0:00:02 > 0:00:03Sea, sand and sunshine...
0:00:03 > 0:00:05but what's missing?
0:00:05 > 0:00:07A super stroll...
0:00:07 > 0:00:10and somewhere where they make home-made chocolate!
0:00:13 > 0:00:15That's it for today - I'm off!
0:00:31 > 0:00:35And what better way to start a walk than with a relaxing boat trip?
0:00:35 > 0:00:38Just a 20-minute hop across the water,
0:00:38 > 0:00:41Caldey Island is a popular day trip destination.
0:00:41 > 0:00:45Well-known for its monastery, monks and lavender perfume,
0:00:45 > 0:00:48it's also a super place for a sunny stroll.
0:00:50 > 0:00:53My guide around the island is Jonathan Miller,
0:00:53 > 0:00:57whose family, would you believe, run the chocolate factory on the island.
0:00:57 > 0:01:00Jonathan and his brother, Matthew, grew up on Caldey
0:01:00 > 0:01:02and went to primary school there.
0:01:02 > 0:01:04He's now a third-year medical student
0:01:04 > 0:01:07and, though the family all now live on the mainland,
0:01:07 > 0:01:09he still returns to the island
0:01:09 > 0:01:12to help with the chocolate business during his summer holidays.
0:01:14 > 0:01:16Because of the low tide today,
0:01:16 > 0:01:18the boat leaves from the pontoon on the beach.
0:01:18 > 0:01:22At higher tides, it goes from the harbour.
0:01:22 > 0:01:25- Hi, Jonathan.- Good morning. How you doing?- All right, thanks.- After you.
0:01:25 > 0:01:27The trip takes about 20 minutes
0:01:27 > 0:01:30and, during the height of summer, eight or nine boats
0:01:30 > 0:01:35shuttle back and forth, carrying up to 40 visitors each journey.
0:01:35 > 0:01:38So what's it like for you, then, going back home?
0:01:38 > 0:01:41It's quite a strange feeling - obviously, Caldey has been...
0:01:41 > 0:01:44You know, I've always considered it home. Um...
0:01:44 > 0:01:47But I've been coming back and forth for a long time now,
0:01:47 > 0:01:50obviously had to sort of move off part-time
0:01:50 > 0:01:51to the mainland for school,
0:01:51 > 0:01:54cos it closed when I was eight years old.
0:01:54 > 0:01:57Um, but it's always going to be a special place for me
0:01:57 > 0:01:59and I do love going home - especially on a day like today!
0:01:59 > 0:02:01Well, this is my first ever visit to Caldey,
0:02:01 > 0:02:03so I'm really looking forward to it.
0:02:25 > 0:02:27Well, this is gorgeous. We could be in the Caribbean.
0:02:27 > 0:02:31Yeah, we certainly could. This is Priory Bay.
0:02:31 > 0:02:32This is, sort of, low tide now,
0:02:32 > 0:02:35but when the tide comes in, you can see it goes right up to here.
0:02:35 > 0:02:38Now is probably the best time to be on it.
0:02:38 > 0:02:39Does it ever get busy here?
0:02:39 > 0:02:42Em, to a certain extent, but it's never heaving.
0:02:42 > 0:02:43It's never busy, busy.
0:02:43 > 0:02:44There's always space
0:02:44 > 0:02:48and you'll always be able to find somewhere nice and quiet.
0:02:50 > 0:02:52So here we are in sunny South Pembs -
0:02:52 > 0:02:56just three miles across Caldey Sound from Tenby.
0:02:56 > 0:02:58Our figure-of-eight route takes us up from the jetty
0:02:58 > 0:03:00past the monastery and small village,
0:03:00 > 0:03:04calling in at the old Priory on our way to the lighthouse.
0:03:04 > 0:03:07From there a new extended section leads to West Beacon Point.
0:03:07 > 0:03:11Then back to the village and another loop around the woodland walk,
0:03:11 > 0:03:15returning to the jetty before we miss the last boat back to Tenby,
0:03:15 > 0:03:19having walked a peaceful and easy-going four-and-a-bit miles.
0:03:26 > 0:03:27Do many people live here, then?
0:03:27 > 0:03:31Yeah, there's a dozen or so monks full-time.
