December 19 2014

Broomco Appeal Against White House Planning Refusal
North Wales based Broomco has lodged an appeal with the planning inspectorate following the refusal of planning permission by Gwynedd Council earlier this year for their proposals to redevelop the White House Hotel. A 3 day public inquiry is due to be heard in the Spring of 2015.
Broomco are represented by Daniel Connolly of Chartered Town Planners Horigan Connolly. Mr Connolly commented: "Broomco were very disappointed that their application was refused in June particularly given the several years worth of negotiations that had taken place with the Council."
Jane Mclean of Broomco commented:
"There is a huge swell of community support for our proposals and anger at a local level at the Councils decision to refuse our application. We have sought advice from leading counsel and believe we have a very strong case for appeal. It is unfortunate that we have had to go down the appeal route as we remain committed to providing a high quality facility for Abersoch. Despite our experience so far, we would like to try to continue to work with the Council and as a result, in addition to the appeal, we have resubmitted the planning application for consideration by the Council.

December 04 2014

Coconut Kitchen Christmas Gift Sets

The Coconut Kitchen Christmas Gift Sets for 2014 are now available to buy online, from the restaurant and from some local stores. Made with fully re-cyclable material and packed with 2 bottles of sauce and 2 curry pastes.
This year’s set includes all 3 of our Great Taste Award winners so you're guaranteed to spice up someone’s Christmas with some quality Thai flavours. See www.thecoconutkitchen.co.uk/xmas-shop.php for more details.
Also comes with The Coconut Kitchen recipe booklet which gives lots of great recipes and cooking tips from head chef, Preechaya.
Gift set contains: 1 x The Coconut Kitchen recipe booklet, 1x CK Sweet Chilli and Garlic Sauce 300g, 1x CK Honey, Garlic and Pepper Sauce 300g (Great Taste 2014 * STAR winner), 1x CK Easy Massaman Curry Paste 125g (Great Taste 2014 * STAR winner), 1x CK Easy Green Curry Paste 125g (Great Taste 2014 *** STAR winner and TOP 50 foods of 2014 award)

December 02 2014

Abersoch Regatta Donate Thousands To Good Causes

The Abersoch Regatta is an annual series of events run by "the community" each August for local people and of course for all the visitors to the area.
The events are designed to be fun for both families and people of all ages and include the raft race, a golf competition and the famous sailing regatta day at SCYC, where the first Abersoch regatta was held back in 1881! Each year, the various events in the village raise money for local good causes and this year donations have been, or are in the process of being given to the following...

Abersoch RNLI: £536
Air Ambulance: £500
Clych Meithrin Llanengan: £500
Ysgol (School) Abersoch: £500 / Ysgol (School) Sarn Bach: £500

Alaw Ward at Ysbyty Bangor: £250
The Committee are also hoping to sponsor some sailing or possibly paddle boarding lessons for local children next year. For the latest news on the 2015 regatta events schedule, visit: www.abersochregatta.co.uk

<< Photo: Regatta Commodore Jane Williams presenting a cheque to the Cylch Meithrin.

November 29 2014

Abersoch Christmas Festival - Photos From First Evening.

Photos from yesterday evening's highly successful and well attended day one of the Abersoch Christmas Festival are available as a free download from John Wormald's Totally Abersoch website.

The photos are available to view at...
http://john53.zenfolio.com/p313652745

November 29 2014

The Story Of The Inner Harbour Christmas Tree

Due to a lack of funds needed to construct a permanent concrete base, there was not expected to be a Christmas Tree in the Abersoch Inner Harbour this year - that was until John Wormald of Totally Abersoch was overheard talking to Rob from Zinc at the pub about the subject... John takes up the story... "When we were leaving we were called over by a couple sat on an adjacent table who said they had been 'earwigging' our conversation and were disappointed to hear that there would be no tree in the inner harbour this year. Yesterday morning I heard a tap on our shutter door here at the gallery and there was the same couple from the previous night who were donating £100 in cash towards this year's tree."

This donation was just the beginning and word got around by mouth and via social media and soon the necessary money was raised with donations flooding in from as far away as Australia!

Local JCB man and Lifeboat Senior Helm, David Wyn Williams (aka Fritz) then provided his services, equipment and fuel totally free of charge and 17.6 tons of concrete were used to construct the base last week.
"None of it would have been possible", comments John, ..."...without all the generous donations from all the lovely people out there and a massive thanks should go to Rob Zinc and Fritz for all their efforts in getting this whole thing off the ground".

The rather splendid results can be see in the photo opposite, that was taken by John this morning.

November 29 2014

Glasss Butter Early Bird Tickets - Get Yours Now!

A limited number of Early Bird 2015 Glass Butter Beach festival tickets have just gone on sale for 7 days until Friday 5th December. By getting your ticket during this period you will get them at the best price, which is less than 2014 prices and you also go into a draw to win a 2 year golden VIP ticket for you plus 1.
The rapidly growing beach lifestyle, music & action sports festival takes place between Wednesday 12th & Saturday 15th August in 2015. Artists like Soul II Soul, Wilkinson, Roger Sanchez & Sunset Sons performed last year with a focus on Surfing, BMX, skateboarding, Stand Up Paddleboarding & wakeboarding. Thousands watched the countries top wakeboarders compete in the GBB Harbour Project with a floodlit purpose built wake park in Abersoch’s Inner Harbour, while many at the festival got involved themselves with the Have a Go activities offered on all the sports. In 2015 Glass Butter Beach will be introducing an open air main stage to feature alongside the 4 other stages, to help develop & grow the eclectic mix of bands & DJs the festival attracts.
So it’s well worth getting you tickets at the early bird price and if you’re buying as a gift then you should get a Glass Butter Beach “I’m going to Glass Butter Beach” lanyard for just £2 which will be sent to you within 7 days. Get more information or to book tickets go to www.glassbutterbeach.com or call the festival office on 01758 710011.

November 27 2014

Abersoch RNLI New Year’s Day Dip
Abersoch main beach will again be the place to be on New Year’s Day to get rid of your hangover by rushing into the sea for the annual Abersoch RNLI New Year’s Day dip.  This year the fancy dress theme is as last year when the Dip had to be cancelled and is therefore ‘Cartoon Characters’. Those people who went to the trouble of preparing a costume can get them out again and the people who thought of something too late can now get busy!  We are looking forward to seeing the usual imaginative interpretations of the theme. 
After last year’s disappointment, let’s make an heroic effort to raise as much money as possible to make up for last year.  All money raised will go directly to the Abersoch station to help with training and equipping the crew and supporting team members.  It is expected that if you join the dip you will raise some money for the crew, who will be on and in the water at the event to look after everybody’s safety, so to take part a sponsorship form is needed.  Forms are available in the village at Abersoch Boatyard, Abersoch Post Office, Abersoch Watersports shop and Abersoch Tourist Office or can be downloaded as a PDF file by clicking here. 
As usual the dip will take place on the main beach at 12 noon prompt, and children will go in a couple of minutes before the adults.  Hot drinks will be given to all dippers.
In 2013 around 500 brave souls went into the sea, supported by around 2,000 spectators, so it is essential that you allow sufficient time to get through these crowds and the resultant traffic to get onto the beach before 12 o’clock.  Each year we have seen disappointed people who didn’t manage to arrive in time for the Dip; we cannot delay the event as it would leave people waiting in the cold.
Any queries can be addressed to abersochdip@hotmail.co.uk

November 21 2014

Abersoch Triple Crown Entries Go Live

It’s the first of its kind and although it started small, the Abersoch Triple Crown has now caught the imagination of hundreds of ambitious runners & triathletes across the whole of the UK.
Having been launched in 2014 the Abersoch Triple Crown combines 3 fantastic races which include the Fairline Abersoch 10K, the Abersoch Sprint Triathlon & the Chaparral Abersoch Half Marathon. You have to take part in & complete all 3 races to enjoy the acclaim of conquering the Triple Crown and receive your much-deserved Abersoch Triple Crown medal & flower leis. For elite athletes looking for the podium spots then there’s a £3,500 prize purse, some impressive product prizes and the exclusive title trophy.
Each of the triple crown races enjoy spectacular scenery and stunning views while they tackle the undulating roads and tracks. The 10K & Half Marathon races start off by running through Abersoch village packed full of spectators keen to support, while the sprint triathlon enjoys a beach start running into the water for the 750m sea swim, again brimming with large excitable crowds getting behind each of the athletes. The triathlon then moves to the bike stage, taking competitors round a fantastic 20km course before the final transition and the short but gruelling 5km run.
We use the word ‘gruelling’ for the run because all 3 races include what is affectionately known to the runners as ‘Tocyn Brutal’ a 0.3 mile steep gravel track that takes them up past the very beautiful & serene Porth Tocyn Hotel. It’s the part of the course that most hate but all rave about after the race. It’s a satisfying feeling only those that complete these races can relate to, but I’m sure all can relate to the enjoyment that the last kilometre brings running along the beach to the finish line, where their medals, drinks, goodies and even a well deserved cooling dip in the sea is waiting!
All 3 races use chip timing technology to ensure accurate individual times for each runner and these times are added together to give their triple crown time that determines their overall position. This year James Cox took the men’s Abersoch Triple Crown title with an 8th place in the 10k a 5th place in the triathlon and a 3rd place in the half marathon producing an overall winning time of 3 hours 22 minutes & 39 seconds. Katy Coton set the benchmark for the ladies by taking the womens title in a time of 4 hours 21 minutes & 34 seconds. These are the times to beat in 2015 to give you a chance of spraying the champagne & taking home the Abersoch Triple Crown trophy.
For those that prefer shorter challenges, there is the Abersoch Holiday Homes 1k, 2k and 3k races which take place before each of the main races. All take place on Abersoch beach and use the chip timing system and offer well-deserved medals.
The dates for the 2015 Abersoch Triple Crown races are as follows:
- Fairline Abersoch 10K (& 3K) Saturday 30th May 2015
- Abersoch Sprint Triathlon (& 1K) Saturday 13th June 2015
- Chaparral Abersoch Half Marathon (& 2K) Saturday 19th September 2015

You can enter any of the races individually or go all out and commit to the Triple Crown by going to the official website at: www.abersochtriplecrown.com where you’ll find all the information about each of the races and the triple crown series. Entries went live today with a limited number of Early Bird entries that offer up to 20% off normally entry prices. Also by entering early then you could win entry refunds, Abersoch Calendars, magazine subscriptions, even Glass Butter Beach weekend festival tickets are up for grabs.

