This is the forth gallery from the Darth Mannion Beach and Swamp Run Challenge 2018. You can find an index of all four galleries here. Click on any of the thumbnails below to open and view the gallery, DimExcuses.
Winter is upon us. Temperatures are barely above zero and snow is hitting the UK with a vengeance. Gower may have eascaped the worst of the snow but it is bitter cold with biting winds. Yet as Ranulph Fiennes is so famously quoted as saying “there is no bad weather, only inappropriate clothing”.
I am permanently wearing a baselayer, I have some cracking Skins thermal ones and I have broken out my snowboarding clothing. My dog Molly is a hardy little french bulldog cross but even she can’t go out without a coat on at the moment.
Molly as a great waterproof coat with a fake fur collar that almost covers her big ears. It is fleeced too. She cuts quite the dash in it.
It is hard to fit beach walks in at this time of year, as well as the tough weather, there is little light in the day. So when we do get a chance we just stick to our Three Cliffs Bay loop.
It is the most popular walk on this blog, and probably our favourite walk too. It is the “go to” walk when we want to show visitors around. It is 5km and takes in Pennard Castle, Three Cliffs Bay and Pobbles Bay.
I track my walks using Strava, you can see this walk here. I also use an app called Relive that makes 3D aerial videos of your mapped Strava activities. You can see a Relive video of this walk here. It is really useful to plan out walking this yourself if you have never been there before.
Molly and I were lucky, the wind dropped and the whole walk was undertaken in a lovely stillness that is rare on the exposed Gower Coast.
One of the benefits of this time of year is that you do get the beach to yourself.
Though Molly is really only interested in sticks.
There is a rugged beauty to Gower in the winter. I think it is the light and the dramatic skies.
The sand levels change from storm to storm in the winter. This is most noticeable when trying to walk through the cave within Three Cliffs to get to Pobbles Bay. it can vary from a sandy walk, rocky scramble or a couple of jumps over sea water filled pools.
None of which is a bother to Molly, she is an all terrain dog, who takes it all in her stride.
She is happy on the rocks and in the rock pools.
That winter storm sand movement has created some spectacular pools.
But there are still huge expanses of sand on the lower tides, plenty of room for a small dog.
As we walked back up from Pobbles Bay to Pennard we noticed warning signs up about Portuguese Man O War strandings. These aren’t technically jellyfish, but a colony organism that is very similar. Their long tentacles can cause a very painful sting. There have been loads washed up in South West UK this autumn and winter. I know a lot people still out there surfing and I haven’t heard of any incidents, but it can’t harm to be wary of them. As they tend to be on the shoreline, they are more of a hazard to dogs, so keep an eye out for them.
It is always worth getting out and blowing the cobwebs away at this time of year. Here is Molly having one last look at the sea before making our way back to the warm indoors.
It is still a long way to spring, but there are plenty of reasons to get out walking down the beach. Just make sure you wear the right clothes, DimExcuses.
The DimExcuses End of Summer Walk is in its ninth year, and this is my 6th time on this epic big Gower walk. We have always been lucky. This 19 mile, 9 hour end of summer ritual has generally been great weather, and our irresponsible approach to never checking the tide times has never stung us too badly…
The start of this years walk was no exception. It hasn’t been the best summer, but as we waited by the bus stop in Killay, to get the first Gower bus to Rhossili, the sun was starting to sneak out.
There were eleven of us on the bus, and we got over the first hurdle of getting the driver to let our massive wolf on! Technically a Husky, German Shepard cross, Oakley is definitely quite dire wolf in appearance.
Arriving at Rhossili we were met with End of Summer Walk first timer Lauren, bringing us up to twelve walkers. Lauren wasn’t the only new feet, we were also joined by Ellie, Ben, Ian, Ffion and Harry, all who had never undertaken this epic effort before. A quick team picture with the famous Rhossili Bay in the background and we were off!
A forced march cross-country taking in the amazing South Gower cliffs and we were soon in Port Eynon.
The fantastic staff at the Captains Table had reserved us a table and bent the breakfast deadline to sort us out with breakfasts of varying size. Obviously I had a big breakfast as it was a big walk. After thoroughly enjoying our breakfasts, it was team photo two, before making the sheltered coastal walk to Oxwich. The weather was fantastic, we couldn’t believe how lucky we were (at this point).
We were soon sitting at the Oxwich Bay Hotel enjoying a pint in the sunshine. At that point friends and relatives were ringing us to say the rain was coming down in sheets in Swansea and heading our way.
We were still in buoyant mood, we could see the rainfall in the distance but we seemed to be skirting past it.
It was at this point we realised that it was almost high tide and Tor Bay was totally cut off by the tide. This meant we have to do a huge sandy climb over Little Tor. The view was quite spectacular back to Oxwich Bay.
