Tidal Islands of the Gower!

There's more pictures from last year to put up, but I thought I would bring things bang up to date with the story of what we got up to last weekend. It was intended as a visit to Caldey Island, but rough seas and bad weather put a stop to that, which was a shame, especially with it turning out sunny and calm on the Monday, but we got to do another five islands instead, which if you're counting (which we are) was a bit of a bonus.

Sunday

I set off on the train on Sunday morning to catch up with Liam in Swansea, where he was staying with the missus (Fran), and after an hour with her lovely horse Blackie, we left her and drove out to Rhosilli, parked up and walked down the cliff path to Worms Head.

Tide times were perfect for the crossing over the causeway to the inner head, and we scrambled with ease across the rocky, barnacled causeway in about twenty minutes. There was great debate over just how many islands exactly make up Worms Head, could it be two, three, or maybe even four? The internet didn't seem to know, but officially we decided to count it as two. 

After a steep climb to the top of the inner head, we descended back down onto the rocky shoreline and over to the outer head. There were plenty of seals basking along the rocks next to the path, and plenty of daytrippers stopping to watch, there were also plenty of birdwatchers, and we decided if we're going to be spending so much time in their habitats we'd better get a book next time so we know what birds are flying around. 

As time was limited, we didn't stay too long on the outer head, but decided to make our way all the way back to the mainland across the jagged rocks, stopping along the way to check out the rockpools (and take some fun pictures!)

After heading back to Fran's we spent the evening in the company of the lovely people from her stables, and discovered that "island people" are where you least expect to find them. Not only did we meet a man who has flown and landed on many of the islands around Britain (and asked him for some lifts), the host herself seemed to understand the appeal...

Monday

This was supposed to be the day of the trip around the coast to Caldey, but after getting up early and preparing for a long day, a check of the automated telephone message told us that all boats were off, and Tuesday was looking doubtful. Not to be deterred (though a little disappointed), we decided that we'd spend the day closer to home on the Gower. From Worms Head the day before we'd seen across Rhosilli bay to what definitely looked like another island at the end, a quick check on t'internet told us not only was it an island, but it was accessible, and it even had a name! This time with Fran in tow, Burry Holms was to be the first stop of the day. 

After a meandering half mile through the sand dunes another little trek over slippery seaweed covered rocks we got to the island itself, luckily we'd managed all the islands so far with the tide on our side, we could see that the water had just receded enough to let us cross, and after scrambling up onto the grassy bank on the top of the island, we saw that it had perhaps more going for it than Worms Head across the bay, with evidence of the 12th Century church of St Cenydd, the ruins of a 14th Century school, as well as Iron Age Earthworks which are clearly visible as a huge dividing line across the top of the island today, it clearly must have been an good place to keep safe and get some peace, away from the hustle and bustle of the busy and overpopulated Western end of the Gower!

After circumnavigating the small islet, and after a long and wistful look out over the sea (cos that's where all the adventures come from), we headed back to the beach and retraced our steps through the sand dunes to the car, and after an inadvertent trip all the way round the Gower (blaming the navigator), finally got to the Mumbles for our final islands of the weekend. 

To be fair I didn't really have great expectations of the two small islands that form (and provided the name for) the end of the Mumbles, the far end of the great sweep of Swansea Bay. With the modern amenities (and overpriced cafe) and so many people in such close proximity, I wasn't expecting there to be the same isolation and "island-ness" that you feel on the more far flung outcrops, but I was pleasantly surprised. After our third stomp over uneven intertidal zone of the weekend, we first ascended the further bit of rock, or Mumbles Lighthouse Island, as the council have seemingly named it. 

There was actually lots to see here, and the presence of the ruined buildings and searchlight towers from the war gave it a feel very similar to Steep Holm, just much much easier to get to. There were far less people here than on the mainland, and the inner island in between us and the pier made it feel very remote, but the tide was definitely starting to turn, and when we saw the fishermen start to pack up and climb back from the furthest extremities of the rocks below, we knew it was definitely time to get moving.

We did manage a final scramble up and onto the inner island, far more just a lump of rock and without any notable features other than what looked like some practically vertical but blocked up cave entrances on the seaward side, but without a doubt our fifth island of the weekend, and more than made up for missing out on a real boat trip to Caldey. Either way, we can save that for another weekend now!