November 18 2014

Abersoch Christmas Festival - Schedule

This year’s Christmas festival weekend on 28th & 29th November is set to be bigger and better than ever - join us for some fabulous festive fun !

There’ll be carol singing around the village tree on Friday evening, a chance to climb up and have a look at the Abersoch fire engine and a very special visit from a certain Mr F. Christmas! The fun continues on Saturday with street entertainers up and down the village, face painting for the kiddies and a craft fair in the Village Hall. In the afternoon expect festive cheer on the Vaynol patio as Bangor University Brass Band will be playing, followed by carol singers. Then there’s the fabulous lantern parade, a must for the kids, which will start from the harbour and progress to the Village Hall where there’ll be children’s entertainment ahead of the evening performance from Pwllheli-born rising star Al Lewis, supported by local band Brolly..

Many of the village shops, bars, hotels and restaurants will be running special offers over the weekend and opening late so it’s a great opportunity to come and join in the fun, get ahead on your Christmas shopping and get in the mood for Christmas!

<< The schedule for the weekend is available by clicking on the image on the left of this item.

November 14 2014

Demolition Of The Harbour Hotel

One of Abersoch's landmark buildings, the Harbour Hotel has been demolished this week to make way for a development of luxury apartments. The new building is expected to be finished before the end of 2015.
The Harbour Hotel building is one of the 3 former major hotels in the village that are set to be re-developed. The former Riverside Hotel is also due to be converted into apartments whilst the derelict White House Hotel may still be replaced by a new hotel at some time in the future, if planning permission is obtained (see news from June 2014 below).

November 10 2014

Graham Eaton Photograph "Highly Commended" At Awards

Award winning natural history and landscape photographer and Abersoch regular, Graham Eaton, has had 2 photographs recognised by the Take a view Landscape Photographer Of The Year Awards.

The photos are of stormy waves at Porth Ceiriad and one of the photos (see opposite) was highly commended by the judges and has won a place in the Awards book and at the London Waterloo exhibition.

A second photo was also commended by the judges and wins a place in the book and at the exhibition.

Many of the winners photos were displayed in yesterday's Sunday Times.

The book – Landscape Photographer of the Year: Collection 8 - is published on Nov 10th.

This year, the exhibition will be held on the Mezzanine level of London Waterloo and is the first event of its type to be held there.

More info can be found by clicking here and Graham has a website full of wonderful natural history and landscapes at www.eatonnature.co.uk

November 09 2014

North Wales Open Surf Competition

The North Wales surf contest run by West Coast Surf & Abersoch Watersports was held today at Porth Neigwl. Report by West Coast ...
"There was a light to moderate onshore breeze this morning. We decided on a peak off the middle for the contest and sent the juniors in first. There was a heavy shore break with sets breaking in deeper water a lot further out. The juniors chose to surf the inside which resulted in a few elevator drops and two contest vests being ripped off! During the Open some surfers chose to surf the outside peak and this provided bigger faces and offered a lot more scoring potential. As the tide turned the outside peak became the obvious choice and the sun even came out! By mid morning we had a junior and open champion.

16 and under: 1st. Zac Pierce, 2nd. Jack Quinney, 3rd. Ollie Laddiman.

Open: 1st. Eilir Davies-Hughes, 2nd. Urien Davies-Hughes, 3rd. Rob (The Bruce)."

November 05 2014

Abersoch Triple Crown 2015

The dates for all 3 races of the much anticipated 2015 Abersoch Triple Crown have recently been announced with entries going live at 8am on Friday 21st November. It's a great challenge & needs a solid commitment if you take it on, but the Abersoch Triple Crown consists of the following races, combining the times from all 3 races to give your overall Triple Crown time:

Fairline Abersoch 10K (Saturday 30th May 2015)
Abersoch Sprint Triathlon (Saturday 13th June 2015)
Chaparral Abersoch Half Marathon (Saturday 19th September 2015)

For all the information go to www.abersochtriplecrown.com and get ready to sign up on the 21st this month as you can win prizes and the entry price is reduced. If all 3 aren't for you then you can enter any of the races separately or if you're after a shorter distance then there are the popular Abersoch Holiday Homes 1K, 2K and 3K races to get involved with.

November 05 2014

Abersoch Calendar 2015 & Christmas Magazine

The official 2015 Abersoch calendar is now on sale in local shops, online via this link AbersochOnlineStore or by calling 01758 710011 & ordering over the phone. The calendar has 12 stunning photos from in and around Abersoch taken by leading local photographers Martin Turtle and John Wormald. There is also a comprehensive list of Abersoch events and all the important dates you need for 2015. There’s also a very useful directory for shops, restaurants and other key businesses in Abersoch.
Calendars are £9.95 or you can buy a pack of 3 for £24,95. When you buy a calendar you will also get a free Abersoch Christmas Magazine full of great festive Abersoch ideas, gifts, events and much more.

October 30 2014

"Reduction Of Services" Application Granted For Abersoch Surgery.

Here is a press release regarding the future of the Abersoch Surgery...

"Mrs Lynne Joannou, Assistant Director of Primary Care Support, said

“The Health Board has very carefully considered the application from Meddygfa Rhydbach to close its branch surgery at Abersoch.

It took into consideration the current difficulties being experienced by the Practice, views expressed by patients and local councillors and also the need to ensure that the needs of the total Practice population are being met.

The Health Board has therefore granted a temporary reduction in services provided from the Abersoch surgery over the next few months whilst it works with the Practice and the wider local community to find a longer term solution."

October 25 2014

Abersoch Sailor Deploys To Sierra Leone

A Royal Fleet Auxiliary officer, from Abersoch, has deployed to Sierra Leone as part of the UK military operation to help combat the spread of Ebola.

Second Officer (Logistics Supply) Mike Jones is on aviation support ship RFA Argus currently sailing to Sierra Leone.

Argus is one element of the Department for International Development (DfID) led response to the Ebola outbreak with teams of medics, engineers and specialists deploying to the country. Mike, who grew up in Warrington and has lived in Abersoch for 25 years, is a member of the RFA Argus Logistics team...

... click here for the full report.

October 15 2014

Report On The Abersoch Mini Jazz Weekend

'Small is beautiful' – the weekend was a hit! The sun shone and we all enjoyed a variety of jazz music styles from the four bands in SCYC and some great street music in the village.

October 15 2014

RNLI Abersoch Coffee Morning On Sat 25th October

The Abersoch RNLI Fund Raising Committee will be holding a coffee morning in Abersoch village hall on Saturday 25th October from 10:30 to 12:30. Entry will be £2, to include the usual coffee and cakes. There will be a RNLI display and RNLI Christmas cards and gifts for sale. In addition there will be a raffle, tombola, bric-a brac, games and stalls selling a variety of gifts.
Everybody will be most welcome to come along to support our local lifeboat crew.

October 04 2014

Abersoch Half Marathon & 2K Blast

Photos from todays successful Chaparral Abersoch Half Marathon and Abersoch Holiday Homes 2K Blast, are now available online.

The photos are available to view at...
http://john53.zenfolio.com/p448078399

September 27 2014

100 Old Abersoch Postcards Added To Abersoch.co.uk

A selection of over 100 postcards of Abersoch and the surrounding area have been added to the site this week. The images date back to the early part of the 20th Century and there are some fascinating photos amongst them.
The galleries can be accessed by clicking here.

We hope that you enjoy them as much as we have and if you have any old photos of Abersoch that you would like to share with a wider audience, please email us and we will add them to the site.

September 13 2014

Chaparral Abersoch Half Marathon

The Chaparral Abersoch Half Marathon & Abersoch Holiday Homes 2K Blast is just 3 weeks away taking place on the morning of Saturday 4th October. Entries are still being taken just go to www.abersochtriplecrown.com and click the appropriate ‘Enter’ button and fill in your details.

It’s a fantastic race with a great atmosphere with hundreds of runners taking part. The medals are impressive and this year there are race T’s to all finishers. The course is well marshaled with medics, 3 drinks stations, chip timing and very enthusiastic crowds.

The race is over quite a challenging but stunning course, heading out of Abersoch village center and down to Llanengan, past Hell’s Mouth & looping round to Llangian, before heading over to Sarn Bach and the infamous Porth Tocyn gravel hill, now aptly named ‘Tocyn Brutal’. The course then loops back down through Sarn Bach to the end of Abersoch Beach where the runners then tackle the sand & groynes before crossing the line by the Abersoch Beach Cafe.

Current race champion is Welsh Marathon champion Alun Vaughan who finished the course in 1 hour 13 minutes 21 seconds last year with Gavin Tomlinson close behind in 1 hour 14 minutes 54 seconds. Charlotte Finch took the women’s title in a time of 1 hour 31minutes & 40 seconds.

The race starts at 10am in the village but before that at 9:00am the Abersoch Holiday Homes 2k Blast takes place on Abersoch Beach. Also with chip timings, runners of all ages get fully involved and enjoy a great course along the beach with stunning medals to all finishers.

September 13 2014

Fine September Weather

It has been a rather fine week in Abersoch with some beautiful summer-like weather at times. Fine spells have been a regular feature of the weather since spring and this continued the trend of better summer weather that began in 2013 - which is a welcome relief compared to the very poor summers in NW Wales of 2007 - 2012!

The photo of one of this week's sunrises, opposite, was a capture from the camera installed at SCYC and run by West Coast Surf Shop. You can view the camera live at www.abersoch.co.uk/scyc-cam.php

September 01 2014

Latest News Round Up

- The first Abersoch U Swim open water swim event took place on Sunday 31st August - see the news item below for the link to photos of the event.
- The duck race in Abersoch on Bank Holiday Monday raised over £2000 for Ysgol Abersoch (Abersoch School).
- Angorfa B&B have some great mid week special offers available throughout September -  so come and visit the peninsula as this month is a great time to explore and enjoy - visit their website for details at www.angorfa.com
- The Coconut Kitchen is again celebrating as the world’s largest blind-tasted food awards, Great Taste, has just released news of further winners from this years judging round. Following on from the 3 gold stars that The Coconut Kitchen’s Easy Thai Green Curry Paste won on August 11th this product was put forward for even more scrutiny from 40 high profile food experts and they agreed it deserved a place among the Top 50 products of 2014. See the Aug 15 news item below for more info on these awards.

September 01 2014

U Swim Open Water Swim Event Photos Online

270 photos from yesterday's successful and first USwim open water swimming event in Abersoch, have been posted online by John Wormald of Totally Abersoch.