It was then that that rain hit us. Right when we were most exposed on Penmaen Cliffs…
…and we still had the problem that it was high tide at Three Cliffs Bay and we had another hard sandy climb ahead of us. Our luck had well and truly run out. This was the hardest the End of Summer Walk has ever been. I even thought we would not make it to Southgate.
We made it to the Southgate Club like drowned rats. There was talk of abandoning the walk there, but that was quickly dismissed as not the DimExcuses way. The new walkers were some of the most keen to press on to the end! My girlfriend Sharon and our dog Molly came to our rescue bringing some dry clothes to the Southgate Club and taking our drenched ones. Apologies to the football crowd in the Southgate who suddenly had eleven soaking walkers changing around them in the busy pub.
As we changed the weather opened up again and we continued on to Pwll Du Bay before the final climb to Bishopston and the Joiners Arms. Sharon came to our rescue again ferrying people back to their cars in Killay.
Next year we will change the end of the walk to double back to the Gower Inn which is on the bus route back to the cars.
So our luck did finally run out, but we took it in our stride and completed the ninth DimExcuses End of Summer Walk. A full gallery of images is below. Next year is the tenth anniversary walk, so you need to be on it with us, DimExcuses.
Sometimes you have to change your perspective on things. Usually a quick straight walk down Pobbles Bay, Gower is my go to quick walk for taking my dog Molly to the beach. But I fancied a change and a different view of Pobbles for once.
Pobbles is my favourite beach. You can read my DimExcuses Pobbles Beach Guide here. It is also a beach visited on my classic 5km Pennard Castle, Three Cliffs Bay and Pobbles circular walk. Sometimes it even gets surf!
This was one of those days when it had a surf-able swell. It has been a hit and miss summer, so we decided to make the most of this Sunny Saturday.
We did our usual walk down from Pennard, past Pennard Golf Club, but then climbed out of the bay up to the plateau of Pennard Cliffs to get a different view of the famous Three Cliffs.
Molly is as happy on the limestone rocks of Pobbles as she is on the beach.
Looking back you get a great view of the west side of Three Cliffs and Pobbles Bay in front of it. Just as to get to the top and onto Pennard Cliffs you can also see across to the greens of Pennard Golf Course. Molly stopped for a pose with course behind her…
..before a quick drop and roll.
Molly is always happiest on the Gower Coast. Total adventure french bulldog.
Once the cliffs were climbed we headed back through Southgate village to complete our Pobbles, Pennard Cliffs loop, and as we were passing the Southgate Club, it would be rude not to stop for a pint of Gower Power!
We are definitely making the most of this Gower summer, no matter what the weather, DimExcuses.
It has been a while since I posted on here and brought you some pictures of Gower beaches. It is amazing how any new activity you do steals time away from your other activities. This summer I have been really concentrating on my running, at the
expense of my walking. Molly has really missed out on our beach walks too.
I ran the INVNCBL Obstacle Course Race (OCR) at the start of July in Pembrey
Country Park. It was awesome, hard but I would recommend it. I over trained and
have picked up Planar Fasciitis which has also impacted my walking. Add to that I
fell running and have hurt one of my ribs, so no surfing. But I have now healed to the
point Molly and I can get out down Pobbles Bay, Gower between the summer
showers.
You can follow my walking and running at my Strava page, and here is a link to the
walk I have walked and photographed in this post.
I am also using a partner app to Strava, called Relive which plots my Strava activity
on 3D aerial maps. You can see a video of this walk here.
This was a quick 3km walk Molly and I do when we are pressed for time or the
weather is not looking too good. It is straight down and back up from Pobbles Bay
past Pennard Golf Club. Here is Molly checking out the new golf club sign.
This year managed grazing has been introduced in Three Cliffs Valley which is
adjacent to Pobbles Bay.
There is a herd of cows munching the vegetation around the bay. Hopefully avoiding the ragwort as it is poisonous to grazing stock.
Recently the cows have taken to grazing on the actual Three Cliffs
themselves. It is quite a strange sight to see these hill climbing cows, especially
when the tide is in.
It also means I need to keep Molly on a lead. It is best practice to always keep your
dog on a lead around livestock. The last thing I would want is to worry the herd and
them running off the cliff edge.
Mind you she still manages to stalk them even when she is still safely on the lead.
The cows stay off the beach, so it is ok for Molly to run free in the sand there.
Pobbles is a great little beach when the tide is in.
It is a really fun beach for learning bodyboarding when it gets a bit of a swell.
It is best surfed on the rising tide, but can get a little boxed in on the higher tide.
It is great for swimming too and much safer than Three Cliffs which has a very hazardous current from the river.
