Mwnt
Mwnt is a small and exceptionally beautiful bay on the Ceredigion Heritage Coast of Wales, a secluded cove beneath a grassy promontory that combines a sweeping arc of golden sand, clear turquoise water and the dramatic headland of the Foel Mwnt, a conical hill rising steeply from the coast to provide views along the entire Cardigan Bay coastline toward the mountains of Snowdonia to the north and the Pembrokeshire coast to the south. The National Trust manages this section of the coast and the combination of the beach, the headland walking and the tiny medieval church of the Holy Cross at the clifftop makes Mwnt one of the most rewarding short visits on the Welsh coast. The Church of the Holy Cross at Mwnt is one of the oldest Christian sites in Wales, a small whitewashed building of great simplicity that dates in its current form from the fourteenth century but stands on a site of much earlier religious use. The church's remote clifftop position, its whitewashed walls visible from a considerable distance at sea, made it a landmark for vessels passing through Cardigan Bay in the medieval period, and the tradition of religious use on this headland may extend back to the early Christian period of the sixth and seventh centuries. The bay has an outstanding reputation for dolphin watching. A resident population of bottlenose dolphins, one of the only resident populations on the Welsh coast, uses the waters of Cardigan Bay throughout the year and individuals and small groups are frequently visible from the headland and beach, particularly in the calmer conditions of summer and early autumn. The boat trips from New Quay along the coast provide closer encounters with the dolphins, but the view from the Foel Mwnt headland of dolphins in the clear water below is one of the most memorable wildlife experiences available in Wales. The beach itself, enclosed between the headland and the lower ground to the south, provides sheltered swimming in water of remarkable clarity, and the grassy slopes of the Foel Mwnt provide excellent picnicking ground above.