The photos are available as a free download and can be found at...
http://john53.zenfolio.com/p210885685

August 25 2014

Open Water Swim Event This Weekend

Don't forget it is the first Abersoch Oceanswim event this weekend (31st August) - organised by USwim and in association with SCYC, Abersoch Quality Homes and Bear Gryll's Ventures.
Within the event is the epic 5.5mile ‘BEAR GRYLLS SWIM CHALLENGE’ if you want to go for glory, or, if shorter swims are your bag, then there’s the one or two mile appetizers or kids 400m swim. Trophies will be awarded for the top three female and male swimmers in all distances with top quality goody bags for all.

Swimmers of all abilities are being encouraged to take part in this exciting swim with a percentage of monies raised going to Bears chosen charities, The UK Scout Association and Global Angels.

Uswim have been running outdoor swimming venues and events for over seven years during which time over 20,000 people have been given the opportunity to swim in the open water and participate in healthy lifestyles.

The “Bear Grylls Swim Challenge’ will be an amazing swim around St Tudwal's that will excite and challenge competitors in equal measure” said event organiser Dave Quartermain of Uswim. “We have safety support from the SCYC Yacht Club, race goody bags, music and race commentary. It’ll be a great day!”

“The closing date for online entry is Wednesday 27th August.

For more information / entry details
www.uswimopenwater.com/events/oceanswim-abersoch

August 22 2014
Abersoch Mini Jazz Festival & Parade

A “Mini Jazz Weekend in Abersoch” is on the cards in Sepember, organised by Abersoch Traders Association in partnership with South Caernarfonshire Yacht Club, so put these dates in your diaries:Saturday 27th and Sunday 28th of September, 2014.
The Parade will commence at 11am on Saturday morning led by the wonderful Pendlebury Lusitano Horses and Jazz Marshals. Decorate your Brollies and Hats, join the Parade and enter the competitions. The Bermo Batala Samba Band will thrill everyone with their exciting drumming at two separate sessions in the village, at 12.30pm outside Courts and Crewclothing.and 1.30pm outside West Coast Surf. Buskers have been invited to play on the Vaynol Patio and would welcome other musicians to join them.
South Caernarvonshire Yacht Club (SCYC) will be the venue for all the Jazz Concerts. The music starts at 2pm on Saturday with the wonderful local young ‘Pwllheli Band’, followed by regular favourites ‘Jazz Rag’ playing from 3-5pm. The brilliant ‘Paul Harrison Band’, all the way from Denmark, plus Kevin Grenfell, are on Saturday evening from 8pm- not to be missed. Another group ‘not to be missed’ are the young Award Winning ‘Jamie Brownfield/ Liam Byrne Hot Six’, who will be playing on Sunday afternoon from 2–5 pm.
The bilingual Gospel Service, led by Canon Ron Cassidy, will take place at 10.30am Sunday morning at Capel Aber in the village (storm damage to the roof hopefully repaired by then!!!).
Unfortunately tickets will have to be limited due to the size of the venue so please apply early. Click here for the weekend timetable.
Weekend ticket: £25, Individual concert tickets: £10 each.
Tickets will be on sale from Abersoch Tourist Information Centre.
Phone: 01758 712929 (S.A.E for ticket applications please).

August 19 2014

Ysgol Abersoch Duck Race
On Monday 25th August Ysgol Abersoch (Abersoch Primary School ) with support from the RNLI will be holding a duck race at the Harbour. The race starts at 11:30 and will see 1000 ducks competing for first, second, third and fourth place. To be in with the chance to win a prize of £100, £50, £25 and £10 please buy a duck for £2 from shops and cafés around the village.  Money from fundraising will be used to purchase much needed equipment and support development activities for the children. Look out for our parents with ducks to sell in the pubs and village this weekend.Good Luck!

August 17 2014
Injured Woman Airlifted From Abersoch

Abersoch Coastguard team had their 34th call out of the year yesterday evening when called to assist a casualty with back injuries. The casualty was immobilised and reassured whilst waiting for the arrival of paramedics. The team and paramedics decided to request RAF helicopter 122 to airlift the casualty due to the distance by road to the hospital.
The team then cleared the landing site for the helicopter and assisted the transfer of the casualty onto the helicopter before returning to station.
The BBC have a news item on the incident here and you can find out more about Abersoch Coastguard at theur facebook page - here.

August 15 2014

Dwyfor Camera Club Summer Exhibition
This year Dwyfor Camera Club’s popular Summer Exhibition will be held in two different locations. It will open for two weeks in Pwllheli on Saturday, 30th August, and will be on show in the former computer shop – K2 Synergy Ltd – on High Street. The exhibition moves to Oriel Plas Glyn y Weddw in Llanbedrog on 14th September for a further week.
Exhibition organiser Keith Gallimore said: ‘The Club does its best to offer a varied and high quality display and we know that it is a popular attraction for visitors and local people alike.  This year we’ve had to move from our usual location but the new venue on the High Street is excellent, as it will keep the exhibition in the public eye.  We’re also delighted that Oriel Plas Glyn y Weddw has invited the Camera Club to extend the exhibition by a week because it will also provide a great setting to show our work.  The photographs on display will include a mixture of prize-winning images and photos from the local area.’
Dwyfor Camera Club has about 40 members and its season runs from October to April with meetings being held every Tuesday evening in Abersoch Village Hall.  The Club always welcomes new members and the Season starts on October 7th with an Open Evening.  More details are to be found on the Club’s website: www.dwyforcameraclub.co.uk
< Photo: Dwyfor Camera Club members preparing for the Summer Exhibition. From left to right, Jackie Mitchell, Keith Dunne and Keith Gallimore.

August 15 2014

The Coconut Kitchen Celebrates Great Taste 2014 Award

The world’s largest blind-tasted food awards Great Taste, has just released the stars of 2014 and Abersoch's The Coconut Kitchen is amongst the producers celebrating as its Easy Thai Green Curry Paste is now part of this year’s elite group of products that won the coveted 3 GOLD STARS! Only 153 products out of 10.000 entries this year won the accolade of 3 stars after up to 40 high profile food experts agreed it was deserved.

Judged by over 400 of the most demanding palates belonging to food critics, chefs, cooks, members of the Women’s Institute, farmers and a host of food writers and journalists, Great Taste is widely acknowledged as the most respected food accreditation scheme for artisan and speciality food producers.  When a product wears a Great Taste label it carries a badge of honour but more importantly, the Great Taste logo is a signpost to a wonderful tasting product – and hundreds of judges have worked hard to discover the very best through hours and hours of blind-tasting.

“This year has been a great surprise to us! Lots of our customers keep telling us that our Green Thai Curry is the best and we have been spurred on by their comments but to have this formally recognised by some very knowledgeable food critics at the Guild of Fine Food is fantastic news for us”, explains Sales Director and Paul Withington.
“Our aim for our bottled sauces has always been to make it easy for consumers to replicate the dishes we serve at our restaurant and we hope that we are getting there now as both the Green curry and the Massaman curry are our biggest sellers at the restaurant and of course the Honey, Garlic & Pepper Sauce we use as a marinade for our spare rib starter, another very popular dish”, says Executive Chef and Product Development Director Preechaya Phetprasert.
Paul continued, “Last year was the first time we entered the competition and our Pak Chong Hot Chilli Sauce won a GOLD STAR. That opened a lot of doors for us and as a result we now have over 80 stockists UK wide so hopefully this year, as we now have a total of 4 winners in our range will be even better. We will be exhibiting all our products on the Food & Drink Wales Showcase stand at the Specialty Food Fair in London’s Olympia in September so were hoping for a busy two days there!

Great Taste is simply about taste, not clever branding or smart packaging.  Judges are presented with a spoonful of jam, a pie, a slice of salami, or a cup of espresso, with no wrappings, jars or marks – and they taste, confer and re-taste before making the decision on whether a product should be a 1-, 2- or 3-star winner.  In total more than 12 judges will have tasted and commented on each product.

This year a massive 10,000 products entered into Great Taste and of those products, 153 have been awarded 3-star.  A panel of supremely talented judges including; Masterchef judge and restaurant critic Charles Champion, BBC Food Programme presenter Sheila Dillon, Great British Bake Off winner Frances Quinn, MasterChef 2013 Natalie Coleman, food buyers from Harrods, Fortnum & Mason, Selfridges, Harvey Nichols and Whole Food Markets, and chefs including Michelin Star chef Russell Brown have together re-judged and tasted yet again the 3-star winners to finally agree on the 2014 Top 50 Foods.

Finally on Monday, 8 September, at a nail-biting Awards’ Dinner at the Royal Garden Hotel, London, the great and the good from the world of fine food will gather to hear who has won the Golden Fork Awards and the final applause will be reserved for the Great Taste Supreme Champion 2014. 

www.thecoconutkitchen.co.uk

August 09 2014

Photos From Abersoch Regatta Raft Race

Photos from yesterday evening's Abersoch Regatta Raft Race, in aid of Abersoch RNLI are now available to view and download for free at John Wormald's Totally Abersoch website at...

http://john53.zenfolio.com/p729219644

August 08 2014

RS Tera & Feva Open At SCYC

SCYC Dinghy section will be hosting the annual RS Tera and Feva Open event again this year on the 16th and 17th August.  This two day dinghy racing event is open to both members and non-members of the Club.  It is suitable for both experienced sailors and those new to racing.  It has proven to be a popular event in the past and we are keen to encourage all Fevas and Teras off the beach to join in.  Information about the event can be found in the Yacht Club and also from Cath and Andy Bale in Beach Hut L.  Do come along to see us to find out more.

August 07 2014

Plans Submitted For Pwllheli Contemporary Lounge & Dance Bar

A new development is set to take place in Pwllheli, broadening what the area has to offer in terms of entertainment. A planning application has been submitted by The Venu Bar Company Limited to convert the harbour front building previously occupied by the LS Carpets retail unit on the corner of the North Quay and Station Square, into an expansive contemporary lounge and dance bar.
Director, Victoria Morris comments, "With the ongoing development of Pwllheli and its surroundings, we believe there is a real and perceived need for a high quality, well managed venue which will appeal to both local residents and visitors as an entertainment destination. VENU will compliment what is currently on offer in terms of new developments within the town and will become a desirable destination for not just residents of Pwllheli but the whole of the Llyn Peninsula and beyond. The plan is to offer a high end, high quality establishment with a space for drinks and live music, lending itself as the perfect setting to relax and unwind. The planning and licensing process is underway and redevelopment works will commence later this year with a view to opening Easter 2015".
Partners in the venture Richard and David Jones add -
"As lifelong residents of Pwllheli we know that there is a real need for a quality facility that offers something different from the traditional pub, and where all ages can meet and enjoy music, dance, and private functions.”

