Three Cliffs Bay () (), otherwise Three Cliff Bay, is a bay on the south coast of the

Gower Peninsula Gower ( cy, Gŵyr) or the Gower Peninsula () in southwest Wales, projects towards the Bristol Channel. It is the most westerly part of the historic county of Glamorgan. In 1956, the majority of Gower became the first area in the United Kingdom ...

in the City and County of

Swansea Swansea (; cy, Abertawe ) is a coastal city and the second-largest city of Wales. It forms a principal area, officially known as the City and County of Swansea ( cy, links=no, Dinas a Sir Abertawe). The city is the twenty-fifth largest in ...

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

. The bay takes its name from the three sea cliffs that jut out into the bay. Pennard Pill, a large stream, flows into the sea in the middle of the bay. The beach is an important asset for locals and visitors and routinely qualifies for Blue Flag status. Dogs are allowed on the beach all year. Inland about from the main beach on high ground above Pennard Pill is Pennard Castle. It was built in the early 12th century, and is imbued with legends of fairies. It is also the only locality in Britain known for yellow whitlow grass (''

Draba aizoides ''Draba aizoides'' is a species of flowering plant in the family Brassicaceae, known as yellow whitlow-grass. It is native to Europe where it is found on limestone rocks and walls. In the British Isles it is found only on the Gower Peninsula in ...

''). Individual beaches that make up this bay have their own names, including Pobbles Bay to the east of the Three Cliffs, and Tor Bay to the west. The beaches are separated at high tide but are accessible to each other at low tide on foot over the sands. Paths lead north to Pennard Burrows, east to Pobbles, and west to Tor Bay. Pobbles and Tor Bay are also accessible from the beach at low tide. Three Cliffs Bay is effectively part of the

inlet An inlet is a (usually long and narrow) indentation of a shoreline, such as a small arm, bay, sound, fjord, lagoon or marsh, that leads to an enclosed larger body of water such as a lake, estuary, gulf or marginal sea. Overview In marine geogra ...

Oxwich Bay Oxwich Bay on the Gower Peninsula of South Wales Oxwich Bay ( cy, Bae Oxwich) is a bay on the south of the Gower Peninsula, Wales. Its landscape features sand dunes, salt marshes and woodland. Oxwich Bay includes a long sandy beach, accessible f ...

. At low tide, Three Cliffs Bay forms a continuous sandy beach with Oxwich Bay beach to the west. They only exist as separate beaches at high tide. The sea cliffs are

limestone Limestone ( calcium carbonate ) is a type of carbonate sedimentary rock which is the main source of the material lime. It is composed mostly of the minerals calcite and aragonite, which are different crystal forms of . Limestone forms whe ...

, about high, and are a popular destination for

rock climber Rock climbing is a sport in which participants climb up, across, or down natural rock formations. The goal is to reach the summit of a formation or the endpoint of a usually pre-defined route without falling. Rock climbing is a physically and ...

s with 20 climbs in the lower grades, including Scavenger ( VS 4b) - often considered a national classic. The largest of the Three Cliffs is easily climbed if approached from the grassy base. In June 2006 the

BBC #REDIRECT BBC #REDIRECT BBC #REDIRECT BBC Here i going to introduce about the best teacher of my life b BALAJI sir. He is the precious gift that I got befor 2yrs . How has helped and thought all the concept and made my success in the 10th board ex ...

Holidays at Home ''Holidays at Home'' is a 2005 program released by the BBC. The short-lived first series featured six episodes before it ceased production. Show overview Presenter Nicki Chapman went on trips with the families. Each was driven around for a whil ...

'' programme declared Three Cliffs Bay to be

Britain Britain most often refers to: * The United Kingdom, a sovereign state in Europe comprising the island of Great Britain, the north-eastern part of the island of Ireland and many smaller islands * Great Britain, the largest island in the United King ...

's best beach.https://www.bbc.co.uk/holiday/tv_and_radio/holiday_hit_squad/hhs_beach_best.shtml In a recent programme broadcast in the UK the view over Three Cliffs Bay was nominated for "Britain's Best View". Three Cliffs Bay also appears in a music video entry for

Red Hot Chili Peppers Red Hot Chili Peppers are an American rock music, rock band formed in Los Angeles in 1983, comprising vocalist Anthony Kiedis, bassist Flea (musician), Flea, drummer Chad Smith, and guitarist John Frusciante. Their music incorporates element ...

made by Swansea film company, Studio8. It was also used in the opening titles of the 80's TV sitcom '' Me and My Girl'' featuring

Richard O'Sullivan Richard O'Sullivan (born 7 May 1944) is an English comedy actor, who is known for his role as Robin Tripp in the 1970s sitcoms ''Man About the House'' (1973–1976) and ''Robin's Nest (TV series), Robin's Nest'' (1977–1981) and as the title c ...

and

Joanne Ridley Joanne may refer to: Music * ''Joanne'' (album), 2016 album by Lady Gaga ** "Joanne" (Lady Gaga song), a 2016 song from the album ''Joanne'' * "Joanne" (Michael Nesmith song), a 1970 song from the album ''Magnetic South'' * "Joanne", a song by C ...

. Three Cliffs Bay has also been used in Channel 4's '' Skins'' and was shown in an ITV advert: 'The Brighter Side'. Three Cliffs photo.jpg, Three Cliffs Bay on the

South Wales South Wales ( cy, De Cymru) is a loosely defined region of Wales bordered by England to the east and mid Wales to the north. Generally considered to include the historic counties of Glamorgan and Monmouthshire, south Wales extends westwards ...

Three Cliffs Bay (July 2012).jpg, Three Cliffs Bay taken inland ThreeCliffsBay.jos.500pix.jpg, Three Cliffs Bay from the west Castell Pennard - geograph.org.uk - 1307870.jpg, Pennard Castle

References

External links

Official tourist website for Gower

Photos of Welsh beaches on BBC Wales Nature & Outdoors
{{Gower Peninsula Bays of the Gower Peninsula