0:03:31 > 0:03:33There's obviously the island community as well.
0:03:33 > 0:03:35They help out with certain things - running shops
0:03:35 > 0:03:39and things like that, making the chocolate.
0:03:39 > 0:03:41Looking after guests who come to the island.
0:03:41 > 0:03:44- And they live here full-time?- Yes. Yes, the majority of them do.
0:03:46 > 0:03:49- Well, I wasn't expecting this! - Yep, this is the monastery.
0:03:49 > 0:03:50Very striking, isn't it?
0:03:50 > 0:03:56Yeah, it was designed by John Coates Carter, I suppose the leading
0:03:56 > 0:03:58light of his time in the Arts and Crafts movement.
0:03:58 > 0:04:00The building was finished in 1913.
0:04:01 > 0:04:03It wasn't actually intended to be the final monastery.
0:04:03 > 0:04:05It was going to be a boys' prep school
0:04:05 > 0:04:07and there was going to be a much larger, grander monastery
0:04:07 > 0:04:08built up through the woods.
0:04:08 > 0:04:11Unfortunately, the Benedictine monks at the time ran out of money
0:04:11 > 0:04:14and this was converted to be the full-time monastery.
0:04:14 > 0:04:16It reminds me of some of the buildings you see
0:04:16 > 0:04:18in Portmeirion in north Wales.
0:04:22 > 0:04:23As well, obviously, as the abbey,
0:04:23 > 0:04:25the monks are well-known for their perfume.
0:04:25 > 0:04:27This is the perfume shop just here.
0:04:27 > 0:04:30It started off in the 1950s when they were selling
0:04:30 > 0:04:34bunches of wild flowers such as lavender and gorse.
0:04:34 > 0:04:35It went on from there, really.
0:04:35 > 0:04:38The lavender perfume, especially, today is world renowned.
0:04:38 > 0:04:40I'll have to get some for my mum.
0:04:42 > 0:04:44'At various points along our walk today
0:04:44 > 0:04:48'we've arranged to meet some of the monks.
0:04:48 > 0:04:50'First up to take us to the old Priory
0:04:50 > 0:04:52'and St Illtyd's church is Brother David.
0:04:54 > 0:04:57'The Cistercian monks who live permanently on the island
0:04:57 > 0:05:01'have a strict daily routine beginning very early, at 3.30am
0:05:01 > 0:05:04'with the first prayer service of the day.
0:05:04 > 0:05:07'Monastic life is not a cushy number.
0:05:10 > 0:05:12'It was relatively recently, in the 1920s,
0:05:12 > 0:05:16'that the Cistercian Order took over from the Benedictines,
0:05:16 > 0:05:19'whose old Priory and St Illtyd's Church next-door,
0:05:19 > 0:05:24'with its leaning spire, date back to the 14th century.'
0:05:27 > 0:05:30It does feel very old, but very beautiful as well, here.
0:05:30 > 0:05:34Yes, this is the sanctuary of the church we're coming to now.
0:05:34 > 0:05:35Amazing floor made of pebbles.
0:05:35 > 0:05:38Yes, they'd be pebbles from the beach.
0:05:38 > 0:05:41What's this old stone here?
0:05:41 > 0:05:43This is the Ogham stone.
0:05:43 > 0:05:46'Ogham was a very early form of writing in Ireland
0:05:46 > 0:05:50'with an alphabet of simple strokes along a line.'
0:05:50 > 0:05:52As you see here, it's a Latin inscription.
0:05:52 > 0:05:57But here you see the Ogham markings. It's faded now, broken away.
0:05:57 > 0:06:00But you can see from the markings, perhaps you can see one line,
0:06:00 > 0:06:01two lines, three lines.
0:06:01 > 0:06:03They formed an alphabet.
0:06:03 > 0:06:06'Ogham stones are mostly found in Ireland,
0:06:06 > 0:06:08'but also up the west coast of Britain,
0:06:08 > 0:06:12'carved by Celtic tribes who settled on both sides of the Irish Sea
0:06:12 > 0:06:14'about 1,500 years ago.
0:06:16 > 0:06:19'Whilst we now head off towards the lighthouse,
0:06:19 > 0:06:22'we leave Brother David to attend a prayer service
0:06:22 > 0:06:25'and to get on with his gardening and librarian duties.