You can learn more about Pobbles Bay in the DimExcuses Pobbles Beach Guide here. Pobbles is Molly and my favorite beach, we need to get down there a little more this summer, DimExcuses.
I love these long light evenings as we approach the summer solstice. It gives me and Molly, the french bulldog plenty of time to get an evening walk down to Pobbles Bay, Gower.
There is nothing as good as summer evening at the beach on high tide. And Pobbles Bay has to be one of the best beaches visit on a summer evening. Molly and I often get the beach to ourselves, but I am being to think that the Griffiths family live there as they have been there the last couple of times I have visited Pobbles.
They were even in surfing last night! It is rare to get a surfable wave at Pobbles, but last night there was a cracking fun swell on the push of high tide, squeezing in between the rocks.
Now, if the Griffths are there, then that means that the other Molly will be there too. This Molly is a rescue staffie and that means double Molly trouble as the pair of dogs made the most of the surf.
The DimExcuses Molly was quick to point out though she was happy to share the sand, technically it is her beach.
Pobbles Bay is adjacent to Three Cliffs Bay, so it is easy to get up on the spine of Three Cliffs itself to get some fantastic photos of the iconic cliffs at high tide.
It is a great place to just sit down, chill out and appreciate the rugged beauty of the Gower coast.
The view is equally spectacular looking out at the waves coming into Pobbles Bay.
It looked like a lot of fun riding those summer evening waves.
Molly is always one to appreciate a bit of surf.
Having found our evening sun and surf fix at high tide, it was time for Molly and I to head home, so I will leave you with one last picture of the Jewel of Gower, Three Cliffs Bay.
Spectacular, DimExcuses.
The evening sunlight is still with us as we head into Autumn. After today’s rain Molly the French Bulldog and I took advantage of the early evening sun to head to Pobbles Bay, Gower to see the surf and sunset.
Cross shore to offshore winds were creating a beautiful wave if small wave curling into the Bay, and Molly was enjoying the evening Sun.
Long shadows and low sun.
Obviously some fetch with the ball.
As the evenings draw in, walks like this are going to become less likely, but what a great way to see Autumn in, sunset at Pobbles Bay, Gower.
This is my 100th blog post and it is fitting it is a bulldog walk at Molly and my favorite beach, Pobbles, DimExcuses.
I have had a several week hiatus from my normal Gower adventures, and Molly my French Bulldog, Boston Terrier Cross, is looking under weight from two weeks in kennels, for reasons I will explain in further posts this week.
So to get us back on track, we made the most of the start of autumn and headed to our favourite Beach Pobbles to blow the cobwebs off.
The views were fantastic as always. We had the wild Beach to ourselves and Molly certainly made the most of it.
Friday night fetch, DimExcuses style.
Molly was up on the cliffs as much as she was on the Beach, back to her old self.
So a return to service as usual, a Friday night of bulldogs and beaches, and a good few blog posts to come this month, DimExcuses.
After a poor start to June summer has finally shown up. Sharon, Molly and I are on annual leave so we were lucky enough to get down Pobbles Bay, which was shining in the sun and enjoying a little surf on high tide. It was very different to when I took photos the last time I was here on high tide, which was on a spring evening.
Molly was enjoying the sun and climbing all over rocks, having a good look at the sea. The water was spectacularly clear.
She has no fear on the limestone cliffs…
…and is equally at home in the sea.
Whatever it takes to get her ball.
Another successful fetch.
The west cliffs of Pobbles Bay give you a very different perspective on the famous three cliffs of Three Cliffs Bay.
Molly was having a good look.
She spotted these to kayakers making the most of the high tide in the sun. What a spectacular place for a paddle under the three cliffs.
Molly and I got a quick AONB selfie.
Sharon and her mum were also soaking up the sun.
While this horse and rider were taking a dip to cool off.
Pobbles Bay is spectacular on high tide, but it is amazing with a few waves and the sun too.
Almost enough to make you jump in for a swim.
It has taken me a couple of days to write this as I have been out enjoying the sun, but today the drizzle is back, but I am sure the sun will make another appearence this June and when it does we will be out and about again, DimExcuses.
This June isn’t bringing summer to us just yet. Though better than last weekend, it is still cool and windy on Gower. Undeterred Molly and I set out for our usual loop of Three Cliffs Bay and Pobbles Bay.
What was different today was that it was a very low tide and we were there right on the turn. Which meant that we could drop into the valley and walk along the river.
More importantly it meant we could get through the cave in Three Cliffs to enter Pobbles Bay.
The low tide let us get right out to under the Shirecoombe headland, where Molly got to explore the seaweed. We are off all week so hopefully we will do some more DimExcuses Beach Guides and maybe add some surfs to our #Mentro21 Project. So keep an eye out, DimExcuses.
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