- Three Cliffs Bay
Three Cliffs Bay (gbmapping|SS535876), otherwise Three Cliff Bay, is a bay on the south coast of the
Gower peninsula in the City and County ofSwansea ,Wales . The bay takes its name from the three sea cliffs that jut out into the bay. Pennard Pill, a small 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. As a consequence, dogs are banned from the beach between May and September.
Inland about 500 yards from the main beach on high ground above Pennard pill is Pennard
Castle . It was built in the early12th century , and is imbued with legends of fairy's. It is also the only locality in Britain for "Draba azoides".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 toTor 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 high, and are a popular destination forrock climber s with 20 climbs in the lower grades. 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. [http://www.bbc.co.uk/holiday/tv_and_radio/holiday_hit_squad/hhs_beach_best.shtml] In a recent programme broadcast in the UK the view over Three Cliffs bay was nominated for "Britains Best View".Three Cliff's Bay also appears in a music video entry for
The Red Hot Chili Peppers made by Swansea film company, Studio8.Notes
External links
* [http://www.goweruk.com/Beach.aspx?id=13 An interactive, social networking and tourism web site based on the Gower Peninsula.]
* [http://www.thegowercoast.com/beaches/three_cliffs_bay Three Cliffs Bay]
* [http://www.visitswanseabay.com/ Official tourist website for Gower]
* [http://www.geograph.org.uk/search.php?i=2731876 www.geograph.co.uk : photos of Three Cliffs Bay and surrounding area]
* [http://www.explore-gower.co.uk/coppermine/thumbnails/album=46.html Photographs of Three Cliffs Bay] : [http://www.explore-gower.co.uk Explore Gower]
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