August 05 2014

Bear Grylls Swim Challenge Comes To Abersoch

We have received news on this exciting new event from USwim... "Uswim Openwater in partnership with the legendary adventurer Bear Grylls are delighted to announce the 2014 ‘Bear Grylls Swim Challenge’ (5.5miles), to be held at Abersoch Beach, North Wales on Sunday 31st August 2014.

Swimmers from all over the UK are invited to take part in this brilliant open water sea swimming event at the buzzing Abersoch Beach.
Wet-suited and non wet-suited swimmers are welcome to join in this Summer swim sensation. There’s swim distances to challenge and excite everybody as well as an U14′s swim challenge. Make a weekend of it and join in the fun.
Perfect for swimmers new to the sport of open water sea swimming, the friendly, supportive atmosphere at our event will ensure that you really enjoy ‘Oceanswim, Abersoch’.
Within the event we also run the epic 5.5mile ‘BEAR GRYLLS SWIM CHALLENGE’ if you want to go for glory, or, if shorter swims are your bag, then there’s the one or two mile appetizers or kids 400m swim.
Trophies will be awarded for the top three female and male swimmers in all distances with top quality goody bags for all.

Swimmers of all abilities are being encouraged to take part in this exciting swim with a percentage of monies raised going to Bears chosen charities, The UK Scout Association and Global Angels.

Uswim have been running outdoor swimming venues and events for over seven years during which time over 20,000 people have been given the opportunity to swim in the open water and participate in healthy lifestyles.

The “Bear Grylls Swim Challenge’ will be an amazing swim around St Tudwals that will excite and challenge competitors in equal measure” said event organiser Dave Quartermain of Uswim. “We have safety support from the SYC Yacht Club, race goody bags, music and race commentary. It’ll be a great day!”

“The closing date for online entry is Wednesday 27th August.

Summary
- 5.5mile BEAR GRYLLS SWIM CHALLENGE (starts at 8.30am), 400m U14’s (9.45am), 1, 2 mile (10.00am)
- Full safety support
- Trophies for top 3 placed female, male in all distances. Goody bags / T-Shirts for all

For more information / entry details
www.uswimopenwater.com/events/oceanswim-abersoch/

Contact – Dave Quartermain
Uswim - info@uswimopenwater.com, 07871 268 289 "

July 27 2014

Appeal To Boat & Jet Ski Owners To Be Aware Of Divers

Concerns have been raised by a highly experienced diver who regularly dives in the area about the lack of awareness shown by some powerboat and jet ski owners of the "A" flag system, that shows that divers are in the water. Here is his experience of last week... "On Friday I was diving off St. Tudwal's Island East, and saw 2 boats drive straight in at full throttle (never mind the fact that several boats were anchored) to within 10m of my boat which was also anchored and displaying a huge blue and white flag. Sooner or later someone will get hurt....I have also had jet ski drivers circling my surface marker buoy". The consequences of any type of vessel coming into contact with a surfacing diver are potentially catastrophic.

The poster opposite shows the flag to look out for.

July 26 2014

Photos Needed By Llŷn Archaeology Society

Are you coming to the Llŷn Peninsula on holiday in 2014? Do you live here?
If so, you are invited to get your camera out and visit some of the areas heritage sites! You can be part of a one off project for 2014, to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the publication of the "Caernarvonshire: West III: An inventory of the Ancient Monuments in the County- Royal Commission on the Ancient and Historical Monuments of Wales". By the end of 2014, the Llyn Archaeology Society hope to have a snapshot of sites recorded in 1964, and as a result created an important resource of new knowledge and information which will inform future heritage management and preserve these sites for the future.

For further info on the project, visit:

www.crwydro.co.uk/aberdaron and www.facebook.com/archllyn

July 25 2014

Glass Butter Beach Presents The Harbour Project 2014

News from the organisers of GBB... "Glass Butter Beach will be working alongside Offaxis, Hybrid Wakeboard Magazine & Rydium Cable Technologies to create a spectacle never seen before in Abersoch. We launched the Harbour Project back in 2006 as a very basic wakeskate rail event using a couple of winches. Time & technology have progressed and so it’s time to relaunch it using the latest 2 tower cable system from Rydium and a wealth of knowledge & expertise from Local company Offaxis & national wakeboard magazine Hybrid.
The event will be a prime part of Glass Butter Beach, taking place on Thursday 14th August between 9pm & 11pm in Abersoch Inner Harbour. On a very big tide the harbour will be floodlit, focusing on 6 of Europe’s most cutting edge wakeboarders who will hit some huge purpose built rails on this truly unique course. If that wasn’t mad enough then wait till you see international DJ Goldierocks mixing up the tunes on the floating Super Air Nautique Stage!
No tickets required for this so enjoy. Just make sure you’re part of GBB14 with Soul II Soul, Roger Sanchez, Wilkinson and loads more by buying you tickets soon. Go to www.glassbutterbeach.com/tickets for the link to the ticket page."

July 16 2014

Video From The First Wakestock - O'shea Wakestock 2000
In addition to the video from 2001 that was uploaded yesterday, here is a similar video from the first O'Shea Wakestock back in 2000. The video was again designed to be streamed over a dial up connection due to the lack of broadband at that time.

The video can be viewed by clicking here.

July 15 2014

Abersoch Doctors Surgery To Close!
Another petition has been launched in the village after it has been confirmed that the doctors surgery in Abersoch is about to close, due to the shortage of GP's because of an NHS recruitment crisis in North Wales.

Local patients and visitors will soon have to go to the surgery at Botwnnog or Pwllheli.

The petition can be viewed and signed here.

July 15 2014

Blast From The Past - Wakestock 2001
Back in the early days of Abersoch.co.uk and O'Shea Wakestock, a short video was created for this website to be watched via streaming with a low bandwidth "Real Player" (before many of us had broadband!). On a recent clearout of cd's, the video was rediscovered and is available to watch again. It is low resolution, so the quality on full screen will not be good, but it gives a flavour of what was then a new and fairly unusual addition to the local event scene.

The video can be viewed by clicking here.

July 09 2014

Ysgol Abersoch School Collection
On Friday 11th and Saturday 12th July there will be a street collection for Ysgol Abersoch, the village's 90 year old primary school. 

Money from fundraising will be used to purchase much needed equipment and support development activities for the children.

 Look out for our parents with collection buckets whilst enjoying the Wakestock weekend and please give generously.

July 04 2014

Petition For Reversing The Council Rejection Of Plans For New Hotel
The recent decision by Gwynedd Council to reject plans for a £7.8 million luxury hotel on the derelict White House site at the entrance to Abersoch, seemingly as it did not include "affordable housing", is causing quite a stir locally. The decision has been branded "bizzare", as it loses the opportunity for the creation of dozens of new jobs and the significant boost to the local economy, in terms of wages, visitors spending, business rates and council tax, that the project would provide. A petition has been set up locally to campaign against this decision and it is available to sign online at:

http://wh.gwynedd.directory and there is also a Facebook group related to the campaign which can be found by clicking here.

July 01 2014
Just Over A Week To Go Until Wakestock

Wakestock Gŵyl y Môr is just over a week away and with the slider up in the marina and work beginning on site, the excitement is building. Tickets are still available to buy in local shops including Abersoch Boardrider, Abersoch Watersports, Newsplus in Pwllheli, Snowdonia Adventure in Bangor and Gelert.com in Porthmadog.

Don’t miss out on your chance to get hold of tickets. The second tier of local discounted tickets will be available until 11pm on Friday night. There is a discount of up to 25% off is you live locally. You can buy these tickets from Abersoch Boardrider and Newsplus in Pwllheli, but will need to take along proof of ID and some form of proof of address, either a utility bill or TV license.

There is a tonne of action on the festival site for all ages on both the Saturday and Sunday this year and pay just £5 for a ticket. Entrance for those under 10 is free and you can park all day for just £5. Alternatively jump on one of the shuttle buses that run throughout the weekend between Pwllheli, the festival site at Penrhos and Abersoch. Check out the full line up and all other news and information on www.wakestock.co.uk

June 27 2014

Dru Yoga & Raw Chocolate Session At Abersoch Village Hall

Freddie from Simply Yoga is running a Dru Yoga day in Abersoch on July 20th, which includes eating raw chocolate. Freddie says, "This is a great opportunity to practise Dru asanas, relaxation and meditation for emotional balance, as well as exploring the combined benefits of eating raw chocolate and practising Dru Yoga.  Do you know that a full Dru Yoga practise and eating raw chocolate have combined benefits to increase: feelings of calmness, physical flexibility, focus and alertness, general well-being, as well as decreasing depression?  What isn’t there to love about this combination?"
For more details, timings and costs - click on the image for the event poster.

June 24 2014

Sigma 33 Class Championship Event Report
Midsummer weekend, 2014, in Abersoch saw the very best of one class boat racing. 17 Sigma 33s took part in 10 races over three days and saw some very close racing around windward/leeward marks culminating in a picturesque final middle distance race around club marks and the two islands in Abersoch bay. The northerly winds were a perfect steady 14-18 knots and the sun shone for all three days. 'Champagne sailing' conditions and racing were matched by a warm welcome from the SCYC who were delighted to host the event. Sigma 33s came from Scotland, Northern and Southern Ireland, Wales and England and their owners and crews brought with them the best of a friendly competitive spirit on the water and great fun off the water. The visiting competitors extolled the beauty of the bay and Abersoch village and were overwhelmed at the welcome they received from both locals off the water and the dolphins who swam beside their boats in the water. Thank you to all who participated and to the SCYC. 
Results and photos available shortly on:
www.sigma.co.uk
www.scyc.co.uk
www.yachtsandyachting.com

June 24 2014

Council Under Fire For Rejecting 42 Room Hotel For Abersoch
The Daily Post is reporting that Gwynedd councillors have recently turned down planning permission for a luxury hotel on the derelict White House Hotel site, as developers had not included enough provision for affordable housing as part of the project to build a 42 bedroom luxury hotel and 18 apartments. The decision has raised eyebrows in Abersoch with local councillor Wyn Williams "disappointed" with the decision, as there was the potential for 65 jobs to be created and the developers had offered a £150,000 contribution to local affordable housing.

For the full story, visit the Daily Post website by clicking here.

June 23 2014

66th Season For The Porth Tocyn Hotel
The latest news letter from the Porth Tocyn...

