Poppit Sands

Poppit is a small, dispersed settlement which lies on the southern side of the estuary of the River Teifi, near Cardigan, in northern Pembrokeshire, Wales.

[2] The beach offers views across the estuary and bay towards Gwbert and Cardigan Island, and the nearest village is St Dogmaels, 1+1⁄2 miles away.

When the tide is fully out, the flats at the far south-eastern end (known as Cardigan Bar) extend for nearly a mile and almost reach Gwbert on the other side.

[5] Occasional boat trips around the bay, with wildlife spotting their main aim, leave from Poppit Sands during the summer months.

[7] Further research into the fish-trap, the rocks of which are now covered in worms, algae and sea anemones, and only protrude by some 12 inches (300 mm) above the sea-bed, is currently being undertaken by Pembrokeshire College and the Dyfed Archaeological Trust.

Deposited as muds and sands on the ocean floor, they were subsequently squeezed and folded by major earth movements, which changed the mudstones into slates.

The nearest official Met Office weather station for which online records are available is at Aberporth,[12] which is 6.5 miles (10.7 km) ENE of Poppit Sands, and has a similar coastal aspect.

For fishermen the beach offers good catches of flounder, cod and whiting in winter, and mullet can be caught near the river mouth.

The work has been exhibited in the UK, Hong Kong, Copenhagen and New York,[24] and has also been published in a book entitled Poppit Sands Moonscapes.

[32] In June 2011 it was announced that the club had been awarded £35,980 from the Big Lottery Fund, for use on new equipment and to provide additional opportunities for recruiting new members.

The original Cardigan lifeboat station was built in 1849 (on the south side of the River Teifi below Penrhyn Castle)[34] after the loss of the crew from the brig Agnes Lee.

In 1876 a replacement boathouse with slipway was built, the remains of which can be seen down the estuary at Black Rocks, but this was abandoned in 1932, leaving the nearest other stations at Fishguard and Aberystwyth.

The subsequent popularity of this area, with increased leisure incidents and accidents, led to the decision to construct a station on the present site.

However 500m up from the youth hostel is Alltycoed Campsite [41] The nearest pub/hotel is the Webley Hotel, located on the road between Poppit Sands car park and the village of St.

The name "Poppit", however, can be traced back to the 16th century, and is found in documents relating to the Dissolution of the Monasteries, in particular with regard to lands owned by nearby St. Dogmael's Abbey.

Cardigan Bar, exposed at low tide, was marked on maps before any usage of the name "Poppit Sands", and is still used today.