Martin's Haven is a small, north-facing cove in

Pembrokeshire Pembrokeshire ( ; ) is a Principal areas of Wales, county in the South West Wales, south-west of Wales. It is bordered by Carmarthenshire to the east, Ceredigion to the northeast, and otherwise by the sea. Haverfordwest is the largest town and ...

Wales Wales ( ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by the Irish Sea to the north and west, England to the England–Wales border, east, the Bristol Channel to the south, and the Celtic ...

, UK, on the Dale Peninsula, with views across

St Bride's Bay St Brides Bay () is a bay in western Pembrokeshire, West Wales. Either Skomer Island or the mainland extremity of Wooltack Point at the western end of the Marloes Peninsula marks the southern limit of the bay whilst its northern limit is ...

towards

St David's St Davids or St David's (, , "Saint David, David's Welsh toponymy, house”) is a St David's Cathedral, cathedral City status in the United Kingdom, city in Pembrokeshire, Wales. It lies on the River Alun, Pembrokeshire, River Alun and is ...

. It is recorded by the

Royal Commission A royal commission is a major ad-hoc formal public inquiry into a defined issue in some monarchies. They have been held in the United Kingdom, Australia, Canada, New Zealand, Norway, Malaysia, Mauritius and Saudi Arabia. In republics an equi ...

as a historic place name.

Features

The Haven's shingle beach has a stone slipway which acts as an embarkation point for the ferry which visits the nearby island of

Skomer Skomer () or Skomer Island is an island off the coast of Pembrokeshire, in the community of Marloes and St Brides in west Wales. It is well known for its wildlife: around half the world's population of Manx shearwaters nest on the island, the A ...

, a national nature reserve, during summer. Martin's Haven lies within the Skomer Marine Conservation Zone and is popular for

scuba diving Scuba diving is a Diving mode, mode of underwater diving whereby divers use Scuba set, breathing equipment that is completely independent of a surface breathing gas supply, and therefore has a limited but variable endurance. The word ''scub ...

and attractive for its dark sky. Grey seals can be seen basking on the rocks.

Amenities

The Haven is on the

Pembrokeshire Coast Path The Pembrokeshire Coast Path (), often called the Pembrokeshire Coastal Path, is a designated National Trail in Pembrokeshire, southwest Wales. Established in 1970, it is a long-distance walking route, mostly at cliff-top level, with a total ...

and in the

Pembrokeshire Coast National Park Pembrokeshire Coast National Park () is a National Parks of England and Wales, national park along the Pembrokeshire coast in west Wales. It was established as a National Park in 1952. It is one of the three National parks of Wales, the others ...

. It has its own car park and toilet facilities, owned by the

National Trust The National Trust () is a heritage and nature conservation charity and membership organisation in England, Wales and Northern Ireland. The Trust was founded in 1895 by Octavia Hill, Sir Robert Hunter and Hardwicke Rawnsley to "promote the ...

, as is much of the small peninsula on which Martin's Haven lies. The National Trust area features a peninsula walk from which most of Pembrokeshire's islands can be seen.

Anchorage

For sailors and divers there is safe anchorage at Martin's Haven for small boats, with the mouth of the cove having 6 metres of water. Onshore is a Wildlife Trust visitor centre. On the west side of the Haven, at Wooltack Point, there is a

National Coastwatch Institution The National Coastwatch Institution is a voluntary sector, voluntary organisation and registered charity, providing a visual watch along the United Kingdom, UK's coasts, and is not to be confused with Her Majesty's Coastguard, HM Coastguard. ...

watch station.

Mediaeval stone

When constructing the visitor toilets 100m inland from the Haven, workmen found an inscribed stone with a ring-cross, whose possible original function in the 9th or 10th centuries was as a marker or prayer station for travellers; the Haven is a well-established landing place from Skomer, which has been occupied since before recorded history.

References

{{coord, 51.736, -5.245, display=title Geography of Pembrokeshire Bays of Pembrokeshire Underwater diving sites in Wales National Trust properties in Wales