"We are now a few weeks into what is our 66th season here at Porth Tocyn.  Some say that we are mad, others that we must be crackers to keep going this long. Maybe we are but our sons would not forgive us if we stopped just yet!

We are constantly amazed how people suddenly find out about Porth Tocyn having come to the area for many years and how visitors who do know about us only associate us with one type of meal, be it our dinner or light lunch, our light suppers or our Sunday buffet. Some regulars like to keep us as their hidden secret hideaway. If that includes you then you are naughty and you need to tell others. Please let your friends know that Porth Tocyn is not just about the only full on hotel left on the Lleyn peninsula, but that it is a uniquely special place with an atmosphere of its own, a stunning outlook across Cardigan Bay to Snowdonia, and food commended continuously by the Good Food Guide since 1957…longer than any other restaurant in Great Britain outside London.

We are open for everything from morning coffee to afternoon teas. We serve light lunches throughout the week between 12 noon and 2.30pm inside or outside on the terrace except on Sundays when we lay on a massive hot and cold buffet spread between 12 noon and 2pm. In the evening you can come and indulge in one of our daily changing set menus, taking two three or even four course options.  Now you can also come up and just get a feel of the place with one of our light suppers. 

If you want a walk along the beach up to the hotel or have just walked the Welsh Coastal footpath from Porth Ceiriad to Porth Bach and are parched, there is a cool bottle of beer waiting for you. We can offer more formal dining but do casual eating just as well...The big thing is to use the best food available and cook it properly & that it what we are about

If you just want to come and experience the early evening sunset across the bay with a bottle of wine or champagne you can now do that because we have changed our licence to allow that too! 

We look forward to welcoming you and your friends over to our hotel this season."

June 15 2014

Abersoch Sprint Triathlon and 1K Race Photos Online

Photos for yesterday's first ever and very successful Traithlon and 1K events can be found at the Totally Abersoch website - click here.

<< photo: John Wormald: www.totallyabersoch.co.uk

June 13 2014

Win VIP Tickets For 2 To Wakestock This Weekend

Wakestock Gwyl y Mor is less than 4 weeks away and excitement is building.
Do you fancy getting your hands on a GOLDEN TICKET to this year's event?
If so, there is a golden ticket hidden somewhere in the village and you have to
find it! If you do you will win a pair of VIP weekend tickets to the
festival this year. Don't miss out on the chance to see Ivor Novello award
winner Tom Odell, John Newman, Frank Turner and the Sleeping Souls,
Razorlight, Clean Bandit along with tonnes more bands and DJ's on the
stunning festival site just a few miles from Abersoch.
It could not be simpler to take part. This hunt will be run through the
Twitter account for Abersoch.co.uk - sign up and follow the clues given by
@abersochdotco The clues will be posted over the course of this weekend and
the winner is the first to track the golden ticket down. The weather is
looking great so get out and about and good luck with the hunt!!
You can see the Abersoch.co.uk twitter account on the site homepage or by clicking on this link - here.

June 12 2014

First Ever Abersoch Sprint Tri & 1K Races This Saturday.

Entries are still being taken for both the Abersoch Sprint Triathlon & the Abersoch Holiday Homes 1K Sprint races that takes place this Saturday morning.

You can ENTER ONLINE until 12 Noon on Friday 13th June. If there are still entries available then on a first come first serve basis you can enter the sprint triathlon & 1K races at.. The Vaynol Arms, Abersoch: Friday 5pm – 8pm OR Race Control, next to beach cafe, middle slip: Race Day 7am – 8:30am

The Abersoch Holiday Homes 1K sprint starts at 9:00am to the right of the middle slip ramp by the beach cafe. It’s a short race up the beach along some soft sand, round a marker, through a bit of water & back down the waters edge to the finish. A great fun race for all ages with chip timing & some very nice medals! CLICK HERE TO ENTER

The Abersoch Sprint Triathlon offers a fantastic challenge & one you will relish whether you’re an elite athlete or you’re just starting out in the Triathlon world! You also have the option of entering as a team so each member can focus on their specialist discipline. CLICK HERE TO ENTER

The Abersoch Sprint Triathlon starts at 9:30am again to the right of the middle slip ramp. The course consists of a 750 meter swim from the beach finishing at the bottom of the middle slip ramp, then running up to transition at the new trailer park. Then a 20km bike course out of Abersoch, to Llanbedrog, up through Mynytho & over to Hell’s Mouth, through Llanengan, Sarn Bach & back to the beach. Then a 5km run through Abersoch Golf Course up the famous Porth Tocyn gravel hill back round to the golf course & through onto the beach to finish off. It’s an outstanding course with a great challenge element. For full details including race rules go to www.abersochtriplecrown.com

June 06 2014

Levellers Added To Line Up & More Bus Routes Too...
With Wakestock Gŵyl y Môr less than 6 weeks away, LEVELLERS join the line up along with FATHERSON and RACING GLACIERS. The FOCUS BY THE SEA stage sees the addition of ORIENT MACHINE, KIZZY CRAWFORD, GAI TOMS, LUCY SIMONS, YUCATAN and THE BLUEBOTTLE VEINS. Plus there are more local acts for the HUW PUW Stage with THE KICKBACKS, TWELVE HONEST MEN and MIRIAN EVANS. There are also some great options to get you to and from the site with NEW LOCAL BUS ROUTES now on sale.
For those of you who live locally, we have added in new local bus routes so you can travel to and from the festival each day. There will be additional buses running throughout the weekend from Bangor, Caernarfon, Porthmadog, Criccieth, and Hafan y Mor. This works out as a cheap and easy, no fuss way of ensuring a hassle free day of festival fun, knowing that you have your lift home at the end of the night.

For more on this story including details of the new bus routes - click here

June 04 2014

Dave Hursthouse - RNLI Super Supporter!

Dedicated RNLI fundraiser, Dave Hursthouse is at it again! Dave has raised over £10,000 for the RNLI since being rescued by the Abersoch Liifeboat in 2007 and his latest effort involves a 3 peaks challenge with a difference. As well as climbing the 3 peaks, Dave and 2 colleagues will be attempting to cycle the 450 miles between them!

In September 2007, Dave was knocked overboard by the boom of his dinghy whilst sailing in Abersoch bay. Despite suffering a broken nose and facial injuries, Dave managed to get back on board his dinghy but then found himself dazed and "in a bit of a mess".

"The RNLI volunteers were quick to come to my aid and I don’t think I’ll ever feel that debt has been repaid, so I regularly take part in fundraising challenges to support them and say thank you to the charity. I’ve done the Great North Run, Great Salford Swim, triathlons and the coast-to-coast bike ride. But this latest challenge will be the hardest one to date."
For more info and also on how you can support Dave - click here.

<< Photo: Dave (standing) with crew members from the rescue ...Neil McGill, Andy Gunby & Chas Myers.

June 02 2014

Abersoch 10K and 3K Race Photos Online

Photos for last Saturday's successful and well attended Fairline 10K race and the Abersoch Holiday Homes 3K race can be found at the Totally Abersoch website - click here.

<< photo: John Wormald: www.totallyabersoch.co.uk

May 22 2014

Latest Acts Announced

Latest additions to the line up include, CLIMBING TREES, pioneers of the self-coined 'Cymrucana' scene. GABRIELLE MURPHY, a 17 year old singer /songwriter from the Rhondda Valleys, MATHEW FREDERICK , a member of Climbing Trees, Matthew will also be performing his solo material this year.
WIL WILLIAMS - a singer-songwriter from Caernarfon, currently promoting his newly released album “Songs From Red Oak Meillionen.”  The new album was produced by former Gorky’s Zygotic Mynci John Lawrence, and was recorded at Stwdio Nant Y Benglog deep in the mountains. SALLY CROSBY. Sally has been active in the music scene for a while, whilst at university she was the violinist for North Wales folk-rock band The Rambling Pilgrims. Sally's music is folk-pop and acoustic, honest and raw.
CATRIN HOPKINS entered and went on to win Talent Cymru.  Winning it has opened many doors for her and working with Bryn Fon and his band means Catrin is an exciting prospect for Welsh music. 

For more on this story and info on even more Welsh based artists - click here

May 22 2014

RNLI Abersoch Open Day & BootCamp Fundraiser

The 2014 annual Abersoch RNLI Lifeboat station open day will take place on Monday 26th of May. The lifeboat will be on display, so come and meet the crew and inspect the boat, station and equipment.
There will be lots of Stalls, Souvenirs Tea/Coffee and a BBQ.
Bring your family and friends to enjoy the fun and games.
Further info available via: www.rnliabersoch.co.uk
Also - On 24th May, there will be a Bootcamp on the Beach Fundraiser with KJ Fitness. The session will be £5 per person, of which the full amount will be donated to Abersoch lifeboat. For more info please visit Facebook - KJ Fitness pwllheli

May 20 2014

Wakestock Local Residents Discount Ticket Offer Extended

The 50% discount offer for local residents ended on May 5th, and there was an incredible response to the offer. However, since it ended loads of people have got in touch who missed out on the local residents discount tickets. There is good news for those who missed out. Tier 2 of the local resident tickets are now on sale! You can get up to 25% off the cost of a festival ticket but you have to purchase your tickets before June 2nd as the offer ends then. There is only a limited number of residents tickets available so don’t hang around! These tickets are only available from Newsplus in Pwllheli and Boardrider in Abersoch. When buying tickets the resident has to take a utility bill or TV license with them which is from a property within the postcode area listed below, and some form of photographic ID.

The ticket will only be valid for Pen Llyn residents and cannot be resold.

Each property is allowed to purchase a maximum of 4 discounted tickets.

Tier two of our local Resident Tickets are priced as follows:

• Day ticket £35

• Weekend Camping £105

• Weekend Camping Thursday Arrival £112.50

• Weekend Ticket £86.25

Local resident tickets are only available to people living in the following postal codes:

LL53 5, LL53 7, LL53 6 and LL53 8

For more information on the tickets available please go to www.wakestock.co.uk

May 19 2014

New Website For Abersoch Regatta & Event News

Abersoch Regatta have a new website which contains all the details of this year's and previous events. The Abersoch Regatta is an event run by "The Community " for local people and of course for all visitors to the area. The events are designed to be fun for families and people of all ages and include the popular raft races, crab catching and sand castle competitions.
The Abersoch SCYC kindly let the regatta organisers use their premises on the Saturday 9th August "Open Day" for the sailing Regatta, which is a spectacle in itself. On that day, the bar will be open all day to members of the public (no membership required) to enjoy the regatta atmosphere.
The web address is www.abersochregatta.co.uk

May 19 2014

Glass Butter Beach Latest News

Glass Butter Beach which takes place between 13th & 16th August in Llanbedrog, Near Abersoch, North Wales are excited to announce their acts & entertainment plans for what’s set to be an epic festival for 2014. There are still more acts to follow but already confirmed are Soul II Soul, Roger Sanchez, Wilkinson, Stylo G, Neon Jungle, Norman Jay, Chasing Grace, Major Look, Goldierocks, Daniel James, Marie Naffah & many more including a beach arena hosted by international club legends HedKandi.

