0:00:14 > 0:00:18Out there is the Bristol Channel and on the far side, England.
0:00:18 > 0:00:22And that can only mean that this is South Wales!
0:00:23 > 0:00:29I'm heading towards Cardiff and then travelling to the far west and legendary Pembrokeshire!
0:00:30 > 0:00:32Along this journey,
0:00:32 > 0:00:35I want to discover how the union of land, sea and people
0:00:35 > 0:00:40has created communities which cling to this spectacular coastline.
0:00:44 > 0:00:46On my mission, I'll be joined by the usual team.
0:00:48 > 0:00:52Mark discovers how a city was founded on precious metal.
0:00:52 > 0:00:55Isn't that brilliant?!
0:00:55 > 0:00:57Alice goes Welsh mining...
0:00:57 > 0:01:0021st century style.
0:01:00 > 0:01:05- Brilliant!- Miranda joins an extraordinary community of dolphins.
0:01:05 > 0:01:10And Nick encounters the engineers whose mind-blowing construction
0:01:10 > 0:01:15is right in the middle of our only coastal national park.
0:01:16 > 0:01:17And me?
0:01:17 > 0:01:22I meet a beach racing record breaker that's risen from the grave!
0:01:22 > 0:01:25It's like a big child's toy or a cartoon of a car!
0:01:52 > 0:01:54This time, I'm travelling from Cardiff
0:01:54 > 0:01:58along along the South Coast of Wales to Britain's smallest city
0:01:58 > 0:02:00at St David's head.
0:02:02 > 0:02:06My first stop's over there - a capital city by the sea.
0:02:06 > 0:02:08Cardiff.
0:02:11 > 0:02:14When you think about it, every capital city
0:02:14 > 0:02:16in the British Isles flirts with the sea.
0:02:16 > 0:02:19And it's no coincidence, because in every case,
0:02:19 > 0:02:21it's the sea that's been the great provider.
0:02:21 > 0:02:24In fact, it's been the life blood!
0:02:26 > 0:02:27Cardiff is no different.
0:02:27 > 0:02:33Its coal port transformed a little town into Wales's premier city.
0:02:33 > 0:02:37Now, that community's reinventing itself at break-neck speed.
0:02:43 > 0:02:48It's no surprise to find it's all happening around the old docks.
0:02:48 > 0:02:54These days, the city's welders don't repair ships, they sculpt metal!
0:02:54 > 0:02:58Nia Jones is part of the capital's renaissance.
0:02:58 > 0:03:01A new community, springing up around the marina.
0:03:03 > 0:03:05How much of this cityscape is new?
0:03:05 > 0:03:08Well, I think over the past few years, it's really developed.
0:03:08 > 0:03:13The latest addition is this fantastic senate building where the Welsh Assembly now is housed.
0:03:13 > 0:03:16Do you approve of what's happening here?
0:03:16 > 0:03:17I love it!
0:03:17 > 0:03:21Every time you come here, every few months, there's something new -
0:03:21 > 0:03:24a new restaurant, a new bar, a new art gallery opening,
0:03:24 > 0:03:28- so it's a very exciting place to be at the moment.- What is the draw?
0:03:28 > 0:03:33Why is everyone coming from within the city down to former docks?
0:03:33 > 0:03:34Because of this!
0:03:34 > 0:03:36Look at the view!
0:03:36 > 0:03:39What's on view is the new marina,
0:03:39 > 0:03:45controversial because it's remodelled the environment.
0:03:48 > 0:03:50The trick's been to trap water in the bay.
0:03:50 > 0:03:53It used to be tidal, so twice a day,
0:03:53 > 0:03:58it was just mud flats - good for birds, but bad for boats.
0:03:59 > 0:04:04The big idea was to build this £220 million S-shaped barrage.
0:04:04 > 0:04:08It holds water in the bay 24 hrs a day.
0:04:17 > 0:04:21To get out the open water, you have to negotiate this massive sea lock.
0:04:30 > 0:04:34It's really quite unnerving being in here. It's like being in an elevator.
0:04:34 > 0:04:37And when you look at those shut gates,
0:04:37 > 0:04:41there are uncountable millions of tonnes of water
0:04:41 > 0:04:44pressed up against that gate.
0:04:46 > 0:04:50Cardiff's transformed itself into a gated community.
0:04:50 > 0:04:54The inconvenient tide, tamed by concrete and steel.
0:04:56 > 0:04:59Beyond the barrier, it's easy to see
0:04:59 > 0:05:03why so many of the Welsh love to be beside this sea.
0:05:08 > 0:05:12Over half the population of Wales live along its southern shoreline.
