Penrice, Oxwich, Gower 9.5 (Carmarthen Ramblers)

The Carmarthen Ramblers were led on a nine-mile circular walk on Gower. The walk included paths, country lanes, fields, woodland, coastline and countryside. There was brilliant sunshine all day with just the lightest of breezes, and temperatures soared to the mid-twenties in the early afternoon. The walk started from the car park in Mill Wood opposite the entrance to Penrice Castle in Penrice from where they walked southwards uphill along a country road for about a quarter of a mile to St Illtyd's church in the village of Penrice. They turned left here to follow a footpath for about a mile that led downhill towards Oxwich around the edge of Oxwich Marsh and into the village. Crossing a road they located a footpath that led uphill towards Oxwich Green then onto a footpath that led to Oxwich Castle. Walking in a southeasterly direction past the castle, they followed a lane then entered a series of fields that covered the top of the hill across the headland, then a footpath cut down through the cliffs to meet the coast path near Oxwich Point for some fabulous coastline scenery around Port Eynon Bay, with Horton and Port Eynon on the opposite side of the Bay. They now turned to a westerly direction to follow the coast path around Port Eynon Bay, going the opposite direction to a large number of sportspeople who were running and swimming their way to Swansea from Rhossili. The group walked about two miles on this easy section of the coast path on well-manicured grass banks where they stopped for lunch with a view over the rocks and the incoming tide at Holy’s Wash.

In the afternoon they continued along the coast for a mile, passing Slade and a diverted section of the path to reach the village of Horton. At this point they turned inland and walked uphill out of the village along a quiet road and just past Bank Farm they located a bridleway that continued southwards for about a quarter of a mile to reach a country road. Crossing the road they located another bridleway that led past Chapel Mere and Merry Sun on top of a hill - the highest point of the day at just one hundred metres. At this stage, the sun was becoming uncomfortably hot and they then descended the hillside through a field to enter the very welcome shade of the woodland on Bryn-sil Top. The group followed a footpath through the woodland for almost a mile and rounded Capon's Hill into Mill Wood to complete the walk.