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| An Ancient 10,000 Year Old Tree Stump on Swansea Bay |
Whilst standing on the vast sands of Swansea Bay, looking out over the Bristol Channel to the distant coastline of England, it is difficult to imagine that the scene here looked distinctly distant to our ancestors. 10,000 years ago, or thereabouts, all that separated Swansea from England was a small, meandering river which fed between a huge forest that joined the two nations. As the last Ice Age retreated, so the sea level rose - to a degree when it eventually flooded the forest to form Swansea Bay - as well as the numerous other beaches that lie further west along the Gower Peninsula.
Whilst this may well be a curious thought, what is perhaps a stranger one, is that remains of this vast forest are still visible today. Emerging from the sands of Swansea Bay, fragments of ancient tree stumps and roots can still easily be discerned. Preserved for an Age in stretches of old peat bog that lie beneath the bay, these trees remind us both of the ever changing habitats that fill the space around us and that current environments often hold clues to those that preceded them.
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| Remains of the Immense Forest Which Once Occupied What Is Now Swansea Bay |
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| More Peat Bog Remains of Swansea Ancient Forest |