Crymlyn Burrows, Swansea Bay - 21st March 2015

Sometimes we don't realise what is right under our noses and Crymlyn Burrows is certainly no exception. I can't tell you how many times I have driven past this nature reserve on Fabian Way, but on Saturday 21st March I decided it was time to pay it a visit.

Situated east of Swansea and opposite the Amazon Distribution Centre, this nature reserve is one of the last remaining areas of the Swansea Bay coastline that has not been touched by industry. Interestingly, Crymlyn Burrows falls in two counties - the land west of Baldwin's Crescent falls within the City and County of Swansea and eastwards falls within Neath Port Talbot.

We parked in a small layby on the A483 opposite Amazon and not far from the Premier 4x4 car dealership. The layby can hold about 8 to 10 cars (as long as everyone parks sensibly) and as easy accessibility into the reserve.

Room for about 8 -10 cars. 

The first thing we saw was a large blue sign explaining that Crymlyn Burrows is a Site of Special Scientific Interest and that any destruction to flowers, animals and landform could result in the guilty party getting a fine up to £20,000 - it also warns that cockle picking, motor vehicles and firearms are not allowed and the South Wales Police regularly patrol the area.

The blue sign warning that Crymlyn Burrows is a Site of Special Scientific Interest

Crymlyn Burrows contains some well-defined footpaths but it also has a variety of terrains including vast sand dunes, salt marshes and a carr woodland. Being a SSSI means there is an abundance of wildlife and rare flowers including the Fen Orchid (which can also be found in Kenfig Nature reserve). Infact, it wasn't long before we were treated to our own wildlife sightings - a pair of reed buntings in nearby nettles and a beautiful buzzard flying up high.

Well laid paths around the reserve 

A male and female reed bunting in some nettles. (pic by @danturner23)

A buzzard flying high in search of prey (pic by @danturner23)

We watched as the buzzard hovered above us searching for his prey, he suddenly swooped down behind the sand dunes in front of us - we followed the path over the dunes in the hope that we could see him. There he was perched on a wooden fence, but before we had time to get a photo he was gone and we were left on top of the sand dunes, with the beautiful river Neath in front of us. In the distance we saw two horse riders enjoying the vast reserve.

Two riders crossing the river Neath

There was a lot of other bird activity around, so quietly we walked along the sandy bank to see what we could observe. We were so excited when we saw a pair of skylarks in some shrubs, whilst a lonesome redshank walked along the river bed.

The sand dunes and the river Neath

Skylark (pic by @danturner23)

Skylark (pic by @danturner23)

Redshank in the muddy banks (pic by @danturner23)

As we walked along the banks we could see Kilvey Hill in the distance and we came across a row of old wheels and tyres that formed stepping stones across the river. Instead of going over we decided to head back to the car to go home for lunch and to watch the Six Nations rugby on TV. We had had such a lovely couple of hours in Crymlyn Burrows that we decided to return in the afternoon.

Kilvey Hill in the distance

The wheel stepping stones

On the way back to the car we came across an interesting specimen of a rabbit skull and a carrion crow greeted us on an old rusty post. We couldn't wait to return in a few hours...

A rabbit skull 

Carrion crow (pic by @danturner23)

Well, Wales won the rugby…in fact they defeated Italy with a score of 61 - 20! Feeling happy, we returned to Crymlyn Burrows. The weather was lovely and sunny and the layby was now almost full with cars, but we managed to get the last space and made our way back into the reserve.

This time we turned right and started walking towards the new Swansea University. We walked along some of the higher banks to see the marsh land and the beautiful view over the reserve. You could see Tata Steel and Baglan Bay Energy Park in the distance, which made you appreciate how big Crymlyn Burrows is.

Tata Steel in the distance

Baglan Bay Energy Park with 

As we carried on along the path we started seeing a number of different birds: blue tits, long tailed tits and meadow pipits were all flying in and out of nearby trees. There was also an abundance of yellow gorse that looked fantastic against the blue sky.

Meadow Pipit

Blue Tit

Yellow gorse

Long Tailed Tit

We made our way past Bay Studios, where the U.S. television show Da Vinci's Demons is filmed and eventually got to the new Swansea University Bay Campus development. There are quite a few buildings already built but it's still pretty much a construction site and they have lots to do before the students start moving in this September. In the early stages of building I had concerns about them chopping down lots of trees along Fabian Way, but it's nice to see that many new trees have been planted.

