occurred to us to consider but were suddenly vital.
Let’s start with the barn conversion – The Blacksmiths in Ludchurch (disclaimer – it’s owned by family of ours). Dog friendly, open plan living kitchen dining space with bifold doors to the large secure garden, two double bedrooms with bifold doors out into garden (perfect for late night garden trips) and ample space for all things greyhound. Arriving on the Saturday, we took a walk through some of the quiet country lanes and back, not wanting to venture far but just stretch everyone’s legs after a car trip. Reality was that we could have just left them in the garden as they both spent the first night playing zoomies and trotting the garden and enjoying lying in the grass while we did a bbq. As it was holiday mode – we did bbq some steak for them too!
We didn’t really have a plan for the week away – we were just after a change of scenery (the four walls of your own house get tedious after a while) and we wanted to balance day trips with the physical and emotional needs of the dogs – Bea isn’t trekking a coast path for half a day and Sam isn’t walking around a crowded town. Pembrokeshire offered some perfect options for this – Colby Woodland walk, dog friendly beaches and stunning castles.
The last time we took Sam and Bea to a beach we hadn’t long had them and it was a summer evening at Ogmore – a bit busy and a bit stressful for both of them. We decided to try again with the dog friendly section of Amroth beach. First lesson – Bea hates pebbles and will not walk over them; she took two steps and froze. Luckily, Joe is devoted to his little girl and quite used to carrying her over hazards. Turns out she also isn’t keen on sand – she can’t quite work out why the floor is moving slightly under her feet and her steps were not that confident striding forward – she was trying to pick her way over it and was much happier with the firmer damp sand. Not happy to get her precious paws wet, Bea did not wish to paddle – once she worked out it was water she beat a retreat back to Joe. Sam on the other hand, charged into the sea for a paddle. My anxious little boy is quite the water baby when the mood takes him and I quick ditched my shoes and rolled up my jeans and took him for a paddle. He would have walked the water all day I think!
To me there are two food requirements for a holiday in the UK – fish and chips on a beach and ice cream. I was keen to give Sam and Bea that experience and west Wales did not disappoint. Colby woodland gardens is a National Trust site that is free to walk around (only paying for parking), dog friendly with beautiful quiet woodlands that Sam and Bea both love to sniff around. We managed to catch it in the rain showers – sheltering under trees and making a dash for the next bit of shelter is always fun, especially with dogs that give you real stink eye if you let them get damp. By the time we had sniffed our way around 2 or so km, the sun was out and there were picnic tables available by the cafe. Bea has got the hang of lying down at a table when we are out – if a towel or blanket is put on the floor for her, she takes the cue and lies on it. No chance of that yet with Sam but we will keep adding a towel next to Beas and encouraging him to stand and then lie on it. As it happened, the cafe sold Utterly Mutterly dog ice cream – holiday treat achieved and dogs very keen on it!
Tenby offered the opportunity for treat number two. It had not occurred to us beforehand to check what beaches were dog friendly during the summer months – having not had the opportunity to visit anywhere last summer and with all sorts of restrictions changing due to covid, it just simply did not register as a thing we needed to know. Turns out it really was and during summer months there are limited beaches they can visit. Tenby south beach happens to be one and this also happened to be the only place we could get fish and chips on a Monday evening (don’t even ask – we tried two other towns beforehand!). Good old Tenby delivered though and we had a picnic bench, just on a beach, with no steps and fish and chips. Bea ignored her blanket in favour of begging for fish and bits of the sausage we had bought them to share and between them they must have had an entire piece of cod (batter carefully peeled away). I think they can get behind this holiday business!
We did a few other little trips – St Davids and Laugharne offered nice opportunities for a gentle stroll, Carew Castle was beautiful and Cwm Deri vineyard offered that wonderful balance of a walk for woofers and a wine tasting for Jen – bit of a winner. We tried to balance the trips so we were within Beas usual time on paws and that it was quiet enough for Sam. This meant morning trips and back to the barn before lunch to relax during the mid day heat and maybe a short walk to find food in the evening. We were also conscious that despite the fact they have the boot space of a 7 seater Discovery to lie down in, it does make them lie differently than they would in a bed and we don’t want either of them uncomfortable or unable to stretch properly for too long a period of time.
By the end of the week, they were understanding that the barn was “home” and they were quite happily eating dinner (a disaster for the first couple of days) and a good place to relax and sleep. Sleep was a fun one – first couple of nights we had friends with us and we did not think it was a good idea to have Sam and Bea roam the place in case of early morning barking. So the giant beds came into the bedroom with us. Night one we had a lot of up and down from Sam and edgy panting, nothing from Bea. Until 7am. Night two – nice quiet sleep from both and nothing until 8am. This reinforced what we suspected at mini break – that the early morning wake up call is calling for us rather than anything else. Something that’s definitely been brought forward at home – you can always learn something no matter what you thought you knew.
That week went by far too quickly – a lovely balance of downtime and cuddles and exploring and just some time away from home. I wasn’t convinced they would be thrilled with that but they did brilliantly and filled us with confidence that we could all enjoy a winter break in the same place (and give the underfloor heating and woodburner a good go!)
