Gower, South Wales Holiday July 2008 - page 1
Setting the tone for the week, we started off our Gower
holiday in South Wales with a strenuous walk from Kittle along the
Bishopstone Valley and a picnic at Pwlldu Bay. Then, suitably
refreshed, we continued past the scenic old smuggler haunts of Brandy
Cove and Caswell Bay and back to the self catering holiday cottage to
complete our car-free day. Next day we toured the ruins at
Oystermouth Castle and The Mumbles, part of Swansea Bay.
This is page one of three.
Gower 1 | Gower 2 | Gower 3
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So this was our gorgeous Gower holiday cottage (well, the furthermost
bit beyond the larger roofed section anyway) and was our very
comfortable base in Kittle for a week. On the first day...
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...in Gower we decided to walk from Kittle down the Bishopstone Valley
to Pwlldu Bay. This proved to be hard going as the torturous
route snaked along - and in! - a rough river bed much of the time.
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At one point we had to scramble across a handy fallen tree when the
river deepened and widened and it become apparent we were on the wrong
side! Doh!
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Bishopstone Valley went on and on, but as it widened out it also became
increasingly scenic, so on we splodged towards Pwlldu Bay.
Fortunately...
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...we bought a Gower Ordnance Survey Explorer Map with us and
certainly needed it to confirm the way when many trails
crossed. Our handheld Sat Nav
just didn't show enough detail. Finally,...
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...after the rather challenging walk along Bishopstone Valley, we
arrived in Pwlldu Bay where we sat on the rocks and ate our yummy
picnic lunch in this splendidly scenic Gower coastal setting.
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Dunno what Belinda put in those rolls, but whatever it was it caused
Mike to exhibit some strange behaviour! Perhaps he was trying to
fly again, like on Devon's Wembury
beach some years previously.
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We carried on with our Gower walk along the coast path via Brandy Cove
to Caswell Bay. This attractive area of south Wales used to be
popular with smugglers in past times owing to all the hidden inlets.
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After a coffee in the rather uninspiring Caswell Bay café we climbed
high up the headland at Bishop's Wood and were rewarded with a
magnificent view of the bay and the coastal route we'd walked earlier.
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You'll notice we have quite a few coastal views on our Gower pages, we
just couldn't resist snapping the wonderful south Wales scenery!
This is a bit further along the coast path near Langland Bay.
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Next up on our Gower holiday was a visit to The Mumbles in Swansea Bay
and after a morning looking around the town we headed to Oystermouth
Castle which only cost £1.00 entrance...
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...hmm... then we realised why - there was no guided or audio tour,
visitors are just left to wander around the castle ruins. Our
Gower photos were taken with our new digital camera which we've
reviewed.
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No matter, at least we got an excellent view from the Oystermouth
Castle keep of The Mumbles stretching out below, and across Swansea Bay.
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Many tourist guide books and websites rave about The
Mumbles but we have to report our wander through the town left us
somewhat underwhelmed. But that could be our expectations were
set too high. Still, we did enjoy a tasty Indian meal in Chutneys
in The Mumbles, despite the staff lacking a personality.
Please see our tourist
resources for more on holidaying in Gower.
Right, our Gower holiday continues on the next page, visiting Rhossili and the Gower Heritage Centre
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Gower 1 | Gower 2 | Gower 3
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