thumb|Oxwich Bay on the [[Gower Peninsula of South Wales]]

Oxwich Bay () is a bay on the south of the Gower Peninsula, Wales.

Bay

thumb|[[Oxwich Bay (painting)|Oxwich Bay by Clarkson Stanfield, 1851]]

Its landscape features sand dunes, salt marshes and woodland. Oxwich Bay includes a long sandy beach, accessible from the village of Oxwich. It is a popular spot for swimming and watersports including diving, sailing, water skiing and windsurfing. There is a public footpath along the cliffs from Oxwich Bay, around Oxwich Point, and to Port Eynon Bay. Buses run every couple of hours between Oxwich and Port Eynon.

A wetland site at the rear of the dunes forms Oxwich Burrows National Nature Reserve. The dunes are crossed by a small stream called Nicholaston Pill. The bay ends at the eastern end with the cliffs of High Tor; but at low tide, a continuous sandy beach connects with Three Cliffs Bay beyond. Within the nature reserve there are rare plants such as the dune gentian and the round-leafed wintergreen, insects such as the small blue, beachcomber beetle and the hairy dragonfly while the wetlands are important for birds, a bird hide is located at Whitestones which is accessed by a boardwalk through the wetlands. The birds present include water rail, little grebe and wildfowl, as well as the occasional wintering great bittern.

On 1 February 2007, Oxwich beach was named the most beautiful in Britain.

References

  • Forces of Nature: Oxwich Bay: Beach information
  • www.geograph.co.uk : photos of Oxwich Bay and surrounding area
  • Landslide at Oxwich Bay December 2009 British Geological Survey

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