0:06:26 > 0:06:28'Most people who visit Caldey
0:06:28 > 0:06:30'manage to get as far as the lighthouse
0:06:30 > 0:06:32'and, even if you don't go any further,
0:06:32 > 0:06:35'it really is worth a stroll up here.'
0:06:36 > 0:06:39This is the lighthouse, just above Chapel Point here.
0:06:39 > 0:06:42It's been here since the early 1800s.
0:06:42 > 0:06:45They say the original lighthouse was built on the site of a chapel.
0:06:45 > 0:06:48It works in conjunction with the lighthouse over on Lundy.
0:06:50 > 0:06:53Together, they guide the shipping in the Bristol Channel.
0:06:53 > 0:06:55Either side of the light tower
0:06:55 > 0:06:58are two identical old lighthouse keeper's cottages,
0:06:58 > 0:07:01where Jonathan and his family lived for a while.
0:07:01 > 0:07:04I remember the noise made by the windows.
0:07:04 > 0:07:07There was a howling noise whenever the wind came up.
0:07:07 > 0:07:09Yeah, it was a lovely place to be.
0:07:09 > 0:07:13You can see for miles from here, can't you? Across to Gower.
0:07:13 > 0:07:15Yeah, that's the Gower over there, then Worm's Head.
0:07:15 > 0:07:19Even the north Devon coast, a little bit hazy, and Lundy Island.
0:07:19 > 0:07:21Yeah, that's Lundy Island over there.
0:07:21 > 0:07:23Fantastic.
0:07:23 > 0:07:25- Shall we carry on? - Yeah, let's go for it.
0:07:44 > 0:07:46'Waiting for us at a junction with the cliff-top path
0:07:46 > 0:07:49'is Father Daniel, Abbot of the monastery -
0:07:49 > 0:07:54'the main man here on Caldey - head of the household.
0:07:54 > 0:07:57'Originally from Belgium, he was a monk in Germany
0:07:57 > 0:07:59'before coming here 23 years ago.'
0:08:01 > 0:08:04- Absolutely gorgeous today. - It's beautiful.
0:08:04 > 0:08:07- But, of course it's not always like this.- You are lucky today.
0:08:07 > 0:08:09Really lucky. It's exceptional.
0:08:09 > 0:08:11But the weather can be quite different here.
0:08:11 > 0:08:13Some very severe weather.
0:08:13 > 0:08:17But, actually, I don't mind too much severe weather. I like it.
0:08:17 > 0:08:19It energises me. Then I really go out for a brisk walk.
0:08:21 > 0:08:24- You like walking in a force 10, do you?- Yes, I do!
0:08:26 > 0:08:28How do you feel about the number of visitors who come to the island?
0:08:28 > 0:08:31Do you think there's a conflict between the peace
0:08:31 > 0:08:34and tranquillity that you have here?
0:08:34 > 0:08:35No, not really.
0:08:35 > 0:08:38It may appear as a conflict, but they come
0:08:38 > 0:08:45from 10.30 in the morning till about 5.30, 5.15 in the evening.
0:08:45 > 0:08:49There's also a part of the island that the visitors see,
0:08:49 > 0:08:50not everything.
0:08:50 > 0:08:53There's a substantial part that we keep for ourselves.
0:08:55 > 0:08:59Apart from that, I think it's very important that we meet visitors
0:08:59 > 0:09:03and listen to their story, their experience in life.
0:09:03 > 0:09:08Otherwise, there's always a danger to take things for granted.
0:09:08 > 0:09:10We should not do that.
0:09:10 > 0:09:14We're now at West Beacon point, the southwestern tip of the island,
0:09:14 > 0:09:17which, until recently, was out of bounds to the general public.
0:09:19 > 0:09:24I'm so glad that at last the visitors are able to experience
0:09:24 > 0:09:26Caldey as an island.
0:09:26 > 0:09:30Before that, it was only from the jetty to the lighthouse and back.
0:09:30 > 0:09:34Now they really can experience and breathe in the healthy,
0:09:34 > 0:09:35fresh sea air.
0:09:35 > 0:09:39- And these wonderful views. - Definitely. I'm delighted.
