The Gower Peninsula and Worms Head

Sunday we woke up to a much more promising day so we decided to explore this area a little more before moving on.  Mumbles is west of Swansea on a peninsula called Gower.  We knew there was supposed to be some wonderful beaches and scenery along the coastline here.  We had a lovely breakfast and then left the Shoreline Hotel. 
 

 

First, we drove further through Mumbles to a bay called Bracelet where we were treated to views of a wonderful beach and a lighthouse.  We had hoped to go down to the pier but it wasn't accessible to cars. only by foot, so we skipped it. 

 

 

Next, we drove along country roads more in the centre of the peninsula but along to the end of the peninsula.  Again, sometimes the road (narrow at times) was tricky, particularly if there was an oncoming camper van.  As the days have gone by, I am getting more and more used to driving on the other side of the road but I still make mistakes which I beat myself up for doing!  However, I am back to feeling pretty confident about driving here.

First, a little background on the Gower Peninsula (from the Internet):

The Gower Peninsula (Welsh: Penrhyn Gwyr) is an enclosed peninsula surrounded by the Bristol Sea and Atlantic Ocean.  Because its geographic position, it has become a haven for some of the richest wildlife and varied habitats in Wales and the rest of the UK.  It was the first place in Britain to be designated as an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty (AONB) by the Countryside Agency on behalf of the UK government, and is one of only five within Wales.  2006 saw the Gower Peninsula celebrating its 50th year as an AONB, an accolade that has truly stood the test of time. 

Some people routinely call the region The Gower but this is incorrect; however, calling Mumbles (Welsh: Y Mwmbwls), "The Mumbles" seems to be more acceptable, being known as such since the Victorian era.  It is curious how or why this trend became popular but local traditionalists will quickly correct the mistake.  In the case of "The Gower" it could be argued that it is the shortened form of the correct  name "The Gower Peninsula" but surely the name "Gower" would suffice?

Scattering the landscape in Gower are historic reminders of past 'Gowerians', from castles, medieval churches, iron age fortifications, and prehistoric standing stones. All this against an awe-inspiring, natural backdrop of hills, valleys, beaches, clifftops, commons, woodlands, dunes, marshes and caves.  With its vast populated history, stretching back as far as Lower Paleolithic times (250,000 BC), long-established stories, whether they be folklore, legend or fact, are plentiful and furnish the rich and delightful tapestry of the Gower Peninsula.

So, that is the background information about where we headed this morning after our brief look at Bracelet Bay.  It took about 45 minutes to get to the tip of the peninsula where there is a village called Rhossili.  The traffic there had been quite busy but I think all three of us were surprised to see that the parking lot was full and the overflow parking was in a field.  The actual point here is called Worms Head (and the sometimes island, depending on the tide, does sort of look like one we thought).  This area is a National Trust site and for good reason.  The coastline here is stunning and, for me, a bit reminiscent of Ireland.  It was about a 2 km walk out to the point (maybe longer) and the scenery was amazing (I know, too many superlatives but what can I say!).  The following are the photos I took of Worms Head. 
 

 

 

 

 

 

Looking back toward Rhossili

We left Gower around noon and, hoping to avoid Swansea and the crazy traffic because of the second day of the airshow, we headed north after leaving the peninsula.  We wanted to see some of the Brecon Beacons National Park.  Along the way, we stopped at The Gradon Pub in Crynant (not far from Neath) for lunch.  Now, because it was Sunday, most of the pubs serve what they dub "a carvery", meaning pub snacks or light meals are off the menu and the offerings are Sunday roasts - lamb, pork, beef or chicken served with more vegetables than you would see at a Thanksgiving meal at home.  Our "lunches" came with three kinds of potatoes - along with three other vegetables PLUS Yorkshire pudding with roast lamb no less!  The amount of food was quite silly.  Oh, I forgot to mention, lunch included either a starter or dessert! 
 

 

 
After our ridiculous lunch, we got on the road heading north and a bit east and drove through the national park.  The scenery here reminded me a lot of the Lake District further north in England.  Aside from the barren hillsides, there were the sheep that were wandering a little too close to the road for my comfort plus wild ponies up in the hillsides.  What a contrast to the wild sea coastline we had seen earlier in the day!

 

 

 

From Brecan, we headed east and south, briefly dipping into Gloucestershire before heading back into Wales.  We had booked a hotel just north of Tintern Abbey.  The Wye Valley Hotel turned out to be lovely and we enjoyed our drinks outside before having a VERY light dinner.  Sitting around talking to the owners (Barry and Sue) and some of the other guests made it a very fun evening!  What a great day.

 

Barry (above) and Trevor (below) behind the bar

 

As an addendum, we all want to thank Mena and Trevor's friend, John originally from Wales, who gave us some great tips for touring around this part of his homeland.  They worked!