0:05:12 > 0:05:15A host of communities cling to this coast.
0:05:15 > 0:05:20Some are thriving, others are hanging on.
0:05:22 > 0:05:25Barry's beaches are often empty these days,
0:05:25 > 0:05:30but once miners, and their families poured down the Valleys en masse,
0:05:30 > 0:05:31until they hit the sea.
0:05:34 > 0:05:36Mining wasn't just a job, it was a way of life.
0:05:36 > 0:05:41They would work, rest and play together.
0:05:46 > 0:05:48The annual trips organised by the pits,
0:05:48 > 0:05:51and the Sunday schools of chapel and church,
0:05:51 > 0:05:53were the highlight of the year.
0:05:53 > 0:05:57Over 50 years ago, Jane Ward didn't come to the beach alone,
0:05:57 > 0:05:59her whole village came too.
0:05:59 > 0:06:02- Hello, Jane.- Hi, Neil, how are you? - I'm well.- Good.
0:06:02 > 0:06:05What's with the giant numbers on the wall?
0:06:05 > 0:06:09Well, when we used to come, people arranged to meet on the beach.
0:06:09 > 0:06:12Then we would say we would arrive at different times.
0:06:12 > 0:06:14We would meet at a certain number.
0:06:14 > 0:06:17So, is either of these two children you?
0:06:17 > 0:06:19Yes, there.
0:06:19 > 0:06:21Fantastic.
0:06:21 > 0:06:24Brilliant. How did you get here from the Valleys?
0:06:24 > 0:06:25By train, steam train.
0:06:25 > 0:06:27That would be exciting in itself.
0:06:27 > 0:06:32It was, yes. If you can imagine now, we were 250 Sunday School children,
0:06:32 > 0:06:34a mass exodus from the village.
0:06:34 > 0:06:39So you travelled together and you colonised one patch of beach and you stayed together?
0:06:39 > 0:06:43More or less. Yes, the majority would try to get together.
0:06:43 > 0:06:46Plus, there'd be others on the beach before,
0:06:46 > 0:06:47so we couldn't get all together.
0:06:47 > 0:06:52Those that could get together would stay together. Family, friends.
0:06:52 > 0:06:54And in the course of the afternoon,
0:06:54 > 0:06:56we'd start singing our choruses from Sunday school
0:06:56 > 0:06:59and one would start and another group would join in
0:06:59 > 0:07:02and before long, you'd have the whole beach singing!
0:07:07 > 0:07:10After a day of sea, sand and community singing,
0:07:10 > 0:07:13they were ready for all the fun of the fair.
0:07:14 > 0:07:18Without the crowds, it's a more solitary pleasure.
0:07:22 > 0:07:24It's no job for a grown man!
0:07:40 > 0:07:44Barry's glory days of group holidays may be gone,
0:07:44 > 0:07:47but there's still some fun to be had.
0:08:00 > 0:08:04Heading west, impressive 180ft limestone cliffs
0:08:04 > 0:08:06separate the land from sea.
0:08:13 > 0:08:17Along the cliff tops are the faint impressions
0:08:17 > 0:08:20of defensive walls built here over 2,000 years ago.
0:08:24 > 0:08:27These earthworks are all that's left
0:08:27 > 0:08:30of fortified farmsteads from an Iron Age community.
0:08:33 > 0:08:37Patterns on the beach show the cliffs' losing battle.
0:08:37 > 0:08:40Relentless storms are eroding the coast
0:08:40 > 0:08:43at a rate of one metre every 10 years.
0:08:43 > 0:08:45In a couple of centuries,
0:08:45 > 0:08:48there'll be nothing left of these ancient settlements.
0:08:53 > 0:08:56Coastal communities wax and wane.
0:08:56 > 0:09:00On a promontory on the edge of Porthcawl is Trecco Bay.
0:09:00 > 0:09:02It's proving so popular
0:09:02 > 0:09:06that it's become the UK's biggest caravan park.
0:09:06 > 0:09:08So, what is the attraction
0:09:08 > 0:09:12of an immobile home in this makeshift city by the sea?
0:09:15 > 0:09:20I'm Billy Miller, and I live on the caravan site there and I love it there.
0:09:21 > 0:09:26Billy was once known as Mad Billy Miller!
0:09:26 > 0:09:30I usually sit down and have a drink with a lot of my friends.
0:09:30 > 0:09:32People get to know you.
0:09:32 > 0:09:36It's home from home, it's better than being home.
0:09:36 > 0:09:41Once, Billy was a mercenary and travelled the world.
0:09:41 > 0:09:44Then he found Trecco Bay.
0:09:45 > 0:09:50I went to sea, then I kept on moving until I was 41.
