Ringed Plovers, Buckets & Spades and Wicker Statues: A Day Out at Llandanwg Halt
In October, on one of my trips up the Cambrian Coast, I hopped off the train to see Carole at Llandanwg Halt. She met me right on the platform, and after a quick chat with some locals and a dog, we walked briskly up the hill to her studio.
If you remember way back to my railway familiarisation days, Mel from Transport for Wales (TfW) was the one guiding me across both the main and coast lines. We kicked off our morning by dropping off some compost and plants at the halt for the TfW station adopter who had requested them. Next, we went over to the beach car park—sadly the ice cream shop was shut, but Mel made sure I didn't miss the local highlight: a gorgeous mural inside the ladies' toilet celebrating local nature and the ringed plovers that nest on the beach. Turns out, today, I was heading right to meet the artist who painted it.
Once we were settled in her art studio with a proper cup of tea and a biscuit in tow, I filled Carole in on what we do at the Cambrian Railways Partnership. In return, she showed me some stunning wicker statues and told me all about her vision for a brand-new mural in the Llandanwg shelter. She’s keen to team up with the local young farmers—who are already busy prepping lanterns for an upcoming parade—to bring it to life. It sounded fantastic, and since we've got other stations working on shelter artwork right now, we completely agreed it would be a brilliant addition to the project.
Before I left, I had a look around Carole’s studio and heard all about her brilliant beach bucket and spade project. Instead of just throwing away abandoned holiday gear, she collects left-behind buckets and spades and keeps them in a little open shed on the beach for other families to borrow and replace. It's such a lovely, community-minded twist on the usual book or clothes exchange schemes.
Carole walked me back down the hill afterwards to the station, and honestly, what a wonderful place. The scenery was dominated by that sweeping view of the coast—just magic.
I am looking forward to going back to see how the project is progressing in the new year.
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