Widemouth Bay
Encyclopedia
Widemouth Bay is a bay and beach
on the Atlantic
coast of Cornwall
, England
, UK, approximately 3 miles (5 km) south of Bude
. This stretch of coast is steeped in the smuggling history of times before, and not far south of Widemouth Bay can be found many little inlets and coves.
and swimming and is patrolled in the summer by RNLI lifeguards. Several surfing schools operate on the beach because it has relatively gentle, easy to ride waves but on the other hand there can be big waves. There are several cafes on and around the beach as well as a pub and shops on the hill above the bay.
and Ogmore-by-Sea
across the Bristol Channel
in Wales
; it has the same (gently sloping) hill-top location; wide, sandy beach; pounding Atlantic surf; and significantly the same carboniferous
sandstone
cliffs. Another significant connection is that sloops from Wales would use Widemouth as a port (in the most basic sense), unloading coal
and limestone
; sloops would take back to Wales Cornish wares such as granite
, slate
, tin
, copper
and even Cornish pasties.
for many Transatlantic Cables
, such as Apollo
, TAT-8
(although no longer in use since 2002), TAT-14
and AC-2
, which are a vital link between the UK and the USA.
Beach
A beach is a geological landform along the shoreline of an ocean, sea, lake or river. It usually consists of loose particles which are often composed of rock, such as sand, gravel, shingle, pebbles or cobblestones...
on the Atlantic
Atlantic Ocean
The Atlantic Ocean is the second-largest of the world's oceanic divisions. With a total area of about , it covers approximately 20% of the Earth's surface and about 26% of its water surface area...
coast of Cornwall
Cornwall
Cornwall is a unitary authority and ceremonial county of England, within the United Kingdom. It is bordered to the north and west by the Celtic Sea, to the south by the English Channel, and to the east by the county of Devon, over the River Tamar. Cornwall has a population of , and covers an area of...
, England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
, UK, approximately 3 miles (5 km) south of Bude
Bude
Bude is a small seaside resort town in North Cornwall, England, at the mouth of the River Neet . It lies just south of Flexbury, north of Widemouth Bay and west of Stratton and is located along the A3073 road off the A39. Bude is twinned with Ergué-Gabéric in Brittany, France...
. This stretch of coast is steeped in the smuggling history of times before, and not far south of Widemouth Bay can be found many little inlets and coves.
Activities
The beach is popular for surfingSurfing
Surfing' is a surface water sport in which the surfer rides a surfboard on the crest and face of a wave which is carrying the surfer towards the shore...
and swimming and is patrolled in the summer by RNLI lifeguards. Several surfing schools operate on the beach because it has relatively gentle, easy to ride waves but on the other hand there can be big waves. There are several cafes on and around the beach as well as a pub and shops on the hill above the bay.
Geography of Widemouth Bay
Widemouth Bay is visually very similar to SoutherndownSoutherndown
Southerndown is a village in South Wales to the southwest of Bridgend, close to St Brides Major, Llantwit Major and Ogmore-by-Sea. It is mostly known for its beach , which is a popular tourist destination during the summer months and since 1972 has been designated a Heritage Coast and is part of...
and Ogmore-by-Sea
Ogmore-by-Sea
Ogmore-by-Sea is a seaside village in the Vale of Glamorgan, Wales. It lies on the western limit of the Glamorgan Heritage Coastline of south Wales....
across the Bristol Channel
Bristol Channel
The Bristol Channel is a major inlet in the island of Great Britain, separating South Wales from Devon and Somerset in South West England. It extends from the lower estuary of the River Severn to the North Atlantic Ocean...
in Wales
Wales
Wales is a country that is part of the United Kingdom and the island of Great Britain, bordered by England to its east and the Atlantic Ocean and Irish Sea to its west. It has a population of three million, and a total area of 20,779 km²...
; it has the same (gently sloping) hill-top location; wide, sandy beach; pounding Atlantic surf; and significantly the same carboniferous
Carboniferous
The Carboniferous is a geologic period and system that extends from the end of the Devonian Period, about 359.2 ± 2.5 Mya , to the beginning of the Permian Period, about 299.0 ± 0.8 Mya . The name is derived from the Latin word for coal, carbo. Carboniferous means "coal-bearing"...
sandstone
Sandstone
Sandstone is a sedimentary rock composed mainly of sand-sized minerals or rock grains.Most sandstone is composed of quartz and/or feldspar because these are the most common minerals in the Earth's crust. Like sand, sandstone may be any colour, but the most common colours are tan, brown, yellow,...
cliffs. Another significant connection is that sloops from Wales would use Widemouth as a port (in the most basic sense), unloading coal
Coal
Coal is a combustible black or brownish-black sedimentary rock usually occurring in rock strata in layers or veins called coal beds or coal seams. The harder forms, such as anthracite coal, can be regarded as metamorphic rock because of later exposure to elevated temperature and pressure...
and limestone
Limestone
Limestone is a sedimentary rock composed largely of the minerals calcite and aragonite, which are different crystal forms of calcium carbonate . Many limestones are composed from skeletal fragments of marine organisms such as coral or foraminifera....
; sloops would take back to Wales Cornish wares such as granite
Granite
Granite is a common and widely occurring type of intrusive, felsic, igneous rock. Granite usually has a medium- to coarse-grained texture. Occasionally some individual crystals are larger than the groundmass, in which case the texture is known as porphyritic. A granitic rock with a porphyritic...
, slate
Slate
Slate is a fine-grained, foliated, homogeneous metamorphic rock derived from an original shale-type sedimentary rock composed of clay or volcanic ash through low-grade regional metamorphism. The result is a foliated rock in which the foliation may not correspond to the original sedimentary layering...
, tin
Tin
Tin is a chemical element with the symbol Sn and atomic number 50. It is a main group metal in group 14 of the periodic table. Tin shows chemical similarity to both neighboring group 14 elements, germanium and lead and has two possible oxidation states, +2 and the slightly more stable +4...
, copper
Copper
Copper is a chemical element with the symbol Cu and atomic number 29. It is a ductile metal with very high thermal and electrical conductivity. Pure copper is soft and malleable; an exposed surface has a reddish-orange tarnish...
and even Cornish pasties.
Transatlantic Cables
The gentle beaches in the bay are also the landing pointsCable landing point
A cable landing point is the location where a submarine or other underwater cable makes landfall. The term is most often used for the landfall points of submarine telecommunications cables and submarine power cables. The landing will either be direct or via a branch from a main cable using a...
for many Transatlantic Cables
Submarine communications cable
A submarine communications cable is a cable laid on the sea bed between land-based stations to carry telecommunication signals across stretches of ocean....
, such as Apollo
Apollo (submarine communications cable)
Apollo is an optical submarine communications cable system crossing the Atlantic Ocean, owned by Apollo Submarine Cable System Ltd...
, TAT-8
TAT-8
TAT-8 was the 8th transatlantic telecommunications cable,initially carrying 40,000 telephone circuits between USA, England and France. It was constructed in 1988 by a consortium of companies led by AT&T, France Telecom, and British Telecom...
(although no longer in use since 2002), TAT-14
TAT-14
TAT-14 is the 14th consortia transatlantic telecommunications cable system. In operation from 2001, it utilises wavelength division multiplexing. The cable system is built from multiple pairs of fibres—one fibre in each pair is used for data carried in one direction and the other in the opposite...
and AC-2
AC-2 (cable system)
Yellow / AC-2 is a submarine telecommunications cable system linking the USA and the UK. The different owners give this cable system different names, so it is known as both Yellow and AC-2...
, which are a vital link between the UK and the USA.