The River Gwendraeth ( cy, Afon Gwendraeth) is a
river
A river is a natural flowing watercourse, usually freshwater, flowing towards an ocean, sea, lake or another river. In some cases, a river flows into the ground and becomes dry at the end of its course without reaching another body of wate ...
in
Carmarthenshire in
West Wales
West Wales ( cy, Gorllewin Cymru) is not clearly defined as a particular region of Wales. Some definitions of West Wales include only Pembrokeshire, Ceredigion and Carmarthenshire, which historically comprised the Welsh principality of ''Deheuba ...
.
It has two almost equal branches that have their
confluence
In geography, a confluence (also: ''conflux'') occurs where two or more flowing bodies of water join to form a single channel. A confluence can occur in several configurations: at the point where a tributary joins a larger river (main stem); o ...
in their joint
estuary
An estuary is a partially enclosed coastal body of brackish water with one or more rivers or streams flowing into it, and with a free connection to the open sea. Estuaries form a transition zone between river environments and maritime environment ...
at
Carmarthen Bay. The Gwendraeth Fawr (''large Gwendraeth'' in
English
English usually refers to:
* English language
* English people
English may also refer to:
Peoples, culture, and language
* ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England
** English national ide ...
) is surprisingly the smaller and has its source in a series of springs to the north of
Cross Hands, the most northerly of which rises to the north of Gorslas in the Llyn Llech Owain Country Park, just above the contour. Below Cross Hands, it skirts the northern edge of Mynydd Mawr Woodland Park, and flows to the south of Drefach. It crosses the contour to pass through
Pontyberem
Pontyberem () is a village and community situated in the Gwendraeth Valley halfway between Carmarthen and Llanelli in Carmarthenshire, Wales. As of the 2001 Census, the population was recorded as 2,829, reducing to 2,768 at the 2011 Census.
The ...
, Pont Henri and
Pontyates
Pontyates ( cy, Pont-iets) is a village straddling two communities situated in the Gwendraeth Valley halfway between Carmarthen and Llanelli in Carmarthenshire, West Wales. the population in 2011 was 1,449.
General information
The village of ...
, by which time it is less than above sea level. Finally, it passes to the south of
Kidwelly
Kidwelly ( cy, Cydweli) is a town and community in Carmarthenshire, southwest Wales, approximately northwest of the most populous town in the county, Llanelli. In the 2001 census the community of Kidwelly returned a population of 3,289, inc ...
, to enter the estuary.
[Ordnance Survey, 1:50000 map]
The Gwendraeth Fach (''small Gwendraeth'' in Welsh) flows further to the north having its source about 4 miles north of Cross Hands near the contour at Penrhiwgoch. Passing under the
A48 road
The A48 is a trunk road in Great Britain running from the A40 at Highnam, west of Gloucester, England, to the A40 at Carmarthen, Wales. Before the Severn Bridge opened on 8 September 1966, it was a major route between England and South Wale ...
, it is soon below the contour, flowing in a south-westerly direction to the south of
Llanddarog
Llanddarog () is a community located in Carmarthenshire, Wales.The community population at the 2011 census was 1,198., and includes the villages of Cwmisfael, Mynyddcerrig and Porthyrhyd.
The community is bordered by the communities of: Llana ...
, Cwmisfael and
Llangyndeyrn, before turning southwards through
Mynyddygarreg
Mynydd-y-Garreg or Mynyddygarreg ("The mountain of the stone") is a village in the county of Carmarthenshire, West Wales. It borders the historic town of Kidwelly.
Governance
Mynydd-y-Garreg is in the Kidwelly community and shares with it a mayo ...
. It reaches the estuary to the west of Kidwelly after passing through the town centre.
[
The two branches follow almost parallel courses to the sea. The valleys of both rivers flow through a mixture of modestly steep ]coal mining
Coal mining is the process of extracting coal from the ground. Coal is valued for its energy content and since the 1880s has been widely used to generate electricity. Steel and cement industries use coal as a fuel for extraction of iron from ...
communities and through the verdant agricultural land of Carmarthenshire.
