1 00:00:03,103 --> 00:00:07,507 Along the west coast of Great Britain, 2 00:00:07,507 --> 00:00:11,078 the world's longest uninterrupted footpath 3 00:00:11,078 --> 00:00:15,249 forges through more than 800 miles of breathtaking scenery. 4 00:00:16,850 --> 00:00:18,785 And you've got this wonderful sandwich. 5 00:00:18,785 --> 00:00:22,289 On the left you keep the sea your path in front of you 6 00:00:22,289 --> 00:00:25,559 and to the right you've got that undulating coastline. 7 00:00:25,559 --> 00:00:28,762 From serene golden beaches 8 00:00:28,762 --> 00:00:31,832 to towering limestone cliffs, 9 00:00:31,832 --> 00:00:36,503 the wind and waves shape, carve and chisel 10 00:00:36,503 --> 00:00:38,705 this majestic landscape. 11 00:00:38,705 --> 00:00:40,307 It's the power of the ocean really 12 00:00:40,307 --> 00:00:42,175 that does most of the work. 13 00:00:42,175 --> 00:00:45,412 Waves around here can get absolutely massive. 14 00:00:45,412 --> 00:00:49,883 We're talking 15-, 20-meter swells. 15 00:00:49,883 --> 00:00:54,888 A coast that reveals geological mysteries, 16 00:00:54,888 --> 00:00:59,326 framed by nature's most beautiful sculptures 17 00:00:59,326 --> 00:01:03,096 and chronicled by centuries of rich human history. 18 00:01:04,331 --> 00:01:08,835 This is the wild coast of Wales. 19 00:01:08,835 --> 00:01:19,079 (♪♪♪) 20 00:01:19,079 --> 00:01:28,855 (♪♪♪) 21 00:01:28,855 --> 00:01:39,099 (♪♪♪) 22 00:01:39,099 --> 00:01:44,071 (♪♪♪) 23 00:01:54,214 --> 00:01:57,651 On the first morning of November, 1887, 24 00:02:00,487 --> 00:02:04,524 strong gales whipped up around the southern tip of Wales. 25 00:02:05,726 --> 00:02:08,261 The roiling waters of the Atlantic 26 00:02:08,261 --> 00:02:12,265 flipped a cargo ship heavily laden with timber. 27 00:02:14,701 --> 00:02:18,205 Turbulent swells carried the ship to shore. 28 00:02:20,540 --> 00:02:23,343 The ship, the Helvetia, came upon the sands 29 00:02:23,343 --> 00:02:25,145 and got stuck in the sands 30 00:02:25,145 --> 00:02:28,148 and gradually got buried into the sands as well. 31 00:02:28,148 --> 00:02:30,250 Time and tide wait for no man. 32 00:02:30,250 --> 00:02:32,386 And over the many, many decades, 33 00:02:32,386 --> 00:02:34,521 the ship has turned into a wreck. 34 00:02:34,521 --> 00:02:36,823 I remember as a small child coming here 35 00:02:36,823 --> 00:02:39,393 and the Helvetia, the ribs of the hull, 36 00:02:39,393 --> 00:02:42,729 looking like an ancient dinosaur coming from the depths of time. 37 00:02:45,132 --> 00:02:48,435 Today, the remains of the Helvetia 38 00:02:48,435 --> 00:02:51,538 stand withered by the restless waters of the bay. 39 00:02:52,873 --> 00:02:56,777 The wreck continues to be buried further in the sand 40 00:02:56,777 --> 00:02:59,079 with every passing tide. 41 00:03:00,781 --> 00:03:04,217 After all these decades, it's just the prow standing, 42 00:03:04,217 --> 00:03:05,819 making a last call, 43 00:03:05,819 --> 00:03:09,189 before that too is buried beneath the sands forever. 44 00:03:09,189 --> 00:03:20,167 (♪♪♪) 45 00:03:20,167 --> 00:03:23,203 The Helvetia's cargo, 46 00:03:23,203 --> 00:03:26,206 more than 500 tons of timber, 47 00:03:26,206 --> 00:03:29,443 was collected from the beach 48 00:03:29,443 --> 00:03:33,680 and sold at auction for a bargain price. 49 00:03:33,680 --> 00:03:36,249 In fact it's said there are very few houses 50 00:03:36,249 --> 00:03:38,819 and barns left in the area of the Gower 51 00:03:38,819 --> 00:03:41,254 that don't have some sort of wood or beams 52 00:03:41,254 --> 00:03:43,757 from the wreck of the Helvetia. 53 00:03:45,358 --> 00:03:49,362 More than 250 ships have wrecked along this coast. 54 00:03:54,201 --> 00:03:57,204 The treacherous winds and hostile waters 55 00:03:57,204 --> 00:04:00,273 that sealed the fate of the Helvetia 56 00:04:00,273 --> 00:04:03,110 also sculpted the stunning scenery 57 00:04:03,110 --> 00:04:07,280 along this wild coastline. 58 00:04:07,280 --> 00:04:10,617 Wales is home to the world's longest coastal footpath. 59 00:04:13,520 --> 00:04:17,824 An 800-mile journey that many begin here 60 00:04:17,824 --> 00:04:19,726 on the Gower Peninsula. 61 00:04:22,129 --> 00:04:27,100 The Gower projects westward into the Bristol Channel, 62 00:04:27,100 --> 00:04:31,271 a major inlet that separates South Wales from England. 63 00:04:34,808 --> 00:04:37,811 Rhossili Bay stretches across three miles 64 00:04:37,811 --> 00:04:40,347 of the Gower's south-western tip. 65 00:04:42,349 --> 00:04:45,452 Rimmed with sheer limestone, 66 00:04:45,452 --> 00:04:49,856 topped with brilliant green grass, 67 00:04:49,856 --> 00:04:52,225 Rhossili Bay was designated 68 00:04:52,225 --> 00:04:55,095 as the United Kingdom's first area 69 00:04:55,095 --> 00:04:58,532 of Outstanding Natural Beauty. 70 00:04:58,532 --> 00:05:03,203 (Winds blowing and waves crashing) 71 00:05:03,203 --> 00:05:06,106 The sands of Rhossili Bay 72 00:05:06,106 --> 00:05:09,176 lie between two limestone outcrops. 73 00:05:11,111 --> 00:05:14,514 These form a set of arms that hug the bay. 74 00:05:16,283 --> 00:05:19,619 Nestled between these hard limestone arms 75 00:05:19,619 --> 00:05:22,522 is softer sandstone. 76 00:05:22,522 --> 00:05:27,494 Tides erode the sandstone to form the hollow of the bay. 77 00:05:27,494 --> 00:05:30,664 All the tides around the Gower Peninsula 78 00:05:30,664 --> 00:05:33,633 are influenced of course by the Severn Estuary, 79 00:05:33,633 --> 00:05:37,571 so it has a dramatic effect on the landscape. 80 00:05:37,571 --> 00:05:41,241 The River Severn is the longest river in Great Britain. 81 00:05:42,709 --> 00:05:46,413 Its estuary empties into the Bristol Channel, 82 00:05:46,413 --> 00:05:49,149 which opens into the North Atlantic Ocean. 83 00:05:50,684 --> 00:05:52,819 The tides in the Severn Estuary 84 00:05:52,819 --> 00:05:56,189 rise and fall by more than 45 feet. 85 00:05:57,591 --> 00:06:01,661 It is the world's second-highest tidal range, 86 00:06:01,661 --> 00:06:05,098 exceeded only by Canada's Bay of Fundy. 87 00:06:09,236 --> 00:06:11,438 As the tidewaters of the Atlantic 88 00:06:11,438 --> 00:06:14,674 surge through the Bristol Channel, 89 00:06:14,674 --> 00:06:18,011 the sea pummels the Gower Peninsula. 90 00:06:20,513 --> 00:06:25,418 Over time, these tides sculpt coves and bays - 91 00:06:25,418 --> 00:06:27,721 rugged, yet beautiful. 