Running on the Gower peninsula

Gower was designated the United Kingdom's first Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty in 1956, and for runners its appeal is straightforward: an unusual amount of terrain variety inside a very small area, with a city at one end of it.

The three coasts

The south coast from Mumbles westwards is cliff path over limestone - fast, exposed and punctuated by the bays. The west end at Rhossili gives you the peninsula's best single climb, up onto Rhossili Down, with Worm's Head below and three miles of beach running if the tide is right. The north coast is completely different: salt marsh, tidal channels and sheep, with big skies and a much quieter feel.

Building a long run out of a small place

The peninsula is only about nineteen miles end to end, which sounds limiting until you realise the coast path, the commons and the inland lanes let you thread routes together in almost any combination. A Gower long run is usually a loop of loops rather than a line.

Tides

North Gower and the beach sections are tidal, and the crossing to Worm's Head is only open for a window either side of low water. Check the tide table before you commit to a route that uses sand - this is the one place in Wales where a mistimed run leaves you genuinely stuck.