Caerfai Bay facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Caerfai Bay |
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 Caerfai Bay |
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 Caerfai Bay
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| OS grid reference | SM 7606 2430 |
| Principal area | |
| Ceremonial county | |
| Country | Wales |
| Sovereign state | United Kingdom |
| Post town | HAVERFORDWEST |
| Postcode district | SA62 |
| Police | Dyfed-Powys |
| Fire | Mid and West Wales |
| Ambulance | Welsh |
| EU Parliament | Wales |
Caerfai Bay near St Davids in Pembrokeshire, West Wales has cliffs of purple sandstone and a sandy beach at low tide reached by steep steps. The beach is situated in the Pembrokeshire Coast National Park and on the Pembrokeshire Coast Path and has rugged coastal scenery with the path winding up and down the cliffs. There is free parking above the beach with picnic benches and views of the islands of Penpleidiau, Skomer and Skokholm.
Location
Caerfai beach is only 1.4 kilometres (0.87 mi) from centre of the cathedral city of St Davids. Along the coast to the west is the Chapel of St Non (51°52′20″N 5°16′08″W / 51.8722°N 5.2688°W) which is the most westerly in Wales. On the eastern headland are ramparts of the Iron Age fort of Castell Penpleidiau and Caer Bwdy is next bay to the east.
Commercial activity
Caerfai Bay Caravan and Tent Park which started in the 1930s is open between March and November and has static hire, touring and camping pitches which overlook Caerfai Bay. Caerfai Farm is 140 acres (0.57 km2) producing organic milk, cheeses and potatoes using sustainable energy sources, including solar, geothermal, wind and biomass energy. The farm also has a seasonal shop and a campsite.
Geology
Both western and eastern cliff sections display distinctive red, purple and greenish mudstone and sandstone formations representing the Caerfai and Porth-y-rhaw Groups of lower to middle Cambrian age. The southern tip of the eastern Penpleidiau headland and its small islets are composed of an Intrusive igneous rock known as felsite. the intrusion is in sharp contact with baked fossiliferous Middle Cambrian (Drumian) mudstones of the Menevia Formation and the Tomagnostus fissus Biozone of Scandinavian biostratigraphic terminology (Rees et al., op. cit.). There are disused quarries below the car park and at Caer Bwdy Bay which provided stone in the original construction of St Davids Cathedral and recent renovation on the structure.
Images for kids
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Caer Bwdy Bay looking southwestwards from Carreg y Barcud [Grid reference SM 77362 24228] towards Caerfai Bay. Penpleidiau headland and its islets in the near distance; The hills and islets of Ramsay Island are on the horizon.
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The medieval cross in St David's city centre which stands on a comparatively recent stepped base constructed of purple 'Caer bwdy Sandstone'.
