The monastery on Caldey Island…
No holiday in Tenby, Pembrokeshire, is complete without a trip across the water to Caldey Island, famous for its Cistercian (Trappist) monks.
We set off around 10am on an overcast summer morning but were soon regretting that we had worn our coats, as the sun started to shine warmly.
The tide was out in Tenby harbour, so we had foolishly been wondering if the trips were still running. But nothing seems to stop them here, as you will see later…
Low tide in Tenby harbour…
We bought tickets at the little wooden hut near the middle of this picture…
Tenby harbour with the cabins selling tickets for boat trips, just right of centre…
But the boat didn’t go from the harbour, but from Castle Beach, which we reached by going through an old stone archway, to the right of the huts in the picture above. A clever combination of tractor and wooden walkway helped passengers from the sandy shore to the boats.
Boats leaving for Caldey from Castle Beach, Tenby…
Looking back at Tenby from our boat, the Polar Star…
Passing St Catherine’s Island…
Passing some small rocks on the way to Caldey…
View of Priory Bay on Caldey Island from the jetty…
Caldey Island is about a mile across in one direction and 1.5 miles in the other. Its name comes from Viking words meaning “cold island” but in Welsh it’s called Ynys Bŷr after a sixth century abbot (Pyr or Piro). Allegedly he died after falling down a well while drunk.
I find Caldey Island fascinating geologically as it is split down the middle, with carboniferous limestone on one side and old red sandstone on the other. Both can be seen from the jetty in Priory Bay.
Caldey Island is split in half geologically…
Caldey’s position in West Wales…
Priory Bay, Caldey Island…
A clearer view of the limestone…
In the other direction it’s redder and rockier…
A clearer view of the old red sandstone…
A monk met visitors who were going on retreat at the monastery…
A map of the island – only one way to go, really…
No idea what the story is behind this anchor…
A welcome from the monks…
One of the gift shops on Caldey Island…
The monks of Caldey keep themselves to themselves (and I think there are fewer than 10 there at the moment) but they have done a good job marketing their lavender perfume, shortbread and chocolate to raise funds to support their way of life. They even have an internet shop.
The monastery dominates the centre of the island…
The monastery – Caldey Abbey – was designed in the arts & crafts style by John Coates Carter (1859–1927) and built in 1910 for Anglican Benedictine monks. It passed to Belgian Cistercian monks in 1929.
Although the gift shops of the island give the impression of a tourist trap, with the artificial feel of the community featured in The Prisoner, the monks’ presence means the island is also a wonderful place for wildlife. So we wandered a little.
The villagers keep chickens…
Bumble bee on lavender…
I think this is soapwort (Saponaria officinalis)…
Flowers of old man’s beard (Clematis vitalba)…
We were pleasantly surprised to come across the Old Priory, beside a pond where swallows swooped…
The Old Priory on Caldey Island…
The priory was a fortified Norman house, extended by Benedictine monks in the Middle Ages. The spire was erected in the 14th century.
The priory church is called St Illtyd’s…
Medieval walls…
The cobblestone floor of the church…
Stained glass…
I’m not that pleased with my priory pictures, but most of all I am kicking myself for not spotting the famous Caldey Stone, inscribed in Latin and Ogham script. It was apparently to the right of the stained glass window…
Visitors were asked to leave the door open for the swallows…
Eventually we made our way back to the jetty. The tide had ebbed even more and now boats couldn’t reach it, so we discovered what the old military vehicle on the beach was all about. We had noticed this amphibious “duck” on our arrival, but just thought it was a bit of fun.
The “duck” collected visitors from their boat…
What a jolly vehicle…
Visitors disembark…
It was hot and bright and sunny as we waited on the jetty, so we were pleased we would soon be catching the noisy “duck” back to the boat. But no. Three more times the boats were unloaded and their visitors brought to the island. But the boats went back to Tenby without us. Finally, as rebellion was starting to brew on the jetty, I saw a red boat I recognised. Hooray, the Polar Star would surely rescue us? Indeed it did.
Passengers from the Polar Star board the “duck”…
Our turn on the “duck”…
And back to Tenby in time for lunch…
The Squirrelbasket 
Oo lots of excitement in this post with the different forms of travel. The island looks beautiful, but so tiny. I have often wondered how I would like island living and although I’m not religious I think it would be a good way to live like monks – for a little while anyway.
We saw a little video of the monks at work and they do lead a very simple life, although there don’t seem to be many of them left now. It’s a bit of an escape from the world, I guess, and we could all do with that sometimes – but as you say, maybe not for too long!
All the best 🙂
Looks like a lovely day-trip. We have been to Tenby several times but we always seem to be there at the wrong time of year for the boat trips. One day…
Definitely worth the effort if you are down this way.
I’m enjoying browsing your coastal postcards website – have you considered including anywhere in Wales?
Best wishes 🙂
Interesting all the way through. Had heard of Caldey but never imagined the monastery would be like that – had imagined small stone buildings – more modest and colder to live in.
I was amazed by the size of the monastery, too. Not exactly sinister, but it definitely dominates and looks the sort of place you might find Medieval intrigue. Not sure if I’m thinking the Borgias or a county council headquarters…
I guess the old priory we saw is closer to the way we imagine monks living.
Glad your milk bottle messages have returned for the autumn 🙂
Looks like you had a great trip with lots of wonderful photos. What an extraordinary sight of all those boats beached at low tide.
Extraordinary to me, but I guess it happens twice a day for Tenby! Not sure if it was spring tides or neap tides at the time we were there…
I have only seen Caldey in the distance from Tenby, It looks a great place to visit.That plant is definitely soapwort, we had some in our garden. It had lovely flowers but it started to appear everywhere!
Sarah x
I wish I had some soapwort. It looks a lot prettier than most of my “weeds”…
All the best – loved your Portland blog post 🙂