We made our way past the side of the university and headed to the sand dunes in front of us. In a nearby holly bush was a stonechat with his mate, they were flying on and off some of the uni's wooden fence polls.

Bay Studios

Swansea University construction site

Stonechat (oic by @danturner23)

You could just about see Swansea Bay over the dunes and when we got to the top the view was beautiful with clear views of Mumbles. On the beach we found cockles and from this angle we got a great view of the Great Hall of the new university.

The dunes with Swansea Bay just peeping over

Cockles on the beach

The Great Hall

As we made our way along the bay the sun began to set and as we got closer to Baglan Bay we noticed that there were numerous birds on the coast. Hundreds of dunlins were standing near the sea's edge and a huge number of oystercatcher accumulated a little further down. We walked on the sand dunes so as not to scare them and noticed there were a few turnstones there too.

Not sure what birds these are - but pretty cool V shape

Dunlins

Oystercatchers

Turnstones

The sunset was putting on a show and we were now the only two people on the beach. The university looked dramatic at the other end of the Burrows silhouetted by the sun and Mumbles looked so beautiful in the distance. Time was getting on so we decided to head back to the car.

Now this was our first visit to Crymlyn Burrows and we had no idea that the salt marsh floods when the tide comes in from the River Neath. Walking back we noticed several more pools of water than previously, some with mist on them, and then we discovered that the stepping stones (or wheels) had completely disappeared and it was all submerged in water! There was no way to cross!

The University silhouetted in the distance

Mumbles in the beautiful sunset

Misty pools of water

Ok, where did all this water come from?

We had only one option and that was to walk all the way back to the University and then back along the path that runs parallel to Fabian Way. This added another 2 miles to our walk on already tired legs!

When we finally got back to the car we took another pic to show the vast amount of water that had come into the reserve. We had no idea that the River Neath came so far in and have certainly learnt our lesson to check tide times next time.

Apart from almost being marooned, the day was awesome and I feel disappointed with myself that I have never been here sooner. Since 21st March I have already revisited twice and it is now one of my favourite local nature spots.

The River Neath floods the reserve when the tide comes in

If you love nature then this place is without doubt an area that you should visit and it is also important that we protect it. There are concerns that the reserve could be affected by the £1b Tidal Lagoon project that is to be be built in Swansea Bay. The Wildlife Trust are concerned that the project could damage habitats and change the way the sand deposits in the bay, which would affect various coastal birds.

Further reading...

• Crymlyn Burrows on Wikipedia
• BBC News article on the concerns of the Tidal Lagoon

Fan Frynych in the snow - 31/1/2015

It had been a week since we climbed Pen y Fan but we were still craving the delights of the Brecon Beacons. Throughout the week I had been checking the weather uipdates and each day heavy snow had been forecast on the mountains. Our time in the Beacons was not yet finished and we decided to venture to the other side of the A470 and head up to the summit of Fan Frynych

Once again our journey took us over the Black Mountain and, like every other trip over this stretch of road, we had to pull over to get some photos of the amazing scenery. There was still a lot of snow on the ground and the wild ponies were grazing near the edge of the road - two of them came right up to us looking for food. Unfortunately we didn't have anything suitable for them but we did manage to get some lovely pics of them.

One of the beautiful wild ponies

There was still a lot of snow over the Black Mountain

We drove past the Pen-y-Pant car park where we had stopped the week before and were amazed at the amount of cars parked both there and on the road. We glanced up at the path to Pen y Fan and saw people walking up like an army of ants...hence its nickname, the Pen Y Fan Motorway! It was so busy and part of us was relieved that we were going to a much quieter part of the National Park.

Our hike began from a layby  on the A470 (grid ref: SN956227) - a few miles north of the Storey Arms. It is quite a large layby with a picnic bench and information boards - but no toilet or refreshment facilities. We made our way through a wooden gate and into Craig Cerrig-gleisiad nature reserve. 

A cheerful robin greets us

The beginning of the nature reserve

We continued walking up a well laid path which was surrounded by deciduous trees and snow on the ground. It's a fairly steep climb, a little uneven in places and unfortunately not really suitable for wheelchairs or pushchairs. We reached another gate and as we walked through we were presented with the most beautiful winter wonderland.

The path from the layby

Going through the main gate into the reserve

A winter wonderland with very icy paths

Walking through the reserve we were dwarfed by the overpowering steep crags of Craig Cerrig-gleisiad. This fascinating landscape is the result of the Ice Age 20,000 years ago and over time the ice carved the 150m cliffs we see today.

