Rhos on Sea is a village on the North coast of Wales. It sits in the shadow of the hill known as Bryn Euryn on the Western edge of the Bay of Colwyn, and between the towns of Penrhyn Bay to the West and Colwyn Bay to the East. In the 20th Century, as with many holiday resorts it became a popular retirement destination for the well off, and I think it fair to say that the residents of Rhos on Sea think they are posher than their neighbours. Indeed, when I was a child, if I was to spot a Rolls Royce it would be in Rhos on Sea.
It's reputation as a retirement destination grew until eventually even Emily Bishop of Coronation Street fame was storylined to retire to "Ros on Sea". (How sad am I to remember that?)

As with many North Wales coastal towns Rhos on Sea benefits from a mild climate, indeed Rhos on Sea and its neighbour Colwyn Bay grew with the advent of the holiday trade that came with the arrival of the railways in the mid 19th Century. The Rhos section of the promenade (and Cycle Path) stretches from the Cayley embankment in the East as far as Rhos Point and then continues past the Point to Penrhyn Bay in the West. There are several restaurants, public houses, various good quality small shops, classy ladies wear, a chip shop, butchers, maybe not a bakers or candlestick makers but there are antique shops to browse, the ice cream parlours of Fortes and Nino's on the seafront, and last but not least the Cayley Kiosk on the promenade.

--------------------------CLICK HERE FOR A VIDEO OF ROUGH SEAS BY THE CAYLEY KIOSK ----------------------

In the 21st Century Rhos on Sea retains its sedate charm and its popularity with its visitors has not diminished. Indeed with the building of the rock breakwater off shore a new attraction has opened up for Rhos on Sea. For many years the town would flood when high tides coincided with strong north easterly winds and the breakwater was the solution to the problem. But it had the added benefit of providing a safe harbour.

Today there are many boats anchored off the Point and the boat trips and sea fishing trips from Rhos jetty are becoming ever more popular. Anglers can hire fishing rods on the boats or from the Tackle shop at Rhos Point, just a few hundred yards from the jetty. Some of the boats go as far as 20 miles offshore, while others make fishing trips around the local wrecks in the Irish Sea.

Suggested Walk :

Talking of wrecks should your visit to Rhos on Sea coincide with a low spring tide its well worth taking a walk round the Point and out to the low tide mark. Here you will find the wreck of the paddle steamer Rhosneigr that went aground near Rhos Point on July 20th 1908, but you will need your wellies for the last few yards. There were also the remains of a second world war Mosquito warplane but these have now disappeared. But you will still find the remains of medieval stone and timber fishing weirs (goradau) among the massive mussel beds. If you look closely at the picture below you will be able to see the remains of the stakes used to form the wicker fencing around the weir. The  weir may be medieval but I know somebody who's Dad fished there in the early 20th Century, (Davy Post's dad, from Park Road in the Bay) and I used to collect mussels and periwinkles myself. I remember finding pearls in the mussels but as we were children we had no idea of their value and played games with them.

Walk back from the mussel beds (East) toward the breakwater and if you are lucky you may find a few remains of the demolished Victorian Rhos Pier. To your right you will see the only remaining section of Rhos pier, the tower-like Pier Toll Room, now a small museum at Rhos Point. Rhos-on-Sea Pier was originally built at Douglas, Isle-of-Man in 1869 before being dismantled in 1892 and re-erected in Rhos-on-Sea until it's eventual demolition in1954.

Rhos Pier was a majestic structure but unfortunately due to fears over it being used by enemy landing forces during the second world war it was partially dismantled. By the 1950's Britain was in the "age of austerity" the war had almost bankrupted the nation and with local councils finding money in short supply it was decided to blow up the pier rather than maintain it.

Although I was only a five year old at the time I, and my child-hood friends, still remember the day Rhos Pier was "blown up". It was such a big occasion for us that every body remembers it. At the time our gang was playing in the Pwllychrochan Woods that overlook Colwyn Bay and Rhos on Sea (in the Devil's Bowl, or as we called it Devy's Bowl, to state the precise location). I suppose it sounds a bit strange for 5 and 6 year olds to be playing in the woods but it was normal in those days, and I checked with my child-hood friend Steve Davies (Rhiw Road) and he remembers it as clear as a bell.

Enough reminiscing .... back to Rhos beach and if you are really lucky you may find remains of ancient tree trunks buried in the sand, evidence of the ever changing shore line. Some half a mile further along the beach, opposite the Aberhod Restaurant, you will find the stone outline of another ancient fishing weir. The outline of this weir is very clear and when the tide recedes the method of entrapping the fish is obvious when you see the sea water held within the three walls of the weir. Originally there would have been wicker fencing above the stone foundations to assist in the entrapment. Just goes to show how our ancestors were using the natural power of the great tidal range of the North Wales coast for thousands of years, and yet we in the 21st century can not see the advantage of tidal lagoons to supply "green" energy, .....free energy driven by the moon's gravitational pull.

Leave the beach and return to the promenade and then head back toward the Point, you have the opportunity to enjoy the delights of Fortes or Nino's ice cream parlours or the Point Cafe. The walk continues to the West along the promenade toward Penrhyn Bay. After a few hundred yards you will see, down the bank on your right hand side, the 6th Century St Trillo's Chapel. It is a tiny little church and probably only holds six people at a squeeze, but it is still a place of worship. The chapel is on the site of a pre-Christian holy well with the altar being built directly over the well, and to this day people visit to worship and collect the holy water.

Exit the Chapel and continue West for another mile and in the garden of "Odstone", the last house before the Rhos Golf Course, you will come to the place from where the Welsh Prince Madoc is said to have sailed to find America, 300 years before Christopher Columbus. Legend had it that Madoc had sailed from the area but it was not until the 1950's that workmen building the sea wall discovered the remains of the previously unknown stone harbour wall, lending support to the legend of Prince Madoc. The wall is set back from the road in the sunken garden of Odstones but it is not visible from the road.