Three Cliffs Bay

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Morning Sun at Tor Bay, Gower.jpg
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Three Cliffs Bay (Welsh : Bae y Tri Chlogwyn) [1] (grid reference SS535876 ), otherwise Three Cliff Bay, is a bay on the south coast of the Gower Peninsula in the City and County of Swansea, Wales. The bay takes its name from the three sea cliffs that jut out into the bay. Pennard Pill, a large stream, flows into the sea in the middle of the bay.

The beach is an important asset for locals and visitors and routinely qualifies for Blue Flag status. Dogs are allowed on the beach all year. [2]

Inland about 500 yards (450 m) from the main beach on high ground above Pennard Pill is Pennard Castle. It was built in the early 12th century[ citation needed ], and is imbued with legends of fairies. It is also the only locality in Britain known for yellow whitlow grass ( Draba aizoides ).

Individual beaches that make up this bay have their own names, including Pobbles Bay to the east of the Three Cliffs, and Tor Bay to the west. The beaches are separated at high tide but are accessible to each other at low tide on foot over the sands. Paths lead north to Pennard Burrows, east to Pobbles, and west to Tor Bay. Pobbles and Tor Bay are also accessible from the beach at low tide. Three Cliffs Bay is effectively part of the inlet of Oxwich Bay. At low tide, Three Cliffs Bay forms a continuous sandy beach with Oxwich Bay beach to the west. They only exist as separate beaches at high tide.

The sea cliffs are limestone, about 20 m (65 ft) high, and are a popular destination for rock climbers with 20 climbs in the lower grades, including Scavenger (VS 4b) - often considered a national classic. [3] The largest of the Three Cliffs is easily climbed if approached from the grassy base.

In June 2006 the BBC Holidays at Home programme declared Three Cliffs Bay to be Britain's best beach. [4] In a recent programme broadcast in the UK the view over Three Cliffs Bay was nominated for "Britain's Best View".[ citation needed ]

Three Cliffs Bay also appears in a music video entry for Red Hot Chili Peppers made by Swansea film company, Studio8.[ citation needed ] It was also used in the opening titles of the 80's TV sitcom Me and My Girl featuring Richard O'Sullivan and Joanne Ridley.[ citation needed ]

Three Cliffs Bay has also been used in Channel 4's Skins and was shown in an ITV advert: 'The Brighter Side'.[ citation needed ]

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Swansea is a coastal city and the second-largest city of Wales. It forms a principal area, officially known as the City and County of Swansea.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Gower Peninsula</span> Peninsula in Wales

Gower or the Gower Peninsula is in South West Wales and is the most westerly part of the historic county of Glamorgan, Wales. It projects towards the Bristol Channel. In 1956, the majority of Gower became the first area in the United Kingdom to be designated an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty.

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Gower electoral ward is an electoral ward in Britain. It is a ward of the City and County of Swansea, and comprises the western part of the Gower Peninsula. It lies within the UK Parliamentary constituency of Gower.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bristol Channel</span> Large inlet to the river Severn in southwest Great Britain

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Rhossili</span> Village in the county of Swansea, Wales

Rhossili is both a small village and a community on the southwestern tip of the Gower Peninsula in Wales. It is within the first Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty in the United Kingdom. The village has a community council and is part of the Gower parliamentary constituency, and the Gower electoral ward. At the 2011 census, the population was 278. The community includes the hamlet of Middleton.

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Oxwich Bay is a bay on the south of the Gower Peninsula, Wales.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bishopston, Swansea</span> Human settlement in Wales

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Pennard (electoral ward)</span> Human settlement in Wales

Pennard is the name of an electoral ward in the City and County of Swansea, Wales, United Kingdom. It is coterminous with the community of Pennard.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Port Eynon</span> Human settlement in Wales

Port Eynon is a village and community within the City and County of Swansea, Wales, on the far south tip of the Gower Peninsula within the designated Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty. The A4118 from Swansea city centre terminates here.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Langland Bay</span>

Langland Bay is a popular coastal holiday resort in Gower, Swansea in south Wales. It is a popular surfing beach which regularly meets the European Blue Flag award for quality.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Caswell Bay</span> Beach in Wales

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Whiteford Sands</span>

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Rotherslade</span> Beach in Gower, Wales

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Pennard</span> Human settlement in Wales

Pennard is a village and community on the south of the Gower Peninsula, about 7 miles south-west of Swansea city centre. It falls within the Pennard electoral ward of Swansea. The Pennard community includes the larger settlements of Southgate and Kittle. the population as of 2011 was 2,688.

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The cuisine of Gower, a peninsula in south Wales, is based on ingredients grown, raised or collected on or around the peninsula. The cuisine is based on fresh ingredients with recipes based around a fish or meat dish. Until the twentieth century, the peninsula was virtually cut off from other markets due to poor roads, and no rail connection. The result was that Gower became self-sufficient in food.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Gower and Swansea Bay Coast Path</span> A section of the Wales Coast Path

The Gower and Swansea Bay Coast Path (Welsh: Llwybr arfordir Penrhyn Gŵyr a Bae Abertawe is part of the Wales Coast Path, an 1,400-kilometre long-distance walking route around the whole coast of Wales that opened in 2012. The Gower and Swansea Bay stretch is 156 kilometres in length, running along the coast of the Gower Peninsula from Loughor, Swansea to Kenfig Dunes near Port Talbot, South Wales. The number of people using the Wales Coast Path in the Swansea local authority area was 349,333.

The geology of the Gower Peninsula in South Wales is central to the area's character and to its appeal to visitors. The peninsula is formed almost entirely from a faulted and folded sequence of Carboniferous rocks though both the earlier Old Red Sandstone and later New Red Sandstone are also present. Gower lay on the southern margin of the last ice sheet and has been a focus of interest for researchers and students in that respect too. Cave development and the use of some for early human occupation is a further significant aspect of the peninsula's scientific and cultural interest.

References

  1. ↑ "Traeth Bae y Tri Chlogwyn". Dewch i Fae Abertawe (in Welsh). Retrieved 19 August 2022.
  2. ↑ "Swansea - Dogs on beaches". www.swansea.gov.uk.
  3. ↑ "UKC Logbook - 'Scavenger'". www.ukclimbing.com.
  4. ↑ https://www.bbc.co.uk/holiday/tv_and_radio/holiday_hit_squad/hhs_beach_best.shtml [ dead link ]

51°34′05″N4°06′55″W / 51.56819°N 4.11516°W / 51.56819; -4.11516

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