We made our way along the icy paths which kept disappearing under the thick snow. The reserve is in continuous shade in the winter due to the massive cliffs creating almost an amphirheater and this meant that the paths were getting icier and there was no sign of the snow melting. This shaded area creates perfect conditions for some rare arctic plants that can only be found in this part of the Beacons. The cliffs are also a favoured nesting place for peregrine falcons.

As we climbed we turned around and were starting to get fantastic glimpse of Pen y Fan and Corn Du - they were both covered in snow and you could see the dark wintry clouds surrounding the summits.

Corn Du and Pen y Fan in the distance

The weather was starting to change quite dramatically and as we ventured uphill we were caught in several spin drifts. The sky was turning black in parts and it started snowing off and on, but we continued on the path.

We inadvertently went off path a couple of times due to the snow cover, but luckily we knew the area and managed to get back on track. We could just about see the path in the distance and we followed it, passing the bare hawthorn and rowen trees on the way.

We got to our usual point where we would have a rest and a cup of tea…but the rock we would usually sit down on was completely covered in snow. We didn't mind though - we needed a rest and the views of Pen y Fan were beautiful.

The stormy sky

You can just about make out the path with rowen and hawthorn trees scattered across the landscape

Our rest point - with an awesome view of Pen Y Fan

After warming up with a flask of tea and a Mars bar we continued up the mountain. The snow was getting extremely thick in parts, almost knee deep! In the near distance we could see a cairn and ventured towards it.

Dan battling against the thick snow

The snow was almost knee deep!

The cairn in the distance

When we got to the cairn we once again had awesome views of Pen y Fan and Corn Du in the distance. At this point you have an option to go one of two ways to the summit of Fan Frynych: To the left of the cairn is a ridge which we tried to walk, but the snow was far too thick to see the path, so instead we went straight on (with the cairn behind us). 

Cairn

The sun begins to set

The ridge path was impossible to do due to it being so steep and full of thick snow

The route we took to Fan Frynych didn’t appear to have been touched by hikers for a while, which gave us great satisfaction by making footprints in the unspoiled snow. With the path covered in snow we had to rely on memories of previous visits to navigate to the stile that takes you out of the reserve and onto Fan Frynych.

When we eventually reached the stile the snow was coming down thick and fast with the wind blowing a gale - it was the start of a blizzard!

Walking in untouched snow

The stile that leads out of the nature reserve and onto Fan Frynych

The two of us caught in a blizzard

It wasn't long before we could see the trig point of Fan Frynych. The mountain is 629m above sea level and part of the Forest Fawr section of the Beacons. There is usually a well worn path that leads to the trig point, but due to the snow we couldn't see it. So with the summit straight ahead of us and watching where we were walking we headed straight for it.

I filmed the walk to the trig point… it was freezing, windy and visibility was poor -  it wasn't very pleasant but definitely an experience! On top of the blizzard we had to be aware that there were deep pools of water in this area, so each step on the snow was risky.

Where did the path go? The trig point in the distance

Dan in the blizzard to the trig point

When we finally got to the trig point the blizzard was in full force - it was so cold and the wind was very strong. We got our obligatory trig point photos and then, within ten minutes, the blizzard had ended and the sun came out which brought blue sky and amazing 360 degree views. Please watch the video above to see what we experienced on the summit.

The video of the walk to the summit

Me with the trig point

Dan in the Antarctic...errr actually Mid Wales :)

The Awesome Welsh Dragon trig point of Fan Frynych

We spent a good few minutes up on the summit and as we were loosing light fast it was time to make our way back down the mountain. The footprints we had left whilst walking to the summit were now completely covered over due to the recent snowfall, but eventually we got back to the icy path and then found the stile to get back into the nature reserve.

Going down was both fun and scary. When we have climbed this mountain previously the path up is rocky, sometimes steep and very close to the edge - now it was completely covered with snow. We just had to go for it and spent most of the incline sliding, falling and just hoping for pot luck!  We did however have a lot of fun too... snowball fights, snowmen building and endless falls...the snow in the Beacons was awesome!

Snowman!

Snowball fight anyone?

The sun started setting whilst we descended creating a beautiful pink and purple sky, it was also joined by a full moon. 

We always have a fantastic time when we visit the quieter side of the Beacons and it was extra special in the snow. I would certainly recommend this area if you are fed up with the large numbers of people on Pen y Fan - the walk is challenging but you are rewarded with magnificent views of the National Park…and solitude. 

The sun sets with the moon