Burry Holms

Burry Holms is a small tidal island at the northern end of Rhossili Bay on the Gower Peninsula in Swansea. It rises to about thirty metres above the sea and is covered in spring and summer by thrift and sea campion. The island’s Welsh name, Ynys Lanwol, means ‘tidal island’. Early English records call it ‘Saint Kenyth atte Holmes’, linking it to Saint Cenydd, a hermit said to have lived there. Archaeologists have found remains from his time on the island. The name ‘Holmes’ comes from Old Norse, meaning a small rounded islet.

The island has been used for thousands of years. Nine thousand years ago the sea was much farther away, and Mesolithic hunters camped there seasonally. Flint tools and wooden objects found in 1919 show their presence. Later, Iron Age people built a hillfort covering five acres on the island. In medieval times a monastery stood there. Collectors still visit to search for shells washed up on the shore.

Visitors reach Burry Holms on foot at low tide across the sands of Rhossili Bay. The remains of the hillfort and monastery can be seen among the grass and wildflowers. The views stretch across the bay to the cliffs of Worm’s Head. Shells and small stones litter the shore, left by the changing tides. The island offers a quiet place to walk and look at the sea and sky.