The vibe is very much based around the beach with surfing, wakeboarding, BMX & skateboarding core to the roots of the festival. Pro athletes will be showcasing their sports to the highest level whilst offering out the opportunity for festival goers to ‘Have a Go’ This is also the case for Stand Up Paddleboarding, Beach Volleyball, Slacklining & the now famous Paint Fight!
For the ultimate rush though, have a go on the BagJump; a new extreme freefall experience that tests your nerves, dropping from heights of up to 40 feet onto an airbag.

The festival kicks off on Wednesday 13th August at 9am with the ‘Butter Beach Surf’ event at Hell’s Mouth followed by the first of the ‘Abersoch Sessions’ with exciting bands & DJ’s playing intimate gigs at local venues. Thursday 14th August sees the action hot up with the ‘Harbour Project’ pro wakeboard event in Abersoch inner harbour. Six of Europe’s top riders competing on the floodlit course; a totally unique spectacle on a big tide in the harbour with Goldierocks on the decks.

On Friday 15th & Saturday 16th the main festival takes place in a stunning beachside location over in Llanbedrog, a few miles outside Abersoch. The entertainment starts prompt at 12 noon and runs through to midnight. There are Tiki & surf bars, awesome main stage, a beach arena filled with sand & full size Miami lifeguard tower, hidden stages & beach jam sessions, hot tubs with sea views, Skateboard & BMX ramp sessions, spacehopper races and much more.

The festival campsite is pretty spectacular with sea views & just a minute’s stroll onto the beach. Showers are provided & the car park is close by.

Tickets are available online or in various local shops & reasonably priced too at £65 for a weekend ticket. There are reduced ticket prices for juniors & children under 7 years go for free.
For tickets & full details go to www.glassbutterbeach.com

May 17 2014

Llyn Arts Festival

A brand new Creative Arts Venture is taking place on Pen Llyn during Whit week (Saturday 24th May - Sunday 1st June 2014).
Over 100 artists, makers and creatives will be showcasing their skills and talents across the area.
It is a unique opportunity for visitors to see artists at work in their studios, to chat with artists and crafts people about their creative process, to experience the diversity of talent in the local area and even a chance to have a go yourself at one of the workshops on offer.
Exhibitions and workshops are taking place in a variety of venues across Pen Llŷn and there will be spontaneous events throughout the week. 
For more information on the location of these events and a timetable, visit the event website by clicking here.

May 11 2014

"Monty" The Dolphin Post Mortem Results.
The large Bottlenosed Dolphin that was sadly found dead on Porth Neigwl beach recently has been identified. Experts at the Cardigan Bay Marine Wildlife Centre (CBMWC) at New Quay in West Wales have said that the dolphin was known to them as "Monty" and it appears that it died due to eating one fish to many! Rod Penrose, Strandings Co-ordinator for Wales who helped carry out the post mortem said the animal, an old male, was in generally good condition. “Its stomach was crammed full of fish, and I don’t think there would have been room for any more”, he commented. “So when it swallowed this last fish, it must have been pushed back rolled into a cigar shape, and unusually then lodged firmly in the nasal passages. “I’ve heard of this happening before but have never seen it. “So you could say that Monty was killed by gluttony”. To read more on how the CBMWC identified Monty and more about their organisation - visit: www.cbmwc.org/2014/05/10/cbmwc-monty

<< photo: John Wormald

May 02 2014

More Acts Announced & Last Chance For Local Discounted Tickets
Last year saw the introduction of the HUW PUW STAGE which showcased acts from in and around Wales. This intimate venue, returns this summer and the latest acts added to the bill include JAMES CLODE BAND, ALYS WILLIAMS, IVAN MOULT, MATT HAMER, MADDIE JONES, SLAPSOUL, DANIELLE LEWIS, RAGSY, FOREVER KINGS, DAN BETTRIDGE, LITTLE ARROW, YWS GWYNEDD, MATH BOLTON and RHYS MORRIS.
This year there will be a tonne of exciting things going on during the day on the festival site with the addition of an artisan market, local ales festival, brand new kid’s area, funfair and live music throughout the day.  If you aren’t planning on coming to the festival in the evening, you can come to the site during the day and experience all that it has to offer for just £5. You never know, you may like what you see and decide to upgrade your ticket to stay all night! Don’t forget that kids under the age of 10 get in free.
The limited offer whereby local residents can purchase tickets with up at a 50% discount comes to an end on the 5th May. We have had a fantastic uptake on these tickets and they are currently still available, but don’t hang around.

. For more on this story - click here

May 02 2014

More Acts Announced For Glass Butter Beach

Joining Soul II Soul, Wilkinson, Stylo G, Norman Jay, Goldierocks & loads more for Glass Butter Beach this summer is legendary Grammy Award winning producer, remixer and one of the world’s foremost names in House music, Roger Sanchez. Also fast rising stars Neon Jungle join the line-up having smashed onto the music scene this year with ‘Braveheart’ & latest single ‘Welcome to the Jungle’.

Further acts joining the fast growing beach festival are Daniel James, Chris Keys, My Favourite Runner Up & Slapsoul. A great mix of new music that have been carefully selected to create the beach fused vibes the festival is passionate about.

The festival takes place from Wednesday 13th – Saturday 16th August. Loads of announcements still to come along with the full 4 day schedule.

Tickets are on sale at Offaxis & Coastal Culture in Abersoch & Red1 in Pwllheli, or you can buy them online through the official festival website at www.glassbutterbeach.com

April 25 2014

Abersoch.co.uk Website Traffic News
Google analytics were installed for the abersoch.co.uk website in April 2013 and so the first 12 months traffic results are now available using this comprehensive and accurate stats package. It looks like it has been a very busy 12 months on the site with 626,000 individual sessions or visits, accessing 1.6 million pages (though note that not all pages are monitored so the total pages viewed will be higher than this). The busiest day of the year saw over 16,000 page views from 5268 visits and the quietest day of the last 12 months still saw 505 visits accessing 1200 pages.

April 25 2014

Wakestock Gŵyl y Môr Latest News - Focus By The Sea Stage
Continuing the expansion in the number of local and national Welsh acts set to appear this year, also playing the Focus by the Sea stage are ISLET, YR ODS, KEYS, THE ROSEVILLE BAND, SWNAMI, MEMORY CLINIC and MEILIR who join the already announced bill of CHARLOTTE CHURCH GULP, CIAN CIARAN from The Super Furry Animals and THE EARTH. Focus Wales place the music industry spotlight firmly on the emerging talent that Wales has to offer and their new stage line-up at the festival this summer will showcase the best talent from the Welsh music scene. For more on this story and the rest of the latest Wakestock news - check out www.wakestock.co.uk where there is a regulary updated news section on the home page.

April 11 2014

Angorfa Breakfast Cafe Re-Opens
News from Angorfa..."Angorfa Breakfast Cafe re-opens this weekend for the season from 8.30am daily. We will Be serving our regular Breakfast Menu inc our Famous Breakfast and a selection of teas and freshly ground coffee. We look forward to welcoming you back and if you have not been in before why not pop in and give us a try as we know you wont be disappointed."
For the breakfast menu and details of the Angorfa B&B, which is the closest B&B to the centre of Abersoch - visit their website at: www.angorfa.com

April 10 2014

WAKESTOCK GŴYL Y MOR 2014 - New Additions & £5 Daytime Ticket!
The latest additions include GEORGE BARNETT, BO SARIS, TROJAN SOUND SYSTEM (DEX N FX), THE VIRGINMARYS, SHIFT K3YAND A PLASTIC ROSE. The Festival also announce the all new FOCUS BY THE SEA stage to the event this year.
Confirmed acts include Welsh artists CHARLOTTE CHURCH, GULP and CIAN CIARAN from The Super Furry Animals to name but a few. We can also reveal a whole host of new activities taking place on the festival site during the daytime this year, including the addition of an artisan market, local ales festival, brand new kids area, funfair and live music throughout the day.  If you aren’t planning on coming to the festival in the evening, you can come to the site during the day and experience all that it has to offer for just £5. You never know, you may like what you see and decide to upgrade your ticket to stay all night! Don’t forget that kids under the age of 10 get in free.
 If you are a local and live in one of the following postcodes LL53 5, LL53 6, LL53 7 and LL53 8 you may be entitled to discounts of up to 50%. These tickets will only be available until 5th May so don’t hold back and get down to Newsplus in Pwllheli or Abersoch Boardrider to purchase them. Don’t forget to take along a utility bill and ID to prove your address. There are up to 4 available for each household. 
Check out www.wakestock.co.uk for all information including purchasing tickets.

April 09 2014

Nautique Boats Launch First Ever Dealership In Wales.

Abersoch based Offaxis has been appointed Wales dealer by the US manufacturer of award winning, record breaking water ski and wakeboard boats.

A launch party will be held at Clwb Offaxis Pwllheli Marina on Easter Sunday 20th April.

Johnny Robinson, Offaxis founder said, “our wakeboard academy has enjoyed nearly 20 years introducing people to this amazing sport. It was a natural progression to offer customer’s the opportunity to buy these world class boats.”
For more details go to www.offaxis.co.uk

April 09 2014

Abersoch & Pwllheli Meetup Group
A new meetup group has been set up for the Abersoch area. This is a group for anyone interested in a walk on the beach, coffee & a chat, cinema, a drink/ meal in the local pub or bar, restaurant etc.
Meet ups can be led by members interests.

for more information on how to join the group, visit their website at:
www.meetup.com/Abersoch-PwllheliGroup/

April 09 2014

Court Order To Make 2 Beach Huts Safe

The Daily Post is reporting that the council has secured a court order to ensure that the owners of 2 of the beach huts on Abersoch main beach that were affected by the winter storm surges, are made safe. It appears that the council are having difficulties in either contacting the owners or identifying them.

You can read the Daily Post item by clicking here.

