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contact@meadowcampingwales.com
07795 206 326
About
Awel yr Awen
(Or "Breath of the Muse"
but we prefer it in Welsh!)
Awel yr Awen is a new campsite, located at Gelli, the country house and farm where poet Dylan Thomas sat under the great Western Red Cedar tree drinking fresh, warm milk in the 1940s.
Owned by one family since 1980, the historic 72-acre farm has been kept private (and almost secret) for many years.
Now a thriving home to bees, chickens, geese, cats and horses, as well as providing organic grazing for Welsh Black bulls and sheep and a vibrant and sustainable vegetable garden, Gelli's hushed atmosphere is a solace to all who come here. Where the 17th century farmhouse stands, there was once a monastic sanctuary with some connection to Strata Florida Abbey. It is likely that the cob walled-garden and the old stone walls marking the fields and farm track go back to those times. The campsite's name Awel yr Awen, or ‘Breeze of the Muse’ is apt because it really seems as though poetic inspiration can be found here: as well as Dylan Thomas’s fame, the place has been an inspiration to several other writers, artists and composers.
Home to a wide variety of wildlife, this special place deserves a special camping experience, and here you will find a total of only eight pitches, each with its own campfire not only permitted but encouraged, and its very own private area of wilderness.
Situated only six miles from the coast, there are many beautiful beaches within an easy drive; South of Aberystwyth and North of Cardigan, Awel yr Awen is ideally located for exploring any part of West Wales; alternatively, it is possible that you won’t want to explore at all but just stay put, let the children roam free, soak in the peace and quiet and bask in the rural idyll that Awel yr Awen provides.
Rewilding
Awel yr Awen
Gelli is graced by many magnificent trees, like this great beech, no doubt planted in the 1790s when the Georgian front was added to the house. Red kites, Barn and Tawny owls, woodpeckers, herons, badgers, foxes, squirrels and stoats are a few of the many species of wildlife that can be found here.
Rather than allowing nature to be disturbed or diminished by the campsite, your visit will be helping with our rewilding programme as the campsite meadow itself is going to become a native woodland, with the first planting already begun in Autumn 2021.
The sheltered, organic farm is blessed with huge beeches, oaks, ash, cedars and more. In recent years some of these beauties have been lost to storms, disease and old age; a whole new planting is required, and Awel yr Awen marks the beginning of this long-held dream.
Now, the meadow campsite is beginning its new life as a woodland, with plans to plant alder, birch, oak among other varieties of native trees. Come this year, and return every year, to watch the woodland and its wildlife grow and grow…