92 00:06:32,559 --> 00:06:35,662 In the 18th century, 93 00:06:35,662 --> 00:06:39,499 the hidden coves and bays of the Gower Peninsula 94 00:06:39,499 --> 00:06:42,335 were ideal nooks for smuggling goods. 95 00:06:44,104 --> 00:06:47,407 Items like alcohol, tobacco and tea 96 00:06:47,407 --> 00:06:50,710 were snuck into Wales tax-free 97 00:06:50,710 --> 00:06:53,280 and sold for bargain prices. 98 00:06:57,550 --> 00:07:00,787 Smuggling was so widespread along the Gower, 99 00:07:00,787 --> 00:07:05,025 even the clergy turned a blind eye. 100 00:07:05,025 --> 00:07:06,760 Smuggled goods were stored 101 00:07:06,760 --> 00:07:11,331 behind the Old Rectory of Rhossili. 102 00:07:11,331 --> 00:07:13,500 An operation that surely 103 00:07:13,500 --> 00:07:17,270 could not have gone unnoticed by the rector. 104 00:07:17,270 --> 00:07:19,673 Now the solitary white house you can see behind me 105 00:07:19,673 --> 00:07:21,341 is the Old Rectory. 106 00:07:21,341 --> 00:07:23,276 It was the house where the priest 107 00:07:23,276 --> 00:07:26,546 or the vicar of the parish of Rhossili would live 108 00:07:26,546 --> 00:07:29,983 and it was situated close by to the church of Rhossili. 109 00:07:35,689 --> 00:07:38,792 The old rectory, you think stands alone. 110 00:07:38,792 --> 00:07:41,261 But if you take yourself back hundreds of years, 111 00:07:41,261 --> 00:07:42,762 the village actually was down there. 112 00:07:42,762 --> 00:07:44,297 There were houses down there. 113 00:07:44,297 --> 00:07:46,499 And they were brought up on the top of the cliff 114 00:07:46,499 --> 00:07:49,135 because of this great sand inundation. 115 00:07:51,738 --> 00:07:56,276 During the 13th century, a change in tidal currents 116 00:07:56,276 --> 00:07:59,612 unleashed wind and rain so powerful 117 00:07:59,612 --> 00:08:03,183 entire villages along the southern coast of Wales 118 00:08:03,183 --> 00:08:05,318 were buried under sand. 119 00:08:07,053 --> 00:08:08,088 In Gower in particular, 120 00:08:08,088 --> 00:08:10,557 we have this raised plateau of limestone shelf 121 00:08:10,557 --> 00:08:11,791 where the sand just packed in 122 00:08:11,791 --> 00:08:15,695 and made these wonderful beaches. 123 00:08:15,695 --> 00:08:18,732 The old village of Rhossili sat at the foothills 124 00:08:18,732 --> 00:08:22,369 of this limestone shelf. 125 00:08:22,369 --> 00:08:26,072 The Old Rectory is the last surviving structure. 126 00:08:28,041 --> 00:08:30,710 The rest of the village of Rhossili is disappeared 127 00:08:30,710 --> 00:08:32,479 underneath the sands. 128 00:08:32,479 --> 00:08:35,315 Again, becoming a victim of the tides 129 00:08:35,315 --> 00:08:39,619 that are always sweeping against the shores here at Rhossili. 130 00:08:40,820 --> 00:08:44,324 The Old Rectory has since been renovated. 131 00:08:44,324 --> 00:08:48,528 Today, it is one of the region's most sought-after lodgings 132 00:08:48,528 --> 00:08:52,065 with a waiting list longer than three years. 133 00:08:57,237 --> 00:08:58,438 Now whenever you come to Wales, 134 00:08:58,438 --> 00:09:00,607 the one thing that you can't help mentioning, of course, 135 00:09:00,607 --> 00:09:02,575 are our woolly friends, the sheep. 136 00:09:06,713 --> 00:09:09,749 Down the Gower there's a lot of what we call "Common Land", 137 00:09:09,749 --> 00:09:12,752 where it's land that goes back to medieval times 138 00:09:12,752 --> 00:09:15,588 which is used communally by all the people around here. 139 00:09:19,559 --> 00:09:21,127 People always say, 140 00:09:21,127 --> 00:09:23,730 well, how does a farmer know which sheep is which? 141 00:09:23,730 --> 00:09:26,299 The ownership of the sheep are indicated 142 00:09:26,299 --> 00:09:29,169 by little tags that the sheep have on their ears. 143 00:09:30,703 --> 00:09:32,539 Now you see the paint on the sheep 144 00:09:32,539 --> 00:09:34,674 but that indicates whether the sheep have had 145 00:09:34,674 --> 00:09:37,510 certain inoculations or injections. 146 00:09:41,181 --> 00:09:43,616 The sheep first came over with those ancient Celtic people 147 00:09:43,616 --> 00:09:46,419 about 500 years BC. 148 00:09:46,419 --> 00:09:49,289 They are naturally a Mediterranean animal 149 00:09:49,289 --> 00:09:51,658 but we find that they live, thrive, and survive 150 00:09:51,658 --> 00:09:54,494 not only in the farmlands but in the mountain regions, 151 00:09:54,494 --> 00:09:58,331 the heathlands, the moorlands and of course the coastal areas. 152 00:10:02,068 --> 00:10:05,705 Now in Wales we've got a human population of about 3.6 million 153 00:10:05,705 --> 00:10:08,541 but we're vastly outnumbered by the sheep. 154 00:10:08,541 --> 00:10:11,311 At any time of year, there are at least 15 million sheep 155 00:10:11,311 --> 00:10:12,579 altogether in Wales. 156 00:10:12,579 --> 00:10:15,081 So we've got about five each for everybody. 157 00:10:19,652 --> 00:10:22,822 On the southern tip of Rhossili Bay, 158 00:10:22,822 --> 00:10:27,527 a mile-long stretch of land snakes out to sea 159 00:10:27,527 --> 00:10:30,497 marking the most westerly tip of the Gower. 160 00:10:35,702 --> 00:10:39,873 The rocky bluff dips down before rearing its head, 161 00:10:39,873 --> 00:10:44,444 150 feet out of the water. 162 00:10:46,346 --> 00:10:48,147 This is Worm's Head. 163 00:10:50,450 --> 00:10:54,420 Now, legend surrounds this Worm's Head. 164 00:10:54,420 --> 00:10:57,590 The name Worm's Head comes from "Wurm's head", 165 00:10:57,590 --> 00:11:01,261 a wurm being a serpent or a dragon 166 00:11:01,261 --> 00:11:03,796 that used to look out onto the horizon of the sea 167 00:11:03,796 --> 00:11:07,200 to guard the shore against any evil spirits 168 00:11:07,200 --> 00:11:08,434 that might want to come in 169 00:11:08,434 --> 00:11:11,271 and corrupt the people that lived here. 170 00:11:12,805 --> 00:11:16,476 Twice a day, with the turn of the tide, 171 00:11:16,476 --> 00:11:19,579 Worm's Head becomes an island 172 00:11:19,579 --> 00:11:22,315 cut off from Rhossili's coastline. 