When Thomas Kymer built his canal to carry coal from pits at Pwll y Llygod on the banks of the Gwendraeth Fawr to Ythyn Frenig, about half a mile to the west of Kidwelly on the southern bank of the Gwendraeth Fach, the authorising act of Parliament
Acts of Parliament, sometimes referred to as primary legislation, are texts of law passed by the Legislature, legislative body of a jurisdiction (often a parliament or council). In most countries with a parliamentary system of government, acts of ...
included powers to divert the course of the Gwendraeth Fawr from Pwll y Llygod to Pont Spwdwr, where the Kidwelly to Llanelli
Llanelli ("St Elli's Parish"; ) is a market town and the largest community in Carmarthenshire and the preserved county of Dyfed, Wales. It is located on the Loughor estuary north-west of Swansea and south-east of the county town, Carmarthen. ...
turnpike road
A toll road, also known as a turnpike or tollway, is a public or private road (almost always a controlled-access highway in the present day) for which a fee (or ''toll'') is assessed for passage. It is a form of road pricing typically implemented ...
crossed the river. The canal was built and operational by May 1768, and was later incorporated into the Kidwelly and Llanelly Canal
The Kidwelly and Llanelly Canal was a canal and tramroad system in Carmarthenshire, Wales, built to carry anthracite coal to the coast for onward transportation by coastal ships. It began life as Kymer's Canal in 1766, which linked pits at Pw ...
. Although the route across the sands to the dock that he built was often affected by silting, it continued to be used for the export of coal long after the canal had been replaced by a railway. Coasters carried the cargo to Laugharne, Carmarthen, St Clears and Llanstephan, with the last recorded sailing bound for Llanstephan in the early 1920s.[Morris (1990)]
The most notable place of interest is Kidwelly Castle
Kidwelly Castle ( cy, Castell Cydweli) is a Norman castle overlooking the River Gwendraeth and the town of Kidwelly, Carmarthenshire, Wales. The origin of this surname traces back to when it was spelled Cygweli which means "swan."
Early histo ...
perched above the estuary of the Gwendraeth Fach. The Gwendraeth estuary widens rapidly before joining with the estuaries of the River Tywi
The River Towy ( cy, Afon Tywi, ) is one of the longest rivers flowing entirely within Wales. Its total length is . It is noted for its sea trout and salmon fishing.
Route
The Towy rises within of the source of the River Teifi on the lower sl ...
and the River Tâf to form a three branched estuary.
To the south of the estuary are the great flat sands of Cefn Sidan
Cefn Sidan, translated from Welsh, means "silky ridge". This long sandy beach and its dunes form the outer edge of the Pembrey Burrows between Burry Port and Kidwelly, facing southwestwards over Carmarthen Bay in South Wales. Cefn Sidan beach ...
and Pembrey
Pembrey (Welsh: ''Pen-bre'') is a village in Carmarthenshire, Wales, situated between Burry Port and Kidwelly, overlooking Carmarthen Bay, with a population of about 2,154 in 2011. The electoral ward having a population of 4,301. It is in the ...
, whilst across the estuary on the banks of the River Taf is Laugharne famed for its association with Dylan Thomas
Dylan Marlais Thomas (27 October 1914 – 9 November 1953) was a Welsh poet and writer whose works include the poems "Do not go gentle into that good night" and "And death shall have no dominion", as well as the "play for voices" ''Under ...
.
The SV Paul
The SV ''Paul'' was a four-masted fore-and-aft rigged windjammer, launched in Seattle in 1919. Originally named ''Mount Whitney'' she was sold to new German owners in 1924 and renamed ''Margaret Sayer'', finally in 1925 she was acquired by Flensb ...
is one of the many shipwrecks in the vicinity of the Gwendraeth and the Cefn Sidan
Cefn Sidan, translated from Welsh, means "silky ridge". This long sandy beach and its dunes form the outer edge of the Pembrey Burrows between Burry Port and Kidwelly, facing southwestwards over Carmarthen Bay in South Wales. Cefn Sidan beach ...
sands.
The two points enclosing the mouth of the Gwendraeth are Salmon Point Scar (northern side) and Tywyn Point (southern side).
References
Bibliography
*
*
*''Hanes Cymoedd y Gwendraeth a Llanelli, A History of the Gwendraeth Valleys and Llanelli'', by D. Huw Owen, 2014 ()
External links
Photos of the River Gwendraeth on geograph
{{authority control
Carmarthen Bay
Gwendraeth
The River Gwendraeth ( cy, Afon Gwendraeth) is a river in Carmarthenshire in West Wales.
It has two almost equal branches that have their confluence in their joint estuary at Carmarthen Bay. The Gwendraeth Fawr (''large Gwendraeth'' in English) ...