On the eastern approach to Aberffraw the A4080 cuts through an extensive area of dunes (which include one of the UK’s largest mobile, shifting dune habitats) that meet the sea at Traeth Mawr beach.

The dunes, beach and lake of Llyn Coron at the landward end of the dune system are designated a Site of Special Scientific Interest, important for their varied habitats and wildlife. A panoply of interesting plants and insects thrive here, while birdlife includes chough, lapwing and skylark. Get up close to this distinctive environment by parking in the village and following the path through the dunes to Traeth Mawr.

From Aberffraw take the A4080/A55 Expressway to Holyhead, a major port for Irish Sea crossings. The town is flanked by two attractive parks. The first, on the eastern approach to the town, is the Penrhos Coastal Park (head for the large car park off the A5 on the western end of Stanley Embankment).

Although within a stone’s throw of busy Holyhead, it’s a peaceful oasis of over 200 acres/81ha of woodland, meadow and shore overlooking the sandbanks and mudflats of Beddmanarch Bay, another Site of Special Scientific Interest.

Wildlife is abundant. Birdwatchers will be kept busy spotting oystercatchers, grebes, mergansers, little egrets, ringed plovers, woodpeckers and treecreepers. Walkers can follow trails and paths through the mixed woodland of conifer and deciduous trees (see if you can spot the hidden follies amongst the foliage). Visit in spring for the park’s carpets of bluebells, and in summer for its meadows of blooming flowers.

Lunch: There is a choice of cafe's in Holyhead Town centre for a delicious lunch.

After lunch, follow the minor road west past the breakwater for a mile or so to the second great escape into nature close to Holyhead town: the Breakwater Country Park.

It’s located at the site of an old quarry that supplied stone for the Holyhead Breakwater, at 1.5 miles/2.4km the longest in Europe. The lake of Llyn Llwynog forms part of the park, along with a rocky coast.

Look out for chough, peregrine falcons, grey herons, moorhens, mallards, swifts and seabirds on a variety of walks, some of which give access to Holyhead Mountain and spectacularly located South Stack Lighthouse. Along the coastal heathland – tinged with the pink of sea thrift in spring – you may also catch sight of seals, dolphins and porpoises.

You’ll really get to know the park if you take part in the fun orienteering courses available here. There’s no need to book – they’re available on a self-guided basis online for free. Simply download and print the maps and information, then off you go.