173 00:11:26,319 --> 00:11:29,789 A causeway connects the two landmasses 174 00:11:29,789 --> 00:11:33,526 but it's only exposed for just a few hours at a time. 175 00:11:37,463 --> 00:11:39,365 If you are feeling a bit intrepid, 176 00:11:39,365 --> 00:11:40,800 you can actually walk yourself 177 00:11:40,800 --> 00:11:44,571 out to the furthest-most tip of Worm's Head. 178 00:11:44,571 --> 00:11:47,273 You've only really got a four-hour window 179 00:11:47,273 --> 00:11:48,808 in which to get through the causeway, 180 00:11:48,808 --> 00:11:50,743 onto Worm's Head itself 181 00:11:50,743 --> 00:11:53,279 and then back safely to shore as well. 182 00:11:53,279 --> 00:11:55,882 If you don't, well, sit down and relax 183 00:11:55,882 --> 00:11:58,217 because you'll have at least a 6-hour wait 184 00:11:58,217 --> 00:12:01,621 before you're able to return back to the shore. 185 00:12:04,190 --> 00:12:08,027 (Winds blowing and waves crashing) 186 00:12:09,395 --> 00:12:13,399 Further up the coast, water packs a greater punch. 187 00:12:15,735 --> 00:12:19,205 Waves around here can get absolutely massive. 188 00:12:19,205 --> 00:12:23,409 We're talking 15, 20-meter swells. 189 00:12:28,514 --> 00:12:30,783 Out on the open ocean, they can be reasonably frightening 190 00:12:30,783 --> 00:12:32,652 but as they get into shallow water 191 00:12:32,652 --> 00:12:35,555 the wave height builds up even more 192 00:12:35,555 --> 00:12:37,690 and the front of the wave topples over 193 00:12:37,690 --> 00:12:40,727 and that's when a lot of this erosion happens. 194 00:12:40,727 --> 00:12:42,862 It's the sheer force of those breaking waves 195 00:12:42,862 --> 00:12:44,764 as they hit the cliffs. 196 00:12:44,764 --> 00:12:54,807 (♪♪♪) 197 00:12:54,807 --> 00:12:59,779 (♪♪♪) 198 00:13:07,220 --> 00:13:09,722 Along the south of Wales, 199 00:13:09,722 --> 00:13:11,724 waves that have powered their way 200 00:13:11,724 --> 00:13:15,294 across the full expanse of the North Atlantic Ocean, 201 00:13:15,294 --> 00:13:18,131 come crashing into the sheer cliffs 202 00:13:18,131 --> 00:13:21,634 of the Pembrokeshire coast. 203 00:13:21,634 --> 00:13:26,239 A coastline that twists and turns west from the Gower 204 00:13:26,239 --> 00:13:30,009 through 186 miles of West Wales. 205 00:13:31,678 --> 00:13:36,115 A thick sheet of limestone guards its western tip, 206 00:13:36,115 --> 00:13:38,351 the Castlemartin Peninsula. 207 00:13:39,752 --> 00:13:42,321 Here, the power of the waves 208 00:13:42,321 --> 00:13:44,524 has carved one of the Welsh coast's 209 00:13:44,524 --> 00:13:47,326 most iconic natural sculptures. 210 00:13:50,596 --> 00:13:55,535 A stone arch juts 65 feet out to sea 211 00:13:55,535 --> 00:14:00,139 and rises more than 60 feet above the water, 212 00:14:00,139 --> 00:14:03,609 clinging to the coast of Castlemartin, 213 00:14:03,609 --> 00:14:07,046 this is the Green Bridge of Wales. 214 00:14:14,454 --> 00:14:17,790 Natural arches like this begin to take shape 215 00:14:17,790 --> 00:14:22,095 when waves hitting both sides of the limestone headland 216 00:14:22,095 --> 00:14:24,530 carve small caves back to back. 217 00:14:26,833 --> 00:14:30,703 Eventually, water breaks through the dividing wall 218 00:14:30,703 --> 00:14:33,339 and pierces through the weaker rock 219 00:14:33,339 --> 00:14:36,609 connecting the two caves. 220 00:14:36,609 --> 00:14:40,179 Over time, this hole widens through erosion. 221 00:14:44,484 --> 00:14:47,720 The result is a natural arch, 222 00:14:47,720 --> 00:14:51,624 one of nature's most beautifully engineered structures. 223 00:14:51,624 --> 00:15:04,203 (♪♪♪) 224 00:15:04,203 --> 00:15:07,573 Someday the forces that created this arch 225 00:15:07,573 --> 00:15:09,275 will also destroy it. 226 00:15:15,081 --> 00:15:18,050 These sea stacks are the supporting pillars 227 00:15:18,050 --> 00:15:20,219 of what was once an arch. 228 00:15:22,288 --> 00:15:25,091 Each is taller than a 10-storey building. 229 00:15:27,493 --> 00:15:32,265 And represents the final stages of maritime cliff erosion. 230 00:15:35,401 --> 00:15:39,505 Over time, beating waves isolate the rock 231 00:15:39,505 --> 00:15:41,274 from the adjoining cliff. 232 00:15:44,443 --> 00:15:46,512 Millions of years ago, 233 00:15:46,512 --> 00:15:49,148 this scene would have looked similar 234 00:15:49,148 --> 00:15:51,184 to the Green Bridge of Wales. 235 00:15:58,591 --> 00:16:02,361 Eventually, the sea will also undermine these stacks 236 00:16:03,596 --> 00:16:06,332 and the soaring pedestals of stone 237 00:16:06,332 --> 00:16:09,635 will become mere stumps. 238 00:16:13,206 --> 00:16:16,209 As these striking features wash away, 239 00:16:16,209 --> 00:16:18,277 new ones take shape. 240 00:16:27,386 --> 00:16:31,157 Farther up the coast is an abyss 241 00:16:31,157 --> 00:16:34,427 nearly 150 feet deep, 242 00:16:34,427 --> 00:16:37,296 more than 160 feet across. 243 00:16:39,565 --> 00:16:42,335 Large enough to engulf the White House. 244 00:16:44,337 --> 00:16:48,441 This is the Devil's Cauldron. 245 00:16:50,209 --> 00:16:54,680 An imposing crater formed by the collapse of several blowholes. 246 00:17:01,120 --> 00:17:05,691 A blowhole appears when water erodes weaker sections of rock 247 00:17:05,691 --> 00:17:07,660 to create a sea cave. 248 00:17:09,395 --> 00:17:12,231 As waves move in and out, 249 00:17:12,231 --> 00:17:15,534 water pressure builds inside the cave 250 00:17:15,534 --> 00:17:19,505 and wears away the rock. 251 00:17:19,505 --> 00:17:22,675 Eventually, a narrow shaft forms 252 00:17:22,675 --> 00:17:26,145 from the sea cave up to the cliff top 253 00:17:26,145 --> 00:17:29,482 releasing the surging water through a jet spray. 254 00:17:31,651 --> 00:17:34,654 Several of these blowholes formed in this cliff. 255 00:17:36,622 --> 00:17:41,627 As powerful waves continued to erode weaker sections of rock, 256 00:17:41,627 --> 00:17:46,032 the blowholes collapsed creating a much wider shaft. 257 00:17:47,199 --> 00:17:49,201 According to geologists, 258 00:17:49,201 --> 00:17:53,539 the mass of rock that collapsed to produce the Cauldron 259 00:17:53,539 --> 00:17:55,775 is heavier than the combined weight 260 00:17:55,775 --> 00:17:59,545 of the three largest ocean liners ever built. 261 00:18:03,149 --> 00:18:07,787 Over time, the Cauldron cliffs will also break apart 262 00:18:07,787 --> 00:18:12,191 to form a series of stacks and arches so imposing 263 00:18:12,191 --> 00:18:16,295 they will dwarf the magnificent Green Bridge of Wales. 264 00:18:18,631 --> 00:18:21,500 The coast, it's always changing. 265 00:18:21,500 --> 00:18:23,169 But it's the power of the ocean really 266 00:18:23,169 --> 00:18:26,038 that does most of the work. 267 00:18:26,038 --> 00:18:28,808 A walk along the Pembrokeshire Coast Path, 268 00:18:28,808 --> 00:18:31,110 for me, is always special. 