Myrtle Cottage

25/08/2026

The missing village...

Near to Pennard Castle lies the lost village of Pennard. Several villages around Gower started to have problems with sand being blown in by winds and, with no means to remove the sand, it became impossible to live there. Sand burrows were known to be in the area in the early 14th century and when church property was valued in 1535, the Vicar of Pennard said the church was overcome by drifts of sand.

All that remains visible of the church and village is the one standing wall of the church, which is on the edge of Pennard Golf Course.

This is an extract from my book Gower: The Path Less Trodden, link in comments.

11/08/2026

01/08/2026

Some ideas for walks.

01/08/2026

Useful info for anyone staying at Myrtle Cottage!

We’re delighted to have received a lovely mention in The Guardian. 📣

As The Guardian put it:

“Thanks to the National Trust, it’s also untouched by the grubby hand of commercialism, so should you be peckish, pause at the aptly named The View cafe before you descend the cliff. Offering colourful vegan ‘power bowls’ (popular with the surfing crowd apparently) and homemade falafel alongside the rarebit and bara brith, the only packaged food in sight is a bag of locally produced dog treats.”

We’re incredibly grateful to everyone who visits and supports us. We look forward to welcoming many more of you to enjoy the food, the coffee, and, of course, the spectacular views across Rhossili Bay. 💙

https://www.theguardian.com/travel/2026/jul/25/culinary-food-tour-gower-south-wales

27/07/2026

A good walk from Myrtle Cottage - Pobbles and Three Cliffs on the other side of Tor Point.

🏴󠁧󠁢󠁷󠁬󠁳󠁿 Great Tor 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁷󠁬󠁳󠁿
Great Tor is the most southerly point of Penmaen Burrows and separates Three Cliffs Bay from Tor Bay and Oxwich Bay. At low tide it is possible to walk around the base of Great Tor to Tor Bay.

21/07/2026

Park at Llangennith for wonderful walks on this western tip of Gower.

The stunning Burry Holms at very low tide.

Burry Holms has a long history, including Stone Age occupation, a Bronze Age burial mound, an Iron Age fort and a monastic settlement from the 11th century to the 17th century (which is what this photo shows).

Just after the end of the Ice Age, in the Early Mesolithic period (also known as the Middle Stone Age, which was 15,000 to 5,000 BP), sea levels were much lower and the island would have been an inland hill. This would have made it the perfect place for Mesolithic people to establish a settlement. During archaeological investigations, over 20 small spears have been identified as microliths (flint tools). However, the soil is acidic, which means any remains of skeletons haven’t survived.

This is an extract from my book Gower: The Path Less Trodden, link in the comments.

28/06/2026

One of the joys of staying at Myrtle Cottage to have this as a local walk.