<< photo: John Wormald: www.totallyabersoch.co.uk

April 06 2014

Abersoch Regatta Events 2014 Facebook Page

The annnual village run Abersoch Regatta takes place this year from Monday 4th August to Saturday 9th August. As well as the sailing regatta day, there are also a number of fun, family orientated events including:

Crab catching Competition, Great Raft Race, Open Golf Competition
Sandcastle Competiton and Best Dressed Beach Hut.

The Regatta now has a Facebook page where you can find out more about the events and their timings, along with some old photos of past regatta events...
www.facebook.com/pages/Abersoch-Regatta/476533885806726

April 06 2014

KJ Fitness Brings Bootcamp On The Beach To Abersoch.

Adding to their successful personal training and our fitness classes, KJ Fitness are bringing a twice weekly bootcamp workout to Abersoch Main Beach this season.
Trainers are REP’s registered (Register of Exercise Professionals) fully qualified to level 3 Personal trainer, ensuring you get the most out of your work out. The Bootcamps are open to all levels of fitness.
Sessions are from April to September, Wednesday’s and Saturday’s 8.30am – 9.30am. Click here for more info...

April 06 2014

Abersoch WI Coffee Morning

A coffee morning will take place at the village hall in Abersoch next Saturday (12th April). It will start at 10.30am -  Entrance £2.00 to include tea/coffe and cake - children free.
There will be a raffle, and crafts, produce, plants, books, cards and other items for sale. All welcome!

<<click on image for poster

April 04 2014

SOUL II SOUL, MAJOR LOOK, GOLDIEROCKS & DANIEL JAMES announced for GLASS BUTTER BEACH

As part of Soul II Soul’s 25th anniversary celebrations as a legendary chart topping British group, they will be headlining Glass Butter Beach on Saturday 16th August this Summer, playing massive tracks such as Back To Life & Keep On Movin on the GBB main stage.

To date Soul II Soul have sold over 10 million albums in over 35 territories worldwide and have product on over 200 compilation CDs while Jazzie B, Soul II Soul’s founder, has accreditation on over 35 million albums in over 100 territories. They’ve performed in over 20 countries, and appeared at some of the most famous venues in the world including Wembley and New York’s Universal Ample Theatre. America embraced Soul II Soul to such a degree, in 1990 they picked up two Grammy’s. Jazzie was given the keys to seven cities in the US, including LA and New York, and the NAACP has honoured him. There’s even a Soul II Soul day over there.

Joining Soul II Soul are fast rising drum & base stars Wilkinson & Major Look, Radio 1’s Reggae favourite’s Stylo G, worldwide respected DJ Norman Jay, international DJ and broadcaster extraordinaire Goldierocks, as well as the stunning vocal talents of Chasing Grace, Marie Naffah, Daniel James & Jefferson Duke...
Glass Butter Beach takes place from Thursday 14th – Saturday 16th August this summer in Llanbedrog, Abersoch & Hell’s Mouth. For tickets & full details go to www.glassbutterbeach.com

March 31 2014

Abersoch Triple Crown

This looks like an awesome challenge and one well worth doing for 2014. The Abersoch Triple Crown consists of 3 unique, rewarding races taking place in what many refer to as the most stunning location on the UK race calendar. Abersoch!
Thousands of you have enjoyed taking part in the Abersoch 10K race, and last year the Abersoch half marathon was a huge success. This year organisers have added the much requested Sprint Triathlon too. But if you like rewarding challenges then the Abersoch Triple Crown is for you. A title only available to those that complete all 3 races.
Saturday 31st May 2014:  FAIRLINE ABERSOCH 10K (+ Abersoch Holiday Homes 3K Beach Race),
Saturday 14th June 2014:  ABERSOCH SPRINT TRIATHLON (+ Abersoch Holiday Homes 1K Sprint)
Saturday 4th October 2014:  CHAPARRAL ABERSOCH HALF MARATHON (+ Abersoch Holiday Homes 2K Blast)
Everyone who enters gets a Henri Lloyd Sport Abersoch technical T-shirt with the Abersoch Triple Crown 2014 print on.
There’s a prestigious trophy for the winner. Prize money for the top 3 & the much sought after triple crown medals to all who complete it.
The official charities for the races are the Wales Air Ambulance & the Edwina Lilley Charitable Trust, both fantastic causes & well worth supporting.
For full details & to enter then go to www.abersochtriplecrown.com

March 31 2014

News From Manana...

We have received this press release from the lovley people at Manana ... looks like good news for Manana regulars!...

"Mañana Sundays – New Brunch Menu Running from 9am – 1pm
In addition to opening seven nights a week, Mañana Restaurant and Bar will now be offering an ace breakfast and brunch menu every Sunday. Mañana Sundays will see the restaurant and bar open from 9am right through to 1pm. You early risers can call in for a coffee or a pick me up before you hit the beach and just when you thought you slept too late and missed Sunday Brunch . . . no, you didn't! Why not call in and try a fantastic Bloody Mary and a Fillet Steak Burrito, a Bucks Fizz and a butty or their signature Huevos Rancheros and a beer.  There is something to suit everyone whether it’s a light bite like Mañana Granola, fresh berries and yoghurt or something bigger to set you up for your Sunday, Mañana cater for everyone.
In addition to breakfast and brunch with a Mexican twist, Leigh and Chris will also be serving a range of super healthy freshly squeezed juices and smoothies including a Green Goddess and Upbeet. Call in to find out more. They are sure to cure even the worst of hangovers! There is an extensive coffee and tea menu to choose from along with free filter coffee top ups for that caffeine fix.
Mañana pride themselves on being family friendly so whether it is a quiet breakfast for two or brunch for a large group, they will always welcome you with a smile and some friendly advice on what is on offer that day. So with seasonal specials, the Sunday papers to pore over and free Wi-Fi, what more could you ask for from a Sunday morning.
Mañana Restaurant and Bar is now open every night from now until November and there is loads of exciting announcements over the coming months including a 10K Breakfast Bonanza, and other race day Saturday breakfasts with athletes options to set you up for the big race, Summer Nights Patron Parties with local Dj, Meeks and Mannish Water and A Day of the Dead Fiesta in October.
For up to date information on all these specials, events and more, follow Manñna-Abersoch on Facebook and Twitter at @mananaabersoch "

March 31 2014

More Awards For Willows Campsite

Willows are delighted to announce that they have achieved some further awards for their family run 5 star site and that their passion and hard work continue to be recognised. They hope this will continue to raise awareness of the area and further emphasise that Abersoch and the Pen Lleyn is the place to visit. Latest awards for 2014 include... selected as a ' Premier Park' (only 103 in the UKa an requires a very stringent 40 stage assessment process!),

they have also been named  for the 5th year running as a Top 100 site by Practical Caravan and for 2014 they have been named as 'The Best Pet Friendly Site ' in the UK.

Their other awards can be viewed on www.the-willows-abersoch.co.uk

March 23 2014

Collection Of Photos Of The Winter Storms

John Wormald of Totally Abersoch, has gathered together all of his photos from the ferocious winter storms that battered Abersoch this winter and put them all in one album on his website. There are some dramatic images...

Click on the following link to view the album:

http://john53.zenfolio.com/p7634642

March 06 2014

Gwynedd Maritime Unit Webpage - Useful Info & Dog Zoning
Gwynedd Council maritime unit (the beach patrol) have some very useful info on boat lauching, registration and mooring fees etc in the Gwynedd area on a new dedicated page on the council website, where you can download the various forms etc - the page be found by clicking here.

Also regarding the dog exclusion zones on some beach areas - to help avoid confusion over where you can and can't take your dog(s) for a walk on Abersoch's beaches - here is the most recent map for the existing dog exclusion zone. The zone runs from the Land & Sea entrance on the Harbour Beach and around the headland (where SCYC is), to the Lon Golff slipway on Abersoch Main Beach. The zone has been in place for many years, but will now be enforced from April 1st to September 30th.

Click on the map opposite to enlarge or for a pdf document of other local beaches with exclusion zones - click here.

March 06 2014

WAKESTOCK GŴYL Y MOR 2014 - More Acts Announced
Wakestock Gŵyl y Môr have more additions to the line up and they are stoked to add CLEAN BANDIT to the mix for 2014 along with DUKE DUMONT, GORGON CITY, B. TRAITS, SHY FX and STAMINA MC, CATFISH AND THE BOTTLEMEN, LE YOUTH, FRED V & GRAFFIX WITH FELON MC, STAR SLINGER and GOLDIEROCKS. They join TOM O’DELL, FRANK TURNER AND THE SLEEPING SOULS and JOHN NEWMAN in making the trip to the Llyn Peninsula in July. Tickets are available to buy now! They also have some great local discounts available if you live in the vicinity or the site.
Check out www.wakestock.co.uk for all information including purchasing tickets.

March 06 2014

5th Annual Beicwyr Llyn Bikers Fundraising Day - 23rd March 2014.
This years ride out is in aid of The British Heart Foundation Wales.
The signing in for the ride out will be taking place from 8.30am at Y Maes Pwllheli. It will be £5 donation per bike to join the run. The Ride Out will be leaving Y Maes at 11am. They intend to lunch at 1pm at The Snowdonia Park in Waunfawr. The run is to conclude at The Glyn Garth Country Club in Llanbedrog at approximately 4.30pm. Mileage is expected to be 100 miles with regular stops along the way.
The colour this year will be red and the theme is “Have a Heart” So if you want to join the fun wear something red or bring your own heart.
Beicwyr Llyn Bikers are again asking if anyone would like to help them out on the day as a Ground Marshal, Route Marshal to please get in touch.
For more details on the event, visit the Llyn Bikers Facebook page by clicking here.

February 25 2014

WAKESTOCK GŴYL Y MOR 2014 - First Acts Announced
WAKESTOCK GŴYL Y MOR 2014 will hit the shores of Cardigan Bay from the 11th – 13th July. The organisers are thrilled to reveal their festival headliners TOM ODELL, FRANK TURNER & THE SLEEPING SOULS and JOHN NEWMAN.
The name of the festival has evolved in 2014 to become "WAKESTOCK GŴYL Y MOR" (FESTIVAL OF THE SEA) - see new item below (20th Feb).

Look out for loads of announcements over the coming months!
Check out www.wakestock.co.uk for all information including purchasing tickets.

February 25 2014

Llyn Arts Festival

Llyn Arts Festival is a new multi-disciplinary showcase for local talent. It is an exciting opportunity to see artists at work in their studios, to chat with artists and crafts people about their creative process, to experience the amazing diversity of talent in the local area, or to have a go at one of the many workshops on offer. Throughout the week there will be an open studios trail as well as a variety of exhibitions, workshops and spontaneous events taking place in venues across Pen Llyn. The organisers hope that the festival will become an annual addition to the cultural landscape and that it will encourage participation from visitors to the area as well as local residents. 