269 00:18:31,110 --> 00:18:33,612 You never know what you're going to see. 270 00:18:33,612 --> 00:18:36,082 It's always special because of the geology. 271 00:18:38,351 --> 00:18:42,188 These little guys down here, 272 00:18:42,188 --> 00:18:45,324 they're 24 million years old. 273 00:18:45,324 --> 00:18:48,594 So much, much, much younger than anything else 274 00:18:48,594 --> 00:18:50,429 in the whole of this area. 275 00:18:50,429 --> 00:18:53,499 So it's a bit of a mystery what on earth they're doing here 276 00:18:53,499 --> 00:18:55,835 because they're so out of context. 277 00:18:55,835 --> 00:18:59,538 And what people think is that limestone rocks, 278 00:18:59,538 --> 00:19:02,408 which are the ones we're surrounded by, 279 00:19:02,408 --> 00:19:06,245 are very, very prone to being eaten away by water. 280 00:19:06,245 --> 00:19:09,382 You get lots of cracks, lots of fissures. 281 00:19:09,382 --> 00:19:12,752 And so when these rocks were already quite old, 282 00:19:12,752 --> 00:19:15,021 there were little streams running down 283 00:19:15,021 --> 00:19:18,257 through cracks in the limestone through underwater caverns- 284 00:19:18,257 --> 00:19:19,792 mini caves. 285 00:19:19,792 --> 00:19:22,628 They brought material down with them 286 00:19:22,628 --> 00:19:26,532 and filled little caves within the rock with this stuff, 287 00:19:26,532 --> 00:19:29,769 water went on through, left the stuff behind. 288 00:19:29,769 --> 00:19:32,671 Now since then, the limestone has eroded 289 00:19:32,671 --> 00:19:36,042 and has left these rocks at the surface 290 00:19:36,042 --> 00:19:39,512 so way, way out of time and way, way out of place. 291 00:19:39,512 --> 00:19:42,715 Consequently, rather interesting. 292 00:19:42,715 --> 00:19:46,318 As the sun descends on the Green Bridge of Wales 293 00:19:46,318 --> 00:19:48,687 and the day comes to a close, 294 00:19:48,687 --> 00:19:51,190 the restless waters of the Atlantic 295 00:19:51,190 --> 00:19:53,993 continue to undermine the cliffs. 296 00:19:57,329 --> 00:20:00,399 The morning sun illuminates the wrinkled face 297 00:20:00,399 --> 00:20:02,234 of the Pembrokeshire coast. 298 00:20:06,338 --> 00:20:10,242 Every fault, crease and dimple 299 00:20:10,242 --> 00:20:13,245 is exposed to the wrath of the sea. 300 00:20:15,448 --> 00:20:18,751 Water eats away at these weaker pockets 301 00:20:18,751 --> 00:20:21,554 as though taking a bite out of the coastline. 302 00:20:24,790 --> 00:20:28,260 There are so many layers of the history, 303 00:20:28,260 --> 00:20:30,196 literally in the rocks, in the stories, 304 00:20:30,196 --> 00:20:31,764 in the legends and the myths 305 00:20:31,764 --> 00:20:34,433 and actually going that mile further 306 00:20:34,433 --> 00:20:36,502 and realizing there was something extra special 307 00:20:36,502 --> 00:20:38,304 around the corner somewhere. 308 00:20:40,206 --> 00:20:42,508 Nestled in a hidden cove, 309 00:20:42,508 --> 00:20:47,079 a small medieval church clings to the rocks of a secluded bay. 310 00:20:48,447 --> 00:20:52,251 An air of mystery grips the stone structure. 311 00:20:54,587 --> 00:20:58,324 This is St. Govan's Chapel. 312 00:20:58,324 --> 00:21:00,092 St. Govan's chapel has got lots and lots 313 00:21:00,092 --> 00:21:02,795 of little myths and legends. 314 00:21:02,795 --> 00:21:06,499 Many think the original, simpler stone structure 315 00:21:06,499 --> 00:21:11,237 was built as early as the 6th Century 316 00:21:11,237 --> 00:21:14,206 and restored 7 centuries later. 317 00:21:19,745 --> 00:21:23,048 The entire building is smaller than a one-car garage. 318 00:21:25,317 --> 00:21:28,521 Little is known about the man who built it. 319 00:21:28,521 --> 00:21:30,156 Some people think he might have been 320 00:21:30,156 --> 00:21:32,158 one of King Arthur's knights. 321 00:21:32,158 --> 00:21:35,694 Nobody's quite sure who he was. 322 00:21:35,694 --> 00:21:39,398 Some legends say Govan was an Irish monk 323 00:21:39,398 --> 00:21:42,301 sent to educate the people of this region. 324 00:21:44,203 --> 00:21:47,139 St. Govan's chapel is really interesting. 325 00:21:47,139 --> 00:21:48,774 Many, many centuries ago, 326 00:21:48,774 --> 00:21:52,478 you had this Christianity developing on its own 327 00:21:52,478 --> 00:21:56,649 but through old Celtic people's history as well. 328 00:21:58,250 --> 00:22:02,388 So you find a wonderful tapestry of the history 329 00:22:02,388 --> 00:22:04,490 of the Christian church in particular 330 00:22:04,490 --> 00:22:06,091 literally in the rocks. 331 00:22:09,328 --> 00:22:12,298 Others say Govan was a coward 332 00:22:12,298 --> 00:22:15,634 who took shelter in these rocks to hide from pirates. 333 00:22:24,510 --> 00:22:27,179 Further up the Welsh coast 334 00:22:27,179 --> 00:22:30,716 on the south western tip of the Dale Peninsula, 335 00:22:30,716 --> 00:22:34,687 An isolated bay called "Martin's Haven" 336 00:22:34,687 --> 00:22:37,590 shelters a very different inhabitant. 337 00:22:39,358 --> 00:22:42,861 This time of year's pretty special for the grey seal, 338 00:22:42,861 --> 00:22:45,864 the Atlantic grey seal. 339 00:22:45,864 --> 00:22:48,200 What these seals require at this time of year 340 00:22:48,200 --> 00:22:51,337 are safe, secluded beaches. 341 00:22:52,871 --> 00:22:57,142 It's October, pupping season on the coast of Wales. 342 00:22:59,511 --> 00:23:03,382 The sheer Pembrokeshire cliffs cradle the bay 343 00:23:03,382 --> 00:23:06,518 providing the perfect protected nursery 344 00:23:06,518 --> 00:23:09,054 for these mothers and their young. 345 00:23:15,194 --> 00:23:18,831 Males patrol the water. 346 00:23:18,831 --> 00:23:22,067 Females and their young claim the beach. 347 00:23:24,203 --> 00:23:25,638 It's a really lovely thing to see, 348 00:23:25,638 --> 00:23:28,240 these great little seal pups 349 00:23:28,240 --> 00:23:30,476 and their mothers looking after them. 350 00:23:32,444 --> 00:23:34,747 A mother makes her way up the shore 351 00:23:34,747 --> 00:23:36,548 to feed her newborn. 352 00:23:40,352 --> 00:23:42,554 The pup latches on to suckle. 353 00:23:47,293 --> 00:23:52,364 At birth, most pups weigh about 35 pounds. 