Caernarfon Harbour (and Caernarfon Bar)

Menai Strait

The Menai Strait (Welsh: Afon Menai, the "River Menai") is a narrow stretch of shallow tidal water about 14 miles (23 km) long, which separates the island of Anglesey from the mainland of Wales.

The strait is bridged in two places - the main A5 road is carried over the strait by Thomas Telford's elegant iron suspension bridge, the first of its kind, opened in January 1826, and adjacent to this is Robert Stephenson's 1850 Britannia Tubular Bridge. Originally this carried rail traffic in two wrought-iron rectangular box spans, but after a disastrous fire in 1970, which left only the limestone pillars remaining, it was rebuilt as a steel box girder bridge. Between the two bridge crossings there is a small island in the middle of the strait, Ynys Gored Goch on which is built a house and outbuildings and around which are the significant remains of mediaeval fish traps - now no longer used.
Menai Strait west of Britannia Bridge showing the memorial to Admiral Lord Nelson

In places the strait is nearly two miles across but it narrows to little more than 200 metres where it passes underneath the two bridges. The differential tides at the two ends of the strait cause very strong currents to flow in both directions through the strait at different times, creating dangerous conditions. One of the most dangerous areas of the strait is known as the Swellies (or Swillies – Welsh Pwll Ceris) between the two bridges. Here rocks near the surface cause over-falls and local whirlpools, which can be of considerable danger in themselves and cause small boats to founder on the rocks. This was the site of the loss of the school ship HMS Conway in 1953. Entering the strait at the Caernarfon end is also hazardous because of the frequently shifting sand banks that make up Caernarfon bar. On the Anglesey side at this point is Fort Belan, an 18th-century defensive fort built in the times of the American War of Independence.

Tidal effects

The tidal effects observed along the banks of the strait can also be confusing. A rising tide approaches from the south-west causes the water in the strait to flow north-eastwards as the level rises. The tide also flows around Anglesey until, after a few hours, it starts to flow into the strait in a south-westerly direction from Beaumaris. By the time this happens the tidal flow from the Caernarfon end is weakening and the tide continues to rise in height but the direction of tidal flow is reversed. A similar sequence is seen in reverse on a falling tide. This means that slack water between the bridges tends to occur approximately one hour before high tide or low tide.

Ecology

Because the strait has such unusual tidal conditions, coupled with very low wave heights because of its sheltered position, it presents a unique and diverse benthic ecology. The existence of this unique ecology was a major factor in the establishment of the internationally renowned School of Ocean Sciences at Menai Bridge, part of the University of Wales, Bangor as well as its status as a proposed Marine Nature Reserve.The same unique ecology and geo-morpholgy has let to a number of designations of SSSIs along the strait including Glannau Porthaethwy?, the Ivy - Oak - Ash woodland on the southern shore (Coedydd Afon Menai) and Lavan sands {Traeth Laven}.

The depth of the channel reaches 15m in places, and the current can exceed 7 knots. It's very rich in sponges.

Much of the land on Anglesey at the eastern end of the strait is designated as an area of outstanding natural beauty (AONB).

Caernarfon

Caernarfon (the original Welsh spelling is now almost always used in preference to the anglicised forms, "Caernarvon" or "Carnarvon") is a royal town in Gwynedd, northwest Wales.

History

Caernarfon is the traditional county town of the historic county of Caernarfonshire. The town is best known for its great stone castle, built by Edward I of England and consequently sometimes seen as a symbol of English domination. Edward's architect, James of St. George, may well have modelled the castle on the walls of Constantinople, possibly being aware of the alternative Welsh name Caer Gystennin; in addition, Edward was a supporter of the Crusader cause. On higher ground on the outskirts of the town are the remains of an earlier occupation, the Segontium Roman Fort.

Culture and incidental information

Caernarfon was at one time an important port, exporting slate from the Nantlle Valley quarries. Caernarfon Airport is 4.5 miles (7.2 km) to the south west, and offers pleasure flights and an aviation museum.

Caernarfon has a small harbour and a Blue Flag beach at Victoria Harbour.

The oldest public house in Caernarfon is the Black Boy Inn which remained in the same family for over 40 years until recently sold to a hotel group.

The town is twinned with Landerneau in Britanny.

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