On Tuesday 9th May 2017 about 20 members of PNTA gathered at the Marloes NT car park, on a glorious sunny evening, for a stroll that took us past Runwayskiln (poised for re-development), Marloes Mere, then on to the coast path by the ancient hill fort above Watery Bay.
In the photo above the group looks across to Gateholm.
For a more detailed description please click on Jim Price’s report Walk 09 05 17 pdf
At the AGM, at Crundale Community Hall, Andrew Weaver (chairman) expressed his gratitude to the committee for for putting together a varied and stimulating programme of events. Thanks to those events being well supported by members, the association has been able to donate £3000 to local National Trust projects. Jonathan Hughes, Manager for the National Trust in Pembrokeshire, explained that the money will be split between Colby, Stackpole and Marloes. At Colby wildflower seed will be purchased to improve the wildlife habitat, around Craig y Borion. On the Stackpole estate subtle signage will tell visitors about the visible remains of a bronze age settlement that peep from the ground near Lady Margaret’s Seat, at Stackpole Warren. At Marloes, the former YHA hostel at Runwayskiln is being redeveloped by the trust. Part of the plan is for a tea room, and the donation will fund information boards highlighting local walks and areas of interest. Jonathan also mentioned that the silting up of the pond above the eight arch bridge, at Stackpole, has has gathered pace, so the nettle has been grasped and a machine is extracting silt which is being left to dry on the bank, before later removal.
The photo above shows Jonathan Hughes, on the left, accepting the cheque from Andrew Weaver.
Unfortunately, Justin Albert, Director of the National Trust in Wales, was unable to make the meeting, at short notice. He hopes to have a chance to meet the association at an event, during the summer.
Mark Underhill, who recently joined the National Trust team in Pembrokeshire, as Countryside Manager for the north of the county, kindly stepped in at short notice to give a talk about his search for the Sociable Lapwing, on a recent sabbatical trip to Turkmenistan.
For Jim Price’s report of his talk click ->Talk 11 04 17 pdf
On Tuesday 14th March 2017, at Crundale Community Hall, Linda Asman, Chairman of Pembroke and Monkton Local History Society, told us of the ancestors of Henry VII. She had travelled in North Wales, in search of early Tudor sites, carrying with her a model of the statue of the king. Linda went on to describe the birth of Henry Tudor, at Pembroke Castle, in 1457, his boyhood spent in South Wales, before exile in Brittany, his return to Dale in 1485 , the march to Bosworth, and his coronation as Henry VII, on the battle field, after Richard III was killed.
Following a local fundraising campaign, and with the support of Pembroke Town Council, a statue of Henry VII will be unveiled on the bridge below the castle, in Pembroke, on June 10th 2017.
To read Jim Price’s more detailed report on the talk click Linda Asman Talk 14th March 17
This photo shows Jim Price (Vice Chairman PNTA) on the left, with our speaker, Linda Asman on the right.
The top photo is of the stained glass window, by Kempe, at St Mary’s Church, Pembroke, showing King Henry VII.
The voyage was part of the 50th anniversary celebrations for the Neptune Campaign, which was set up in 1965 to enable the NT to buy unspoilt areas of coastline and protect them for future generations. Richard is the NT Wales Coast Project Manager responsible for working with local Rangers to implement its strategy for the 157 miles of Welsh coast it owns. He and John Whitely, a Glan Faenol Ranger who owned a yacht, sailed around our coast to visit the 133 coastal properties and meet local NT staff.
In addition to protecting the sites, the NT manages them to increase their biodiversity. Those of us who have been on Summer walks led by local NT rangers know that the key to this is the right grazing regime using cattle, ponies and sheep. However the NT increasingly has to look at the impact of rising seas levels on its coastal properties. Locally Abereiddi, Newgale and Freshwater West have, or will need, to be managed as the sea breaks through the existing defences. Planning this requires communication, not just with local staff but also tenant farmers and the wider community.
Richard also talked about the voyage itself and some of the difficult areas of coastline that had to be navigated. After getting grounded on the River Dee, he and John had the excitement of navigating the races between various islands and the adjacent shore. It made him understand that the sea is the master of what happens along the coast.
(Report by Jim Price)
Our speaker presents the prize following a raffle that raised £52 towards the restoration of the grave of Fanny Talbot, at Barmouth. Mrs Talbot donated the first property to the National Trust, in 1895.
On 10th January 2017, at Crundale Community Hall, Julian Cremona spoke to the Pembrokeshire National Trust Association about his trip to Costa Rica, and showed us many fine photos of the wildlife seen there. (The picture above shows Julian on a later trip to Madagascar.)
For Jim Price’s more detailed description of the talk click on julian-cremona-talk-to-pnta-10-01-17-pdf
Photos courtesy of Julian Cremona.
On 13th December 2016, Edward Perkins gave a talk that concentrated on three important historical figures who had strong links with Pembrokeshire, namely St David, Gerald of Wales, and Henry VII.
summary-of-talk-by-edward-perkins-on-pembrokeshire-heritage-pdf Click on this link for Jim Price’s summary of the talk.
The picture below shows Edward Perkins, (on the right), in conversation after his presentation.
On Tuesday 8th November 2016, Tony Waters, from Burry Port, spoke to the association about the building of the Titanic, and her subsequent loss on the maiden voyage. As well as general information, he concentrated on some of the passengers and crew who had Welsh links, in particular 5th Officer Harold Lowe, from Barmouth (pictured above) whose handling of lifeboats saved lives.
For further details on the talk click titanic-talk-more-details
Afterwards, Tony answered members questions, over a cup of tea.(Photo-Andrew Weaver)
The top image of Harold Lowe is taken from the historypoints.org website