354 00:23:52,364 --> 00:23:56,235 They're easy to identify by their soft and fluffy coat. 355 00:23:57,870 --> 00:24:00,406 They're born with a rather smart-looking white coat, 356 00:24:00,406 --> 00:24:03,809 which is, you think slightly odd for a seal 357 00:24:03,809 --> 00:24:06,578 but a lot of the pebbles on the beaches around here 358 00:24:06,578 --> 00:24:11,116 are quite light-colored so the camouflage is quite good. 359 00:24:12,751 --> 00:24:15,521 This baby seal needs to fatten up 360 00:24:15,521 --> 00:24:18,290 before getting in the water. 361 00:24:18,290 --> 00:24:21,727 It will spend the next two weeks latched on to mom. 362 00:24:23,329 --> 00:24:25,531 The mother's milk is extremely rich 363 00:24:25,531 --> 00:24:28,801 as much as 60 percent fat. 364 00:24:28,801 --> 00:24:31,770 So the pup should have no problem putting on the weight. 365 00:24:34,440 --> 00:24:38,644 On average, a young seal will gain about three pounds a day 366 00:24:38,644 --> 00:24:42,614 and can quadruple in size in just three weeks. 367 00:24:46,352 --> 00:24:49,388 For this pup independence is around the corner. 368 00:24:52,291 --> 00:24:56,862 It remains on land living off a reserve of blubber 369 00:24:56,862 --> 00:25:00,032 while waiting for its baby coat to moult. 370 00:25:02,301 --> 00:25:05,971 The pup rubs against a rock to speed up the process. 371 00:25:07,373 --> 00:25:10,576 Once the new waterproof fur grows in, 372 00:25:10,576 --> 00:25:13,245 the young seal will leave the beach 373 00:25:13,245 --> 00:25:16,515 and learn to fend for itself in the ocean. 374 00:25:18,283 --> 00:25:21,220 Once the pup is weaned, 375 00:25:21,220 --> 00:25:24,022 its mother is available to mate again. 376 00:25:27,092 --> 00:25:30,396 And there's no shortage of suitors. 377 00:25:30,396 --> 00:25:33,198 A persistent male patrolling the waters 378 00:25:33,198 --> 00:25:35,300 decides to make his advance. 379 00:25:39,204 --> 00:25:41,306 He charges up the beach 380 00:25:41,306 --> 00:25:44,576 to chase one of the females down into the water. 381 00:25:54,553 --> 00:25:57,022 Competition for mates is stiff. 382 00:25:59,191 --> 00:26:01,794 Territorial fighting is common among males 383 00:26:01,794 --> 00:26:03,595 during breeding season. 384 00:26:06,698 --> 00:26:10,602 Dominant males will mate with as many as 10 females. 385 00:26:12,538 --> 00:26:16,475 Larger males can grow more than 7 feet long, 386 00:26:16,475 --> 00:26:19,278 weighing in at nearly 800 pounds. 387 00:26:21,280 --> 00:26:25,584 Females are smaller, averaging five to six feet, 388 00:26:25,584 --> 00:26:29,254 weighing up to 500 pounds. 389 00:26:29,254 --> 00:26:31,757 It's quite easy to tell a difference between the two. 390 00:26:31,757 --> 00:26:34,793 The females, they tend to be smaller, 391 00:26:34,793 --> 00:26:37,663 lighter, with speckled fur 392 00:26:37,663 --> 00:26:39,498 but their noses are really different. 393 00:26:39,498 --> 00:26:42,668 They have almost a feminine head, 394 00:26:42,668 --> 00:26:46,738 almost a cat-like head, quite a narrow nose. 395 00:26:46,738 --> 00:26:50,642 Whereas the male's darker in appearance, larger animals, 396 00:26:50,642 --> 00:26:55,314 with a much, much thicker nose, rather more aristocratic nose. 397 00:26:58,150 --> 00:27:00,519 The male's long, arched nose 398 00:27:00,519 --> 00:27:03,522 earned the grey seal its Latin name, 399 00:27:03,522 --> 00:27:05,557 "Halichoerus Grypus", 400 00:27:05,557 --> 00:27:07,426 "Hooked-nose sea pig". 401 00:27:12,698 --> 00:27:16,268 Back on shore, a playful mother and her young 402 00:27:16,268 --> 00:27:18,237 lounge on the beach. 403 00:27:19,738 --> 00:27:23,141 Others are busy nursing 404 00:27:23,141 --> 00:27:26,111 or keeping a close eye on their pups. 405 00:27:29,681 --> 00:27:32,217 As autumn comes to an end, 406 00:27:32,217 --> 00:27:35,153 the seals will leave their breeding ground 407 00:27:35,153 --> 00:27:38,156 and make their way home to Skomer Island. 408 00:27:41,159 --> 00:27:44,263 Less than a mile from the Pembrokeshire Coast 409 00:27:44,263 --> 00:27:48,300 off the south-western tip of Wales, 410 00:27:48,300 --> 00:27:53,071 Skomer rises more than 200 feet above the Irish Sea. 411 00:27:58,844 --> 00:28:03,048 From the mainland, Skomer looks like two separate islands 412 00:28:03,048 --> 00:28:08,020 connected by a narrow strip of land. 413 00:28:08,020 --> 00:28:12,424 The power of the sea eats away at this weaker neck of rock 414 00:28:12,424 --> 00:28:17,462 nearly slicing the island in two. 415 00:28:17,462 --> 00:28:21,600 The name Skomer originates from "Skalmey", 416 00:28:21,600 --> 00:28:25,237 a Norse word that means "sliced" or "cut". 417 00:28:28,740 --> 00:28:32,744 Skomer Island was once connected to the mainland. 418 00:28:32,744 --> 00:28:34,780 But as the sea broke through, 419 00:28:34,780 --> 00:28:39,017 Skomer and the smaller Midland Isle became isolated. 420 00:28:41,553 --> 00:28:46,592 The surface area of Skomer is only one square mile. 421 00:28:46,592 --> 00:28:51,063 It takes just 20 minutes to cross the entire island by foot. 422 00:28:52,497 --> 00:28:54,633 Despite its small size, 423 00:28:54,633 --> 00:28:58,604 Skomer has the largest population of Manx shearwaters 424 00:28:58,604 --> 00:29:02,341 in the world. 425 00:29:02,341 --> 00:29:06,044 There's approximately 320,000 pairs of that bird 426 00:29:06,044 --> 00:29:07,312 on this island. 427 00:29:07,312 --> 00:29:10,115 But even if you came here in the middle of the breeding season, 428 00:29:10,115 --> 00:29:11,283 you wouldn't see them 429 00:29:11,283 --> 00:29:12,517 because they're either underground 430 00:29:12,517 --> 00:29:15,721 or out to sea feeding. 431 00:29:15,721 --> 00:29:18,657 The birds that have been feeding only come back to the island 432 00:29:18,657 --> 00:29:21,493 and swap over with their mate in the burrow 433 00:29:21,493 --> 00:29:26,398 under cover of darkness to avoid seagull predation. 434 00:29:26,398 --> 00:29:29,601 Manx shearwaters live in underground burrows. 435 00:29:31,403 --> 00:29:34,206 Rabbits and puffins make similar homes. 436 00:29:36,742 --> 00:29:39,645 As a result, the entire island 437 00:29:39,645 --> 00:29:44,282 is covered in more than one million burrows. 438 00:29:44,282 --> 00:29:48,253 One misstep off the footpath could collapse a home. 439 00:29:52,290 --> 00:29:55,761 Skomer Island is a National Nature Reserve, 440 00:29:55,761 --> 00:29:58,330 a protected marine habitat 441 00:29:58,330 --> 00:30:01,266 and an area of Special Scientific Interest. 