If you would like any further information please feel free to the Project Coordinator, Michèle Heidi Sutton - using the contact details on the poster opposite (click to enlarge) or via facebook.com/GwylCelfLlynArtsFestival

click on image above for photo

February 25 2014

Aerial Photos Of Storm Damage

There have been many images posted online from the recent damaging storms in the Abersoch area, but these aerial shots are perhaps the most powerful that we have seen. Local aerial photographer, Paul Thomas, captured these of the area around the 5 Degrees bar and restaurant, showing how trees that had withstood many a storm over the years, were ripped down by the 100mph plus winds that hit Pen Llyn 2 weeks ago.

click on image above for photo

February 25 2014

Porth Neigwl Beach Clean Up

With a huge amount of platic waster being washed up on the local surf beaches over this very stormy winter, Keep Wales Tidy have organised a beach clean up for Friday 7th March and Saturday 8th March at Porth Neigwl (Hell's Mouth). There is usually some mechanical help to get the huge piles of collected waste off the beach, however, volunteers are required to collect as much as possible by hand for this to happen.

Details can be found by contacting Spout at the West Coast Facebook page at:

facebook.com/pages/West-Coast-Surf-Shop/201563109294

February 20 2014

Wakestock Gwyl Y Mor - Festival Of The Sea

Some changes this year to the Wakestock festival...The festival has evolved to become WAKESTOCK GŴYL Y MOR (FESTIVAL OF THE SEA). It takes the existing annual festival featuring the best in music and wakeboarding from around the globe, and brings it back to its roots celebrating all that is great and good about its home, the Llyn Peninsula, Cardigan Bay.
Event director Stuart Galbraith says
‘’Wakestock is 14 years old this year and whilst we’re super proud of its history and the various line-ups we’ve managed to bring to North Wales we have never ever wanted to rest on our laurels and take our customers for granted. We’ve been busy thinking of ways to evolve the festival this year and so alongside our usual star names from the world of music and fantastic sporting action we have also decided we want to widen our reach and encourage the whole of the Llyn Peninsula to take ownership of the event and get involved. Our first step is the addition of Gŵyl y Mor to the top line festival name as a celebration of our unique geography on one of Wales’s most beautiful coastlines. We’ve got fresh new artwork and we have lots of exciting plans in the pipeline so keep checking our website and social media for news and more. On a wider note Wakestock Gŵyl Y Mor is not just the Llyn Peninsula’s festival but a festival for the whole of North Wales to enjoy.  We can’t wait for the summer already’’
The festival will come to showcase the best in music, comedy, poetry, arts and amazing food and drink from across Wales. This year you can also look forward to daytimes filled with activities including workshops, a fantastic fairground, amazing art installations, entertainment for all ages and much more. The evenings will see some of the country’s top bands and DJs take to the stage. This year there will also be the addition of extra stage and more music to suit all tastes and ages. Look out for loads of announcements over the coming months!
The festival takes place over three different sites in a stunning location, the festival site itself, Pwllheli Marina and Abersoch Beach. Look out for events like traditional beach games, “have a go” sports both on the beach and out on the water including wakeboarding, paddle boarding and much more.
Check out www.wakestock.co.uk for all information including purchasing tickets.

February 13 2014

108mph Winds Hit Aberosch

The incredible winds of Wednesday afternoon reached 108mph in the area (Aberdaron) and have brought down a large number of trees, blocking roads and causing some damage to property, as well as disrupting power supplies. See our twitter feed on the home page for links to various photos from yesterday.

It looks as though the 108mph recorded at Aberdaron was the strongest wind since the Christmas Eve storm of 1997, that one reached 110mph!

The photo opposite was by Spout at West Coast Surf Shop showing the road to Sarn Bach this morning - Click for a larger image - or go to the West Coast Facebook page at:

http://www.facebook.com/pages/West-Coast-Surf-Shop/201563109294

Martin at Turtle Photography has put some spectacular photos on his face book page - to view them - click here

February 05 2014

Links To Photos Of Main Beach Damage & Repair Works

There are lots of photos of the damage to the main beach on the facebook pages of our two local professional photographers. The links are:

- Totally Abersoch (John Wormald) - click here

- Turtle Photography (Martin Turtle) - click here

The photo opposite was by John Wormald - Click for a larger image.

February 04 2014

Damage On Main Beach - Update

The big spring tides, enhanced by storm surges and local weather conditions have caused further damage to Abersoch main beach and some beach huts have been lost, mainly due to the lowering of the beach level from the extreme storm surge a few weeks ago. If that one had not happened, then the tides that have caused further damage over recent days, would almost certainly have passed without incident. The coincidence of that one surge and a big spring tide was possibly a 1 in 100 year event. The legacy of the lower beach level may cause further issues in the coming weeks, but there is a reasonable chance that the natural beach processes will start to increase the sand level again, however, this will depend on a more normal weather pattern with no further storm surges coinciding with large tides.

The BBC have an article on the damage which can be accessed via the following link:

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-wales-north-west-wales-26019195

February 01 2014

Another Huge Tide On The Main Beach

The combination of weather conditions and big spring tides have brought another huge tide to the main beach today in Abersoch. and further big tides are expected in the next couple of days. Winds have reached 83mph in the area today.

The photo opposite by John Wormald was taken this morning.

Click for a larger image.

January 25 2014

SCYC 1970’s Revival Weekend, 9th, 10th & 11th May 2014

Abersoch was an amazing place to be during the 1970’s and young sailors and budding yachtsman were keen to enter SCYC Dinghy and Yacht races and competition was fierce, with rival banter between yachtsman/women sometimes becoming fraught. SCYC was the centre of many activities, both on the land and sea and became the focal point for meet ups and for 6 weeks over the summer holidays there was a packed social calendar, with disco’s, parties and huge barbecues’ on the beach. Everyone who experienced the 70’s in Abersoch remembers them with fondness and this unique time will be captured in their memory forever.

This May a group of 1970‘s members of the Yacht Club will be bringing together members and supporters of SCYC during the 1970’s for a revival party and weekend of fun.

The weekend will kick off with drinks on Friday 9th May, at The Vaynol and a chance to catch up with old friends.
The Yacht Club will be hosting Saturday evening on the 10th May, with a buffet meal and disco/live music with plenty of trips down memory lane. 
During the day on Saturday and Sunday there will be ‘Back on the Water’ sessions where existing members of SCYC will be offering old members a chance to crew on their boat or have a spin in a motor boat. 
Tickets for Saturday nights event are £27 and can be purchased from Anna Fern on 07714 230118 or anna@bluelagoon.co.uk and there is also a facebook page for the event - click here.
If you are interesting in the ‘Back on the Water’ session and have a yacht/dinghy and can offer a crewing session or have a motorboat and can give someone a ride around the bay. Also, anyone wishing to get ‘back on the water’ to experience  the thrill of riding the waves or skimming the water, then please contact Anna Fern  or Jenny Youatt on 07798 938998 or jayjay@compsyte.com

January 10 2014

Local Estate Agent's 40 Year's Milestone

Congratulations 40 Years! – Local Estate Agent Martin Lewthwaite celebrated a milestone achievement on Wednesday, by celebrating 40 years with Beresford Adams since he joined the company in 1974, working initially at their head office in Chester. In 1980 Beresford Adams acquired the former Barclays Bank in Abersoch and Martin moved back to his home village to set up the new office, assisted by Thelma Jones (now Thelma Cordingley, who now owns the Post Office ). With the excellent assistance  of previous and present staff, the office has been an ongoing success story since its opening, surviving many recessions along the way, the hardest being the recent recession which commenced in 2008. Martin has kept a record of property prices since 1980 and it is interesting to look back at property prices during the last 40 years. An example was when the Cae Du estate was built in the 1970's , a 3 bed terrace was sold for £22,000, they now achieve in excess of £200, 000. The iconic beach huts were fetching £2,000 in the early 1970's, we now know they can realise over £100,000 (before the recent storms however!!).
Martin attended an awards ceremony last Friday and was congratulated on his loyal service to the company, he now looks forward to the next 40 years!!

January 08 2014

Farrel O'Shea Wins Windsurfer Of The Year Award

Local windsurfer and owner of the O'shea surfwear and hardware brands. Farrel O'Shea has been crowned UK windsurfer of the year 2013, in a poll organised by the UK Windsurfing Association.

This is what the UKWA have to say about the award ..."A well deserved winner, as he is a very popular character and one of the most dedicated speed sailors on the planet. His relaxed approach to life masks his steely determination to go as fast as possible. Farrel's current official record is 48.82 knots, (just over 56 mph). Set in Luderitz, Namibia. He is the current official British national record holder and this speed puts Farrel, 9th fastest windsurfer of all time."

To read the rest of the article - click here.

January 07 2014

Main Beach Takes Another Battering

After the storm surge last week (see article below), the winds once again gusted to around the 70mph mark yesterday in Abersoch. This resulted in another enhanced tide on the main beach, giving the beach huts another battering. The situation is being made worse by that fact that most of the sand has been temporarily scoured from the beach by last week's storm, but this sand will gradually return when conditions become less extreme. The photo opposite by John Wormald was taken yesterday. Click for a larger image.

January 03 2014

Storm Batters Abersoch

Winds of 75mph and a storm surge enhanced high tide have been causing problems today in Abersoch. As the spectacular photo opposite from Martin Turtle shows, large waves battered the main beach and there has been damage to some beach huts (see photos on our twitter feed). Abersoch Coastguard were called out this morning, as a caravan site in Pwllheli had flooded and a check was made that everyone was accounted for. The current storm follows several high wind events over the last few weeks, one of which meant the New Year's Day dipped was cancelled, but this one has unfortunately also coincided with a big spring tide.

January 03 2014

SCYC / Abersoch Voted No. 1 Sailing Venue in 2013

GJW insurers recently teamed up with Sailracer to put together an online poll of the most popular sailing venues in the UK that had hosted a National Championship in 2013. The great news is that SCYC Abersoch came out on top in first place! Congratulations to all those involved with the club and who put in a great deal of hard work, especially during these events.
Abersoch, as regulars will know, is one of the most spectacular sailing venues in the UK, with its unique backdrop of Snowdonia, St. Tudwal's Islands and the relatively sheltered bay, which means launching is possible from the beach.

For more info on SCYC - visit www.scyc.co.uk