Dinas Island Head

Dinas Island isn't an island — it's a headland cut off from the mainland by a glacial meltwater channel, which is why the two beaches at either end feel so oddly separate.

Start at Cwm-yr-Eglwys, where the ruined bellcote and one wall of St Brynach's Church stand right on the shingle. The rest of it was destroyed in the great storm of October 1859, the same storm that wrecked the Royal Charter off Anglesey and killed hundreds along this coast.

Take the Coast Path east and up. It climbs steadily to Dinas Head at 142m, and the view from the trig point runs the whole way from Strumble Head to Cardigan Island. This is one of the better spots in Pembrokeshire for spotting porpoises and, in late summer, seals on the rocks below.

The path drops just as steeply to Pwllgwaelod, a small sheltered beach on the western side with a car park and a pub. Walk back to Cwm-yr-Eglwys through the valley — a flat, ten-minute path along the old channel that makes the return easy.

Where to finish. The Old Sailors at Pwllgwaelod sits right on the beach. Newport is ten minutes away by car and has more choice.

Doing it with children. The valley path between the two beaches is flat and pushchair-friendly, so you can do the beaches without the headland.