0:09:39 > 0:09:42And I'm so delighted that you took time to come and see us,
0:09:42 > 0:09:45Derek, but I'm afraid I have to go.
0:09:45 > 0:09:48It's only half an hour away, but I have to go to my prayers.
0:09:48 > 0:09:49- Take care.- Bye-bye.
0:09:59 > 0:10:02- Wow, what a beautiful beach. - Yep, this is Sandtop Bay.
0:10:02 > 0:10:04And there's no-one on it. Not a soul.
0:10:04 > 0:10:08No, unfortunately, this part of the island isn't accessible to visitors.
0:10:08 > 0:10:10Why is that, the tide?
0:10:10 > 0:10:12Yeah, unfortunately there have been one or two tragic incidents
0:10:12 > 0:10:14here over the years.
0:10:14 > 0:10:17There's a very strong undercurrent here.
0:10:17 > 0:10:20There's a few caves over there, isn't there?
0:10:20 > 0:10:23Yeah, a lot of them were explored by the monks in the 1960s,
0:10:23 > 0:10:27and found remains and tools and things like that, that they think
0:10:27 > 0:10:30might date back as far as 5,000 years ago or something like that.
0:10:30 > 0:10:33- What's that island called over there?- That's St Margaret's Island.
0:10:33 > 0:10:36You can see the ruins over there, the old quarrying houses
0:10:36 > 0:10:38used to house the quarry workers.
0:10:38 > 0:10:41The island itself is out of bounds now. It's a bird sanctuary.
0:10:41 > 0:10:44- It is a gorgeous spot here, though, isn't it?- It is lovely.
0:10:44 > 0:10:47Looking across to Tenby, and you can see the hills as well.
0:10:47 > 0:10:49Yeah, it's beautiful.
0:10:52 > 0:10:55'And now for the bit I've been looking forward to all day -
0:10:55 > 0:10:57'chocolate!
0:10:57 > 0:11:00'The monks started making chocolate here on Caldey in the 1980s,
0:11:00 > 0:11:04'and the business is now franchised to Jonathan's dad.
0:11:04 > 0:11:07'This is where it's made.'
0:11:07 > 0:11:08Dad? We've got customers.
0:11:09 > 0:11:12Hello.
0:11:12 > 0:11:14- Welcome to Caldey.- Great to be here.
0:11:14 > 0:11:16Brilliant sunshine you've brought with you as well.
0:11:16 > 0:11:19- Of course.- Marvellous. - Right, can I have some chocolate?
0:11:19 > 0:11:22'Spanish Cistercian monks were in fact making chocolate
0:11:22 > 0:11:26'way back in the 1500s, when cocoa beans and a recipe
0:11:26 > 0:11:30'were sent back from Mexico to a monastery in Spain,
0:11:30 > 0:11:33'and so started the 500-year-old custom
0:11:33 > 0:11:35'of chocolate making by the Cistercians.'
0:11:35 > 0:11:36Thank you very much.
0:11:36 > 0:11:38Thank you very much.
0:11:38 > 0:11:40This lot should keep me going for a while.
0:11:46 > 0:11:49'Leading us on the next short section of our walk
0:11:49 > 0:11:53'is Brother Teilo, who became a monk at the grand old age of 68,
0:11:53 > 0:11:55'more than 50 years after a visit to Caldey
0:11:55 > 0:11:58'that made a lasting impression on him.
0:11:58 > 0:12:01'He finally gave in to the call of monastic life
0:12:01 > 0:12:02'14 years ago.'
0:12:04 > 0:12:07So here we are at the old school,
0:12:07 > 0:12:10which has been closed now for about ten years
0:12:10 > 0:12:12because the pupils went down to two or even one.
0:12:14 > 0:12:17Yeah, that's right. I was actually the last student here.
0:12:17 > 0:12:18They had to close the school,
0:12:18 > 0:12:22because the next year I would have been the only one on the island.
0:12:22 > 0:12:27The council just couldn't afford to fund one-to-one teaching.
0:12:27 > 0:12:30- That's a shame, isn't it?- It is a shame, yes.- Yeah, it was sad.
0:12:30 > 0:12:31Very sad indeed.
