Cardigan Bay () is a large

inlet An inlet is a typically long and narrow indentation of a shoreline such as a small arm, cove, bay, sound, fjord, lagoon or marsh, that leads to an enclosed larger body of water such as a lake, estuary, gulf or marginal sea. Overview In ...

of the

Irish Sea The Irish Sea is a body of water that separates the islands of Ireland and Great Britain. It is linked to the Celtic Sea in the south by St George's Channel and to the Inner Seas off the West Coast of Scotland in the north by the North Ch ...

, indenting the west coast of

Wales Wales ( ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by the Irish Sea to the north and west, England to the England–Wales border, east, the Bristol Channel to the south, and the Celtic ...

between Bardsey Island,

Gwynedd Gwynedd () is a county in the north-west of Wales. It borders Anglesey across the Menai Strait to the north, Conwy, Denbighshire, and Powys to the east, Ceredigion over the Dyfi estuary to the south, and the Irish Sea to the west. The ci ...

in the north, and Strumble Head,

Pembrokeshire Pembrokeshire ( ; ) is a Principal areas of Wales, county in the South West Wales, south-west of Wales. It is bordered by Carmarthenshire to the east, Ceredigion to the northeast, and otherwise by the sea. Haverfordwest is the largest town and ...

at its southern end. It is the largest bay in Wales.

Geography

Cardigan Bay has numerous beaches, and marine life. Much of the coast surrounding the bay is fertile

farm A farm (also called an agricultural holding) is an area of land that is devoted primarily to agricultural processes with the primary objective of producing food and other crops; it is the basic facility in food production. The name is used fo ...

land, dotted with towns and

seaside resort A seaside resort is a city, resort town, town, village, or hotel that serves as a Resort, vacation resort and is located on a coast. Sometimes the concept includes an aspect of an official accreditation based on the satisfaction of certain requi ...

s such as Fishguard, New Quay, Aberaeron,

Llanon Llanon (; also spelled Llan-non) is a village in Ceredigion, Wales. It adjoins the village of Llansantffraid, Ceredigion, Llansantffraed on the coast of Cardigan Bay, north of Aberaeron and south of Aberystwyth on the A487 road. It is situate ...

Aberystwyth Aberystwyth (; ) is a University town, university and seaside town and a community (Wales), community in Ceredigion, Wales. It is the largest town in Ceredigion and from Aberaeron, the county's other administrative centre. In 2021, the popula ...

, Borth, Aberdyfi, Tywyn, Barmouth,

Porthmadog Porthmadog (), originally Portmadoc until 1972 and known locally as "Port", is a coastal town and community (Wales), community in the Eifionydd area of Gwynedd, Wales, and the historic counties of Wales, historic county of Caernarfonshire. It li ...

Criccieth Criccieth, also spelled Cricieth (), is a town and community (Wales), community in Gwynedd, Wales, on the boundary between the Llŷn Peninsula and Eifionydd. The town is west of Porthmadog, east of Pwllheli and south of Caernarfon. It had a ...

and Pwllheli on the Cambrian Coast. Smaller coastal villages include Cwmtydu, Nanternis and Llangrannog. Major rivers flowing into the bay include the Glaslyn, Mawddach, Dysynni, Dyfi, Rheidol, Ystwyth, Aeron and Teifi.

History

Until the early 20th century, Cardigan Bay supported a strong maritime industry. Cardigan is located at the mouth of the River Teifi; hence the Welsh name, Aberteifi (''Mouth of the Teifi''). At the turn of the 19th century, the heyday of the port, it was a more important port than

Cardiff Cardiff (; ) is the capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of Wales. Cardiff had a population of in and forms a Principal areas of Wales, principal area officially known as the City and County of Ca ...

. At this time more than 300 ships were registered at Cardigan—seven times as many as Cardiff, and three times as many as

Swansea Swansea ( ; ) is a coastal City status in the United Kingdom, city and the List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, second-largest city of Wales. It forms a Principal areas of Wales, principal area, officially known as the City and County of ...

. The central and northern areas of the bay are the location of the legendary

Cantre'r Gwaelod , also known as or , is a legendary ancient sunken kingdom said to have occupied a tract of fertile land lying between Ramsey Island and Bardsey Island in what is now Cardigan Bay to the west of Wales. It has been described as a "Welsh Atla ...

, the drowned "Lowland Hundred" or "Hundred under the Sea". During the winter storms of 2014, parts of the lost ancient forest of Borth, which 4,500 years ago stretched on the boggy land to Ynyslas, reappeared on the shoreline in the form of preserved exposed tree stumps. Due to climate change and rising sea levels, the forest was buried under layers of

peat Peat is an accumulation of partially Decomposition, decayed vegetation or organic matter. It is unique to natural areas called peatlands, bogs, mires, Moorland, moors, or muskegs. ''Sphagnum'' moss, also called peat moss, is one of the most ...

, sand and saltwater.

Nature and tourism

The Cardigan Bay Special Area of Conservation was set up to preserve the natural wildlife in the area, both in the sea and on the surrounding foreshore. From the Ceredigion Coast Path it is often possible to observe the Bay's "Big Three" species of harbour porpoise, grey seals, and bottlenose dolphins, of which the bay has the largest population in the UK. Other mammals, such as minke whales, Risso's dolphins and common dolphins, together with many species of seabirds, such as puffin, and

shark Sharks are a group of elasmobranch cartilaginous fish characterized by a ribless endoskeleton, dermal denticles, five to seven gill slits on each side, and pectoral fins that are not fused to the head. Modern sharks are classified within the ...

s, including basking sharks, can also be seen. Since the late 1990s and early 2000s, the bay has been invaded by spider crabs. Not a seafood normally consumed by British people, since 2010 the local fishermen have supplied the Michelin-starred restaurants of Raymond Blanc.

Military testing

A military testing range was first established in Cardigan Bay during the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

. The range is controlled from a main operating base located near Aberporth, known as MoD Aberporth. Historically, the range has played a significant part in the development and testing of a variety of military weapons. Today the Ministry of Defence (MOD) range within Cardigan Bay provides a large secure safety area for the testing of air launched weapons and unmanned aerial systems. The range is a significant employer in the West Wales area, employing some 200 people who work in direct support of the range operation. The Range Danger Area covers some of Cardigan Bay from sea level to unlimited height. To supplement the safe operation of the range, there are a number of small outposts located on the edge of Cardigan Bay and the

Llŷn Peninsula The Llŷn Peninsula ( or , ) is a peninsula in Gwynedd, Wales, with an area of about , and a population of at least 20,000. It extends into the Irish Sea, and its southern coast is the northern boundary of the Tremadog Bay inlet of Cardigan Ba ...

. These outposts contain equipment that enables the range to effectively assess the performance of weapons. Qinetiq operates the Cardigan Bay/Aberporth Range on behalf of the MOD under the terms of a Long Term Partnering Agreement. The purpose of the agreement is to deliver defence test, evaluation and training support services to ensure air launched weapon systems, associated sub-systems and UAS are safe and fit for purpose.

References

External links