Walking Gower in the footsteps of the Saints

Whether you’re of any faith or of none, the Gower peninsula offers wonderful walking routes to take in the best of its spectacular coast and countryside scenery as well its blessing of 17 historic churches and countless Celtic and Medieval sacred sites.

One such walking (and cycling) route is the Gower Pilgrimage Way, 50 miles of glorious walking that links the 17 churches and scared sites following Public Rights of Way and sections of Gower’s section of the unique Wales Coast Path.

If you’re a keen walker, you might like to do the whole route, following in the footsteps of the many saints whose names live on in Gower’s beautiful churches, such as Cattwg, Cenydd, Rhidian, Madoc and Illtyd who has given his name to our church here in Oxwich as well as two other Gower churches. You can pick up the route in the cockling village of Penclawdd in the north-east of the peninsula and trek the whole way to the end at St Teilo’s in Bishopston in the south-east.

If you’d rather start little and local, we suggest you take the 10-minute walk from Bayview Oxwich to St Illtyd’s Church. St Illtyd was a revered welsh saint, known for founding the monastic settlement at Llantwit Major in the Vale of Glamorgan which was one of the earliest centres of Christian learning in Britain.

You’ll be amazed at the beauty and spirituality of this church, set as it is on a wooded headland overlooking the sandy sweep of Oxwich Bay, and across to the iconic cliffs of Three Cliffs in the distance. This Grade 2 listed church is a mix of 12th Century Early English build with later 14th Century decorated nave, and chancel – which is the smallest in Gower. You can wonder at the splendid 14th Century two-glass stained windows and the intricately carved woodwork.

The moody graveyard will cast a spell on you and you can read the tombstones and discover histories of the local Bevan family, two former rectors, and unfortunate sailors whose names are unknown but were once washed ashore at Oxwich.

There are also tales that the graveyard’s now dried up well is haunted. It is said that a ghostly white horse known as a ceffyl dwr (water horse) was once seen in the churchyard before vanishing in the well.

Bayview Oxwich makes an ideal base for walking. When you’re footsore, you can enjoy some luxury r & r in one of our exquisite holiday rentals that form our Bayview Oxwich Collection. Whether it’s an exclusive retreat, a contemporary or character cottage, a spacious apartment or a simply stylish bungalow, all our properties guarantee the excellence that will make a memorable seaside holiday for your family or friends.

Please call Wanda and the Team at Bayview to discuss which would suit you best.

For more information on the Gower Pilgrimage Way please see www.gowerma.org