442 00:30:05,103 --> 00:30:06,638 Beneath the burrows 443 00:30:06,638 --> 00:30:09,675 and the bright green grasses of the island 444 00:30:09,675 --> 00:30:12,644 lies an important geological story. 445 00:30:15,514 --> 00:30:19,785 Distinct ribbons of rock streak the coastline. 446 00:30:19,785 --> 00:30:22,654 Each one represents a different era 447 00:30:22,654 --> 00:30:25,624 of a turbulent geological past. 448 00:30:28,193 --> 00:30:32,164 Layer by layer these rocks tell the story 449 00:30:32,164 --> 00:30:35,367 of one of the last major volcanic events 450 00:30:35,367 --> 00:30:38,370 that formed much of south Wales. 451 00:30:40,338 --> 00:30:45,310 More than 400 million years ago, ancient plates shifted 452 00:30:45,310 --> 00:30:48,714 causing volcanic eruptions to pour lava and ash 453 00:30:48,714 --> 00:30:51,183 3,000 feet thick 454 00:30:51,183 --> 00:30:54,586 over more than 43 miles of South Wales. 455 00:30:58,590 --> 00:31:02,060 Over time, the lava solidified to stone. 456 00:31:07,299 --> 00:31:11,303 Skomer Island is made entirely of this volcanic rock. 457 00:31:17,109 --> 00:31:19,544 These rocks that we're sitting on right now 458 00:31:19,544 --> 00:31:23,315 are lava flows from that volcanic episode 459 00:31:23,315 --> 00:31:26,251 430 million years ago. 460 00:31:26,251 --> 00:31:27,719 That makes Skomer special. 461 00:31:27,719 --> 00:31:30,589 It's amazing to think as you walk around this island 462 00:31:30,589 --> 00:31:35,193 you're walking over products of a 430-million-year-old volcano. 463 00:31:35,193 --> 00:31:39,865 If you were to look at Skomer from the mainland, 464 00:31:39,865 --> 00:31:43,135 you would see a series of 465 00:31:43,135 --> 00:31:45,771 what appear to be layers. 466 00:31:45,771 --> 00:31:50,375 These layers are, for the most part, lava flows. 467 00:31:50,375 --> 00:31:53,779 Now all of those different types cooled at different rates 468 00:31:53,779 --> 00:31:57,382 to give you final products that are subtly different. 469 00:31:57,382 --> 00:32:00,619 But essentially, from the side you have lava flows 470 00:32:00,619 --> 00:32:02,454 that have been tilted on their side 471 00:32:02,454 --> 00:32:05,490 so they now dip 40° to the south. 472 00:32:05,490 --> 00:32:07,526 What caused that tilting? 473 00:32:07,526 --> 00:32:10,061 Well, that's back to the Caledonian mountains 474 00:32:10,061 --> 00:32:11,196 being created. 475 00:32:11,196 --> 00:32:13,732 When that mountain range was created, 476 00:32:13,732 --> 00:32:17,469 you had a tremendous bout of orogenic activity, 477 00:32:17,469 --> 00:32:20,472 that's mountain building on the earth's surface. 478 00:32:20,472 --> 00:32:24,609 The rocks of Skomer were folded and tilted and buckled 479 00:32:24,609 --> 00:32:26,444 and faulted. 480 00:32:26,444 --> 00:32:29,214 And the Skomer lavas that started out horizontally 481 00:32:29,214 --> 00:32:31,016 were now tilted. 482 00:32:33,218 --> 00:32:35,420 On the south side of the island, 483 00:32:35,420 --> 00:32:39,324 geologists have discovered used artillery... 484 00:32:40,625 --> 00:32:43,295 not from any manmade conflict 485 00:32:43,295 --> 00:32:46,698 but from deep within the earth's scalding core. 486 00:32:49,734 --> 00:32:53,839 These are volcanic bombs fired into the air 487 00:32:53,839 --> 00:32:56,541 from the mouth of an ancient volcano 488 00:32:56,541 --> 00:32:59,444 more than 400 million years ago. 489 00:33:01,146 --> 00:33:05,150 Occasionally a volcano will get very excited and explosive. 490 00:33:05,150 --> 00:33:07,552 It goes through an explosive phase. 491 00:33:07,552 --> 00:33:11,690 And now it jets out material called "Pyroclastic bombs" 492 00:33:11,690 --> 00:33:14,559 that get shot up into the atmosphere 493 00:33:14,559 --> 00:33:18,530 and then they're dumped into the surrounding rocks. 494 00:33:18,530 --> 00:33:20,532 Now if the surrounding rocks are still soft, 495 00:33:20,532 --> 00:33:23,101 as they would be if they're new lava flows, 496 00:33:23,101 --> 00:33:25,270 these spherical bombs of rock 497 00:33:25,270 --> 00:33:28,506 get embedded into a laval matrix 498 00:33:28,506 --> 00:33:30,308 and you can see those on the island, 499 00:33:30,308 --> 00:33:33,144 which is quite an exciting thing to be able to see. 500 00:33:36,781 --> 00:33:40,552 You've got fantastic rock formations just in front of you. 501 00:33:40,552 --> 00:33:43,154 You look out to the Atlantic Ocean. 502 00:33:43,154 --> 00:33:47,192 So you have a big evasion and a feeling of space. 503 00:33:47,192 --> 00:33:49,594 And it's some of the cleanest air on the planet. 504 00:33:49,594 --> 00:33:52,564 Seeing how things have changed over the time, 505 00:33:52,564 --> 00:33:55,200 but how actually rather a lot has stayed the same, 506 00:33:55,200 --> 00:33:57,702 the beauty and the seclusion and the peace and the quiet 507 00:33:57,702 --> 00:34:00,739 has always been a constant for Skomer. 508 00:34:00,739 --> 00:34:03,675 Farther up the coast, the stunning mountains 509 00:34:03,675 --> 00:34:07,345 of the first designated national park in Wales 510 00:34:07,345 --> 00:34:11,650 stretch across more than 800 square miles. 511 00:34:11,650 --> 00:34:13,985 This is Snowdonia. 512 00:34:17,122 --> 00:34:21,259 A place built by fire and sculpted by ice. 513 00:34:24,529 --> 00:34:26,631 You could argue that it's an area 514 00:34:26,631 --> 00:34:29,134 steeped in the history of fire and ice. 515 00:34:29,134 --> 00:34:31,403 That being it's the volcanic processes 516 00:34:31,403 --> 00:34:33,838 that's formed the mountains with tectonic movements 517 00:34:33,838 --> 00:34:38,343 and associated volcanoes folding the earth's surface 518 00:34:38,343 --> 00:34:40,312 and then the glacial period 519 00:34:40,312 --> 00:34:43,581 revealing all the wonders of the geology. 520 00:34:43,581 --> 00:34:46,384 What you'll see around you is various peaks 521 00:34:46,384 --> 00:34:48,653 of different sizes and heights 522 00:34:48,653 --> 00:34:52,157 and some deep valleys-- river valleys 523 00:34:52,157 --> 00:34:54,492 and some wide glacial valleys as well. 524 00:34:59,164 --> 00:35:02,500 The star of this landscape is Snowdon, 525 00:35:02,500 --> 00:35:05,036 the highest mountain in Wales. 526 00:35:07,372 --> 00:35:11,977 Its peak rests in the clouds nearly 4,000 feet high. 527 00:35:13,211 --> 00:35:16,614 The sheer rock, unstable gravel 528 00:35:16,614 --> 00:35:19,551 and tricky traverses of Snowdon 529 00:35:19,551 --> 00:35:23,621 make an ideal training ground for professional climbers. 