Gower and Swansea Bay Coast Path

Gower and Swansea Bay Coast Path
Worm's Head peninsula
Length	156 km (97 mi)
Location	Wales
Designation	Long distance footpath
Trailheads	Loughor, Swansea 51°39′45″N 4°03′53″W / 51.66261°N 4.06461°W / 51.66261; -4.06461 Kenfig Dunes, Port Talbot 51°30′55″N 3°43′38″W / 51.5153°N 3.7272°W / 51.5153; -3.7272
Use	Hiking
Hiking details
Trail difficulty	Easy
Season	All year

The Gower and Swansea Bay Coast Path is part of the Wales Coast Path, an 1,400-kilometre (870 mi) long-distance walking route around the whole coast of Wales which opened in 2012.^[1] The Gower and Swansea Bay stretch is 156-kilometre (97 mi) 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 (October 2011 to September 2012) in the Swansea local authority area was 349,333.^[2]

The path passes through the first area in Britain to be designated an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty (1956)^[3] and is home to 10 nature reserves, 24 Wildlife Trust reserves, 32 Sites of Special Scientific Interest and five Special Areas of Conservation.^[4] The path is maintained and administered by two county councils, Swansea and Neath Port Talbot.

Wales Coast Path logo

The highest point of Gower is The Beacon at Rhossili Down at 193 metres (633 ft) overlooking Rhossili Bay.^[5] Pwll Du and the Bishopton Valley form a statutory Local Nature Reserve.^[6] The southern coast consists of a series of small, rocky or sandy bays, such as Langland and Three Cliffs, and larger beaches such as Port Eynon, Rhossili and Oxwich Bay. The north of the peninsula has fewer beaches, and is home to the cockle-beds of Penclawdd.

Points of interest

The Whiteford Point Lighthouse (built in 1865) is the only offshore cast iron lighthouse in Britain. Further south stands the Worm's Head peninsula, named for its resemblance to a resting dragon. Worm's Head is best viewed from Rhossili Bay which, in 2013, was voted the UK's number one beach, third best in Europe, and 10th best in the world, by TripAdvisor users.^[7]^[8] Aberavon Beach is a two-mile strip of white sands, with views across Swansea Bay to the Gower Peninsula.

References

↑ "All-Wales Coast Path Nears Completion". BBC News Wales. BBC. 17 October 2011. Retrieved 2 January 2012.
↑ The Economic Impact of Wales Coast Path Visitor Spending on Wales 2012, report for the Welsh Economy Research Unit of the Welsh Government, page 6; accessed 20 October 2013
↑ Millennium Coast Park website; retrieved 8 October 2013
↑ Wales Coast Path official site; retrieved 08 October 2013
↑ Enjoy Gower - Gower Beaches
↑ "Pwll Du and Bishopton Local Nature Reserve". Green Map. Retrieved 8 December 2010.
↑ "Wales beats Hawaii and Caribbean in beach poll". Travelmole.com. 2013-02-21. Retrieved 2013-06-19.
↑ "BBC News - Rhossili Bay, Gower, third best in Europe says TripAdvisor survey". Bbc.co.uk. 2013-02-21. Retrieved 2013-06-19.

Long-distance footpaths and National Trails in Wales

Coastal footpaths & trails	Anglesey Coastal Path Ceredigion Coast Path Gower and Swansea Bay Coast Path Llŷn Coastal Path North Wales Path Pembrokeshire Coast Path South Wales Coast and Severn Estuary Coastal Path Wales Coast Path

Non-coastal footpaths & trails	The Beacons Way Cambrian Way Celtic Way Cistercian Way Clwydian Way Dyfi Valley Way Glyndŵr's Way Landsker Borderlands Trail Marches Way The Maelor Way Monnow Valley Walk Offa's Dyke Path Rhymney Valley Ridgeway Walk Taff Trail Usk Valley Walk Valeways Millennium Heritage Trail Wye Valley Walk

Coastal paths of Great Britain

England:	Bournemouth Coast Path Cleveland Way Cumbria Coastal Way England Coast Path Lancashire Coastal Way Norfolk Coast Path Saxon Shore Way Solent Way South West Coast Path Suffolk Coast Path West Somerset Coast Path

Scotland:	Arran Coastal Way Ayrshire Coastal Path Fife Coastal Path John Muir Way Moray Coast trail Scottish Coastal Way

Wales:	Anglesey Coastal Path Ceredigion Coast Path Llŷn Coastal Path Millennium Coastal Path North Wales Path Pembrokeshire Coast Path Wales Coast Path

Non-Mainland:	Isle of Wight Coastal Path

Long-distance footpaths in the United Kingdom

National Trails (England and Wales)	Cleveland Way Cotswold Way England Coast Path Glyndŵr's Way Hadrian's Wall Path North Downs Way Norfolk Coast Path Offa's Dyke Path Peddars Way Pembrokeshire Coast Path Pennine Bridleway Pennine Way The Ridgeway South Downs Way South West Coast Path Thames Path Yorkshire Wolds Way Wales Coast Path

Long distance routes (Scotland)	Great Glen Way Southern Upland Way Speyside Way West Highland Way

Long distance path (Northern Ireland)	Ulster Way

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