0:12:31 > 0:12:34- Heading up to the Statue of Samson now.- That's right.
0:12:34 > 0:12:36St Samson, the patron saint of the island.
0:12:36 > 0:12:39Very important to us.
0:12:39 > 0:12:42'St Samson was the second Abbot here back in the sixth century,
0:12:42 > 0:12:45'before he left the island to work as a missionary
0:12:45 > 0:12:47'in Cornwall and later Brittany.'
0:12:47 > 0:12:49In Wales, I'm afraid, we've forgotten about him
0:12:49 > 0:12:52to a large extent, except on Caldey.
0:12:52 > 0:12:54Here he's very precious.
0:12:54 > 0:12:57We have our annual holiday on his feast day - 28th of July.
0:12:57 > 0:13:00- Do you get a day off? - We do, yes, in the monastery.
0:13:01 > 0:13:02It's a holiday for us.
0:13:05 > 0:13:07'St David's - the island's parish church -
0:13:07 > 0:13:10'stands on a pre-Christian burial ground
0:13:10 > 0:13:13'probably going back as far as 2,000 years.
0:13:13 > 0:13:16'Today, the simple wooden crosses mark the graves
0:13:16 > 0:13:18'of both monks and islanders,
0:13:18 > 0:13:22'but the Celtic burials may have been of people from the mainland,
0:13:22 > 0:13:26'in keeping with the Celtic belief that islands represented a bridge,
0:13:26 > 0:13:28'or stepping stone to the afterlife.'
0:13:31 > 0:13:34- What a beautiful little church! - It is, isn't it?
0:13:35 > 0:13:37Look at those stained-glass windows.
0:13:37 > 0:13:39- They're beautiful, aren't they? - Absolutely.
0:13:39 > 0:13:43One of the Benedictine monks in the early 1920s, Theodore Baily,
0:13:43 > 0:13:45was a remarkable stained-glass artist.
0:13:46 > 0:13:48If we look up there, above the church,
0:13:48 > 0:13:51you can see the Tree of Life Window,
0:13:51 > 0:13:53which he put in.
0:13:53 > 0:13:57You can see the three trees, and the sun above,
0:13:57 > 0:14:00perhaps symbolic of the three crosses on Caldey.
0:14:01 > 0:14:03- Vivid colours.- Absolutely vivid.
0:14:12 > 0:14:15'We say farewell to Brother Teilo,
0:14:15 > 0:14:18'and Jonathan and I head along the last leg of our walk -
0:14:18 > 0:14:20'a short loop around Caldey's woodland.'
0:14:24 > 0:14:28- How beautiful are the daisies?! - Yeah, they're lovely, aren't they?
0:14:28 > 0:14:30Perfect time of the year for them.
0:14:33 > 0:14:35It's a great effect with the light, the sunlight,
0:14:35 > 0:14:36shining through the trees.
0:14:43 > 0:14:44Here we are now at Paul Jones Bay,
0:14:44 > 0:14:48named after the famous 18th century pirate Paul Jones.
0:14:50 > 0:14:55Born in Scotland, Paul Jones was a ruthless marauding pirate
0:14:55 > 0:14:57and he often moored up in this sheltered bay,
0:14:57 > 0:15:01hidden from the mainland, to take on a supply of fresh water.
0:15:03 > 0:15:05When it got a bit too hot for him around here,
0:15:05 > 0:15:07he want across the Atlantic, over to America,
0:15:07 > 0:15:10and is credited with being one of the people
0:15:10 > 0:15:11who founded the American Navy.
0:15:12 > 0:15:16An amazing tale of villain to hero, if ever there was.
0:15:22 > 0:15:24'Well, I'd love to stay a little longer,
0:15:24 > 0:15:27'but Jonathan needs to get back to the chocolate making
0:15:27 > 0:15:30'and I need to catch the last boat back to Tenby.'
0:15:30 > 0:15:34- See you again. - See you again. All the best.
0:15:34 > 0:15:37Well, one day on this gorgeous island is just not enough
0:15:37 > 0:15:40to get away from the hustle and bustle of modern-day life.
0:15:40 > 0:15:43So I'll definitely come back another day.
0:15:43 > 0:15:45And, besides, this won't last long.