530 00:35:23,621 --> 00:35:26,491 Edmund Hilary trained at Snowdonia 531 00:35:26,491 --> 00:35:29,327 before heading to Nepal. 532 00:35:29,327 --> 00:35:31,730 And in May of 1953, 533 00:35:31,730 --> 00:35:35,300 he and Sherpa, Tenzing Norgay, 534 00:35:35,300 --> 00:35:38,737 became the first to successfully summit Mount Everest. 535 00:35:42,741 --> 00:35:46,845 Snowdonia's mountains were born in a fiery collision 536 00:35:46,845 --> 00:35:49,080 between tectonic plates. 537 00:35:50,582 --> 00:35:52,450 About 400 million years ago, 538 00:35:52,450 --> 00:35:54,652 the sediments were being laid on the ocean floor 539 00:35:54,652 --> 00:35:56,287 so you would have the ash deposits, 540 00:35:56,287 --> 00:35:58,123 you would have the sand and silt, mud 541 00:35:58,123 --> 00:36:00,258 being laid on top of each other. 542 00:36:00,258 --> 00:36:02,727 And as the tectonic plates were moving, 543 00:36:02,727 --> 00:36:05,463 you would've had one tectonic plate going underneath another, 544 00:36:05,463 --> 00:36:07,432 which created massive folds. 545 00:36:07,432 --> 00:36:09,067 They would have brought the layers 546 00:36:09,067 --> 00:36:11,069 that would've been on the bottom of the sea up to the tops. 547 00:36:11,069 --> 00:36:12,570 That's why you got the best place for fossils 548 00:36:12,570 --> 00:36:14,406 on the tops of the mountains. 549 00:36:17,142 --> 00:36:21,379 Cwm Idwal, a picturesque glacial valley, 550 00:36:21,379 --> 00:36:24,416 bears the evidence of this tectonic shift. 551 00:36:29,354 --> 00:36:33,758 Fossils of marine organisms, once living on the sea floor, 552 00:36:33,758 --> 00:36:37,729 lie embedded in the rocks of Cwm Idwal. 553 00:36:37,729 --> 00:36:40,498 We've got fossils of these little sea creatures, 554 00:36:40,498 --> 00:36:42,133 they're called "Brachiopods". 555 00:36:42,133 --> 00:36:44,269 They would have been shelled creatures with hard valves 556 00:36:44,269 --> 00:36:46,204 and they would have been living at the bottom of the sea 557 00:36:46,204 --> 00:36:48,206 about 40 million years ago. 558 00:36:48,206 --> 00:36:50,575 Nowadays they are being found on the tops of the mountains 559 00:36:50,575 --> 00:36:53,478 and that's due to the tectonic forces that took place. 560 00:36:55,180 --> 00:36:57,782 But these fossils, once at the top, 561 00:36:57,782 --> 00:37:00,718 now lie at the base of Cwm Idwal. 562 00:37:04,556 --> 00:37:06,958 How did some end up at the bottom? 563 00:37:09,627 --> 00:37:12,964 It was a puzzle that perplexed Charles Darwin. 564 00:37:15,433 --> 00:37:18,336 These boulders laden with fossils, 565 00:37:18,336 --> 00:37:21,372 provided some of the earliest evidence 566 00:37:21,372 --> 00:37:25,577 that this entire landscape had been carved by ice. 567 00:37:30,815 --> 00:37:35,553 Scientists like Darwin were only just beginning to theorize 568 00:37:35,553 --> 00:37:39,257 that there had once been a period of immense glaciation. 569 00:37:40,525 --> 00:37:42,427 Cwm Idwal is very important 570 00:37:42,427 --> 00:37:45,396 in terms of its role in the glacial theory 571 00:37:45,396 --> 00:37:47,565 or the theory of glaciation. 572 00:37:47,565 --> 00:37:50,301 One of its famous scholars includes Charles Darwin 573 00:37:50,301 --> 00:37:52,103 who visited the area. 574 00:37:52,103 --> 00:37:55,406 The glacial theory relates to how ice has formed landscapes. 575 00:37:55,406 --> 00:37:58,209 And Cwm Idwal is a classic cwm or cirque. 576 00:37:58,209 --> 00:38:00,278 It's a bowl-shaped amphitheater, 577 00:38:00,278 --> 00:38:02,514 formed when the glacier moves down the mountain. 578 00:38:04,716 --> 00:38:07,652 Darwin proposed that as glaciers move, 579 00:38:07,652 --> 00:38:11,089 they collect rubble from the top of the mountain. 580 00:38:11,089 --> 00:38:13,625 Then move the rocks and dirt downhill 581 00:38:13,625 --> 00:38:16,027 and deposit them at the base. 582 00:38:20,265 --> 00:38:24,702 After helping Darwin prove his theory of glaciation, 583 00:38:24,702 --> 00:38:28,339 these rocks earned their name, 584 00:38:28,339 --> 00:38:30,308 "Darwin's Boulders". 585 00:38:32,277 --> 00:38:35,813 If it wasn't for the glaciers scraping away the surface, 586 00:38:35,813 --> 00:38:39,717 we would have never found these fossils. 587 00:38:39,717 --> 00:38:42,120 You can see the effect of ice carving out the rock 588 00:38:42,120 --> 00:38:43,488 all the way down the valley there. 589 00:38:47,425 --> 00:38:51,763 Today lakes fill deep glacial hollows 590 00:38:51,763 --> 00:38:54,632 and waterfalls spill over rocks 591 00:38:54,632 --> 00:38:58,136 perched high above the valley floor. 592 00:38:58,136 --> 00:39:07,145 (♪♪♪) 593 00:39:07,145 --> 00:39:11,115 In Snowdonia, there's all kinds of movements of water. 594 00:39:11,115 --> 00:39:14,185 You've got your traditional runoff which forms streams, 595 00:39:14,185 --> 00:39:15,787 you've got glacial lakes, 596 00:39:15,787 --> 00:39:19,490 you've got waterfalls where the hard rock hasn't been eroded 597 00:39:19,490 --> 00:39:22,627 and there's a cascade of water there as well. 598 00:39:28,399 --> 00:39:31,736 Cattle and sheep graze in these mountain valleys, 599 00:39:33,671 --> 00:39:37,108 as they have for thousands of years. 600 00:39:37,108 --> 00:39:48,686 (♪♪♪) 601 00:39:48,686 --> 00:39:53,191 An ancient drover's crossing constructed with loose stones 602 00:39:53,191 --> 00:39:56,628 was once used to move livestock. 603 00:39:56,628 --> 00:40:00,198 Now it is dwarfed by a modern bridge. 604 00:40:00,198 --> 00:40:01,466 The people have grown, 605 00:40:01,466 --> 00:40:02,734 they've lived in these mountains. 606 00:40:02,734 --> 00:40:07,472 And the mountains themselves are dominant peaks and landscapes 607 00:40:07,472 --> 00:40:10,842 which help with navigation, they provide shelter, 608 00:40:10,842 --> 00:40:14,112 they provide different habitats to graze upon. 609 00:40:14,112 --> 00:40:15,546 But the important part 610 00:40:15,546 --> 00:40:18,249 are the valleys between those mountains. 611 00:40:18,249 --> 00:40:20,618 It's where people come, it's where cultures are shared, 612 00:40:20,618 --> 00:40:23,354 it's where traditions are shared. 613 00:40:23,354 --> 00:40:27,158 There's thousands of years of culture that I feel a part of. 614 00:40:27,158 --> 00:40:29,460 I think I'm rooted in these mountains. 