Swansea snow

Swansea has been experiencing heavy snowfalls.

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© David Gill, 2010

Gower sunset

Summer at last seemed to arrive in Swansea for the August Bank Holiday weekend. There was a wonderful sunset this evening looking down the Loughor Estuary with the trees on Whitford Burrows marking the edge of this liminal space.

Bats were skimming the marsh as the crows headed for their roost.

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© David Gill

Egret-priested shore

This afternoon we walked along the estuary path underneath the castle walls at Laugharne. There was one very active group of five egrets. A single heron was keeping an eye on them from the opposite bank. We counted another five herons along the estuary as we looked out to Carmarthen Bay.

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© David Gill

Dragonfly at the National Botanic

We were watching a golden-ringed dragonfly at the National Botanic Garden of Wales.

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© David Gill, 2010

Landing!

We were watching the Guillemot colonies at Stack Rock in South Pembrokeshire. It was a stunning sight with hundreds more (and Razorbills) on the water below the cliffs.

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© David Gill, 2010

Turnstone at Cardigan Island

On Saturday we observed an unusual bird on the ledges between the mainland and Cardigan Island. Its mottled back seems to suggest this is a Turnstone.

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© David Gill, 2010.

Oystercatchers on Cardigan Bay

There were numerous oystercatchers around the coast of Cardigan Bay this afternoon. This pair were just offshore at Cardigan Island.

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© David Gill, 2010

Geese in Bluebells

This afternoon we were watching (from a distance) the geese grazing among the bluebells on Cardigan Island. There was a swathe of blue across the top of the island with little flecks of white where the seagulls were resting.

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© David Gill, 2010

Aberglasney: bluebell time

The woods at Aberglasney are carpeted with bluebells. The wider gardens are awash with spring colours and the sky is full of swifts and swallows. Aberglasney at its best!

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© David Gill, 2010

Spring at Aberglasney

The 'kitchen garden' at Aberglasney has a small but stunning display of tulips. They are reminiscent of how this part of the gardens were displayed when they opened ten years ago.

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© David Gill, 2010

Colby Gardens

Spring is coming to Colby Gardens in south Pembrokeshire. A few of the rhododendrons are beginning to come into flower and the bluebells will be out in the next week or two.

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© David Gill, 2010.

Hartland Point

Looking out from Swansea at night you can see the Hartland Light where the Bristol Channel meets the Atlantic.

Lundy is on the skyline.

Image
© David Gill, 2010.

First Bluebell of 2010

We saw our first Bluebell this afternoon, nestling on the north-facing slopes above the Tywi. Spring must be just around the corner.

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© David Gill, 2010

Spring round the corner at Dinefwr

The mill pond at Dinefwr looks almost autumnal. There are few signs of spring.

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© David Gill, 2010

Tywi Swans

We went for a walk round Dinefwr this afternoon and had a peep across the Tywi Valley as the swans came into land.

Image
© David Gill, 2010.

Whiteford Sands

The expanse of beach was exposed at Whiteford Sands at the west end of Gower. There were clear views across the mouth of the Loughor estuary towards Burry Port and Pembrey.

© David Gill, 2010

Lapwings on Gower

Yesterday there was a wonderful display by the lapwings at Whiteford Sands at the end of Gower. At one point there were 14 swirling in the sky.

© David Gill, 2010

Paxton's Tower and Middleton Hall

The Tywi Valley is dominated by Paxton's Tower, built to commemorate the death of Admiral Viscount Nelson at Trafalgar in 1805. The folly, which could serve as a dining room for the nearby Middleton Hall (now the site of the National Botanic Garden of Wales), was designed by Samuel Pepys Cockerell (1753-1827). Middleton Hall was the home of Sir William Paxton (1743/4-1824), a business partner of Cockerell's brother Sir Charles Cockerell (1755-1837).

Paxton's Tower is open to the public. It is owned by the National Trust.

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Paxton's Tower from the site of Middleton Hall © David Gill, 2010

Spring round the corner at the National Botanic Garden of Wales

It felt like spring was still round the corner at the National Botanic Garden of Wales. There were one or two daffodils out but most have yet to cover the banks in splashes of yellow. The snowdrops were nearly over but the crocus were making a white display around the dome.

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© David Gill, 2010

Snowdrops at Aberglasney

The hard winter has meant that there has been an impressive show of rather late snowdrops. There are numerous drifts at Aberglasney, such as here on Bishop Rudd's Walk with Llangathen church in the background.


Image
© David Gill, 2010

'By the yew tree' at Strata Florida

There is a most unusual gravestone next to the famous yew tree at Strata Florida. For more about the grave, as well as John Ormond's poem, see The Festival of the Trees 32.

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© David Gill, 2010

Red kites over Strata Florida

There is still (patchy) snow in the hills above Strata Florida. However a pair of red kites were wheeling above the ruins of the abbey.

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© David Gill, 2010

Happy St David's Day

St David's Cathedral, Pembrokeshire
Image © David Gill, 2009

Traces in the sand

We went for a walk on the Millennium Coastal Path at Llanelli in a raw wind. The tide was right out but there were traces of some of the residents in the sand.

Image © David Gill, 2010

Snow in the Beacons

We were in Brecon over the weekend and had a picnic in the Beacons where there were still traces of recent snowfalls. On the way back the pass still had large drifts adjaeent to the road.

Image © David Gill, 2010

Red Kites over Aberglasney

While snowdrops dotted the gardens at Aberglasney this weekend, several red kites were circling in the sky.

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© David Gill

Laugharne in January

Laugharne became the home for Swansea's Dylan Thomas. Today was one of those glorious January days:  patches of sunshine, mildish air, and clear views over Carmarthen Bay to St Ishmaels and Gower beyond. There were oystercatchers and curlew in profusion.

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View over the Dylan Thomas Boathouse towards Carmarthen Bay.
© David Gill, 2010

Llanelli Snowlands

Last week the 'scrapes' in the Llanelli Wetlands Centre on the edge of the Loughor estuary was frozen. There were small patches of water left, and waterfowl were jostling for position. Here are some swans approaching for a frozen landing. Notice snow-bound Gower in the background.


Image
© David Gill, 2010

Snowbound Swansea

Swansea, like most of the UK,  has been snowbound for much of the last week. Here is a view overlooking Tycoch and Sketty.

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© David Gill, 2010

Welcome! Croeso!

Welcome to Swansea Bay View! This will be an occasional blog talking about life in Swansea and South Wales. At the moment we are snow and ice bound.

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© David Gill, 2010