615 00:40:29,460 --> 00:40:32,130 And by standing by the root of the mountains themselves 616 00:40:32,130 --> 00:40:34,232 and looking at the majesty of the mountains, 617 00:40:34,232 --> 00:40:37,101 it just give you a sense of awe. 618 00:40:37,101 --> 00:40:46,477 (♪♪♪) 619 00:40:46,477 --> 00:40:50,882 Farther up the coastal path at the northern tip of Wales, 620 00:40:50,882 --> 00:40:52,850 a rocky headland, 621 00:40:52,850 --> 00:40:56,621 2 miles long and 1 mile across, 622 00:40:56,621 --> 00:40:59,624 meets the Irish Sea. 623 00:40:59,624 --> 00:41:02,260 This is the Great Orme. 624 00:41:07,498 --> 00:41:12,170 The summit of Great Orme rises nearly 700 feet above the water. 625 00:41:16,207 --> 00:41:18,743 It's defended by sheer cliffs, 626 00:41:18,743 --> 00:41:21,646 which overlook the surrounding countryside. 627 00:41:23,514 --> 00:41:27,685 It is an ideal vantage point to prepare for a coastal battle. 628 00:41:29,854 --> 00:41:34,225 In 1940, early in the Second World War, 629 00:41:34,225 --> 00:41:38,096 the threat of a German invasion put Great Britain on high alert. 630 00:41:39,364 --> 00:41:42,700 The army relocated its Coastal Gunnery School 631 00:41:42,700 --> 00:41:47,405 from east coast Essex to the west coast of Wales. 632 00:41:47,405 --> 00:41:50,641 The view and the wide mouth of the bay 633 00:41:50,641 --> 00:41:53,811 made the Great Orme an ideal training ground 634 00:41:53,811 --> 00:41:56,381 for British gunners. 635 00:41:56,381 --> 00:41:58,850 Boats were towed across the bay 636 00:41:58,850 --> 00:42:02,086 and anchored in the distance for target practice. 637 00:42:03,287 --> 00:42:06,257 By 1942, the gunnery school 638 00:42:06,257 --> 00:42:09,694 had trained more than 750 servicemen. 639 00:42:14,499 --> 00:42:18,169 Today three searchlight stations remain. 640 00:42:21,105 --> 00:42:22,440 Very early on, people had discovered 641 00:42:22,440 --> 00:42:25,576 that it was a good vantage point. 642 00:42:25,576 --> 00:42:29,347 You could see what was happening for miles around, 643 00:42:29,347 --> 00:42:30,615 so I guess that's one of the things 644 00:42:30,615 --> 00:42:35,253 that attracted people to live and to make their lives here. 645 00:42:37,422 --> 00:42:41,659 By the 19th century, many had settled on the Great Orme 646 00:42:41,659 --> 00:42:44,729 to farm the headland. 647 00:42:44,729 --> 00:42:49,634 In 1880, one landowner acquired several Kashmir goats 648 00:42:49,634 --> 00:42:53,704 from northern India and set them free on his land. 649 00:42:55,440 --> 00:42:59,143 Today these goats still run wild 650 00:42:59,143 --> 00:43:01,679 and now number in the hundreds. 651 00:43:01,679 --> 00:43:05,383 I think the goats are symbolic of the Great Orme. 652 00:43:05,383 --> 00:43:10,388 There are feral goats elsewhere in Wales, separate herds 653 00:43:10,388 --> 00:43:12,657 but they're completely different to the goats here. 654 00:43:12,657 --> 00:43:15,626 This is a particular breed, Kashmir. 655 00:43:17,361 --> 00:43:20,131 Halfway down the headland, 656 00:43:20,131 --> 00:43:22,567 steep slopes and narrow ledges 657 00:43:22,567 --> 00:43:26,604 present an inhospitable landscape for most. 658 00:43:26,604 --> 00:43:29,841 (Goats bleating) 659 00:43:29,841 --> 00:43:33,611 But for these feral goats, this is home. 660 00:43:36,214 --> 00:43:40,151 For the most part, the scene on the slopes is quite peaceful. 661 00:43:41,586 --> 00:43:45,823 Many goats rest along rocky ledges. 662 00:43:45,823 --> 00:43:48,659 Others delicately nibble the grass 663 00:43:48,659 --> 00:43:51,429 and pick at the remaining berries. 664 00:43:53,464 --> 00:43:54,866 The dominant males 665 00:43:54,866 --> 00:43:57,735 have the largest curved horns in the herd. 666 00:43:59,804 --> 00:44:03,808 The horns are notched with large ridges. 667 00:44:03,808 --> 00:44:07,645 Each ridge represents one year of growth, 668 00:44:07,645 --> 00:44:10,982 making mature males easy to spot. 669 00:44:14,185 --> 00:44:17,588 These goats are best known for their silky wool coat. 670 00:44:20,124 --> 00:44:23,528 Soft cashmere wool first gained popularity 671 00:44:23,528 --> 00:44:26,063 during the reign of Queen Victoria 672 00:44:26,063 --> 00:44:29,634 and is still in high demand today. 673 00:44:29,634 --> 00:44:33,104 Human history on the Great Orme goes back an awful long way. 674 00:44:33,104 --> 00:44:35,740 Over 500 sites of historical interest 675 00:44:35,740 --> 00:44:39,544 have been recorded just on this small headland. 676 00:44:39,544 --> 00:44:42,313 So it's really rich in human history. 677 00:44:44,649 --> 00:44:48,085 There are so many reasons why the Great Orme is special. 678 00:44:48,085 --> 00:44:50,154 It's hard to quantify, really. 679 00:44:50,154 --> 00:44:53,624 You've got steep drops below you straight down to the sea, 680 00:44:53,624 --> 00:44:55,726 you've got the sound of the seabirds, 681 00:44:55,726 --> 00:44:58,162 that feeling of isolation. 682 00:44:58,162 --> 00:44:59,263 It's-- 683 00:44:59,263 --> 00:45:01,365 Yeah, it's a magical place. 684 00:45:01,365 --> 00:45:10,608 (♪♪♪) 685 00:45:10,608 --> 00:45:14,312 From wide sandy beaches 686 00:45:14,312 --> 00:45:18,149 to towering limestone cliffs, 687 00:45:18,149 --> 00:45:22,587 a journey up the world's longest coastal footpath 688 00:45:22,587 --> 00:45:27,191 reveals spectacular landscapes 689 00:45:27,191 --> 00:45:30,394 carved by the power of water. 690 00:45:30,394 --> 00:45:34,565 Rich marine life thriving amongst the cliffs. 691 00:45:34,565 --> 00:45:39,337 And a Welsh culture rooted in life overlooking the ocean. 692 00:45:39,337 --> 00:45:42,773 The coast of Wales draws this majesty with it. 693 00:45:42,773 --> 00:45:46,777 It's this place where you just repair and refresh and enjoy. 694 00:45:46,777 --> 00:45:50,247 You'll see plenty of sheep, you'll see these green hills. 695 00:45:50,247 --> 00:45:54,785 You'll see really mysterious peaks in the early morning mist. 696 00:45:54,785 --> 00:45:57,188 And I think if anybody was to come to Wales 697 00:45:57,188 --> 00:46:00,625 and spend a majestic 3 months walking around Wales, 698 00:46:00,625 --> 00:46:03,461 they'll leave feeling a little bit more Welsh 699 00:46:03,461 --> 00:46:05,262 than when they arrived. 700 00:46:05,262 --> 00:46:15,306 (♪♪♪) 701 00:46:15,306 --> 00:46:25,216 (♪♪♪)