0:09:50 > 0:09:53Africa, everywhere, you know, I just kept going.
0:09:54 > 0:09:57I made a lot of money, spent it.
0:09:57 > 0:10:02Had a good time, had good nights, lost a few, but not to worry!
0:10:02 > 0:10:05I love being here and I love the neighbours I've got.
0:10:05 > 0:10:06And I've got the sea.
0:10:06 > 0:10:09I got that, and that's wonderful.
0:10:11 > 0:10:13I've retired here, if you like.
0:10:13 > 0:10:15I live here ten months of the year.
0:10:15 > 0:10:19I intend to stay here as long as possible. I love it.
0:10:34 > 0:10:37When is a beach not a beach?
0:10:39 > 0:10:43At Porthcawl, it's not such a silly question.
0:10:44 > 0:10:48In the 1980s, when the sea began to seriously batter the sea wall,
0:10:48 > 0:10:52Porthcawl's council decided to strengthen the defences
0:10:52 > 0:10:55by covering the rocks and pebbles in bitumen.
0:10:55 > 0:10:56What a bright idea(!)
0:10:56 > 0:10:57And they didn't stop there.
0:10:57 > 0:11:00Oh no, they came up with the cunning wheeze
0:11:00 > 0:11:03of covering the whole lot in sand and thereby extending the beach,
0:11:03 > 0:11:06but of course, the sea just kept on washing the sand away
0:11:06 > 0:11:09so what you're left with is a world's first -
0:11:09 > 0:11:11the only man-made, tarmac beach!
0:11:18 > 0:11:23Tarmacking the beach, I can't see it catching on,
0:11:23 > 0:11:25but who knows?
0:11:27 > 0:11:31Nature's not the only one shifting sand around our coast.
0:11:31 > 0:11:33The yellow stuff's big business.
0:11:33 > 0:11:37Alice Roberts is in search of the "sandmen".
0:11:41 > 0:11:44Britain's booming building industry
0:11:44 > 0:11:47is having a hidden effect on our coast.
0:11:47 > 0:11:49Projects like the second Severn crossing
0:11:49 > 0:11:54and the Cardiff Bay development use vast quantities of concrete.
0:11:54 > 0:11:56And for that, you need sand.
0:11:59 > 0:12:01Once upon a time, the Welsh mined coal.
0:12:01 > 0:12:05These days, it's sand they're after, lots of it.
0:12:10 > 0:12:1485% of the sand we use is taken from the sea bed.
0:12:14 > 0:12:18I'm going to find out what effect that's having.
0:12:18 > 0:12:22I'm in the Bristol Channel and we're heading out to Nash Bank,
0:12:22 > 0:12:25which is about five miles off the coast of South Wales.
0:12:25 > 0:12:27And I'm going to get on that dredger.
0:12:27 > 0:12:31I've watched these ships going up and down the Bristol Channel since I was a kid,
0:12:31 > 0:12:34but I've never been on one, so I'm quite excited.
0:12:34 > 0:12:36The Arco Dart spends 360 days a year
0:12:36 > 0:12:40dredging up sand and pebbles from the sea bed.
0:12:41 > 0:12:43- Hello, Alice. Good morning.- Hello!
0:12:43 > 0:12:47- Mick Forster, master of the Arco Dart. Welcome on board.- Thank you.
0:12:47 > 0:12:48Want to come over?
0:12:48 > 0:12:54It's Mick Forster's job to position his ship precisely over a sand bank.
0:12:55 > 0:12:58Can you dredge anywhere in the Bristol Channel?
0:12:58 > 0:13:01No. We're restricted to what we call dredging areas.
0:13:01 > 0:13:03We're only allowed to load on licensed areas.
0:13:03 > 0:13:07- So does this blue streak here represent a bank of sand?- Yes.
0:13:07 > 0:13:11This is where we're heading for, called the Nash Dredging Ground.
0:13:11 > 0:13:13The sea bed is owned by the Crown
0:13:13 > 0:13:16and every tonne of aggregate taken has to be paid for.
0:13:18 > 0:13:25The Nash Bank is eight miles long and a mile wide. That's a lot of sand!
0:13:26 > 0:13:30The dredger's basically an enormous vacuum cleaner.
0:13:30 > 0:13:351,300 tonnes of aggregate are sucked up this tube every two hours.
0:13:35 > 0:13:38As it's pumped aboard, it gets graded.
0:13:38 > 0:13:42Sand for cement, gravel for gardens.
0:13:44 > 0:13:48The dredging companies are required to do detailed surveys
0:13:48 > 0:13:52to measure the effect of their operations on the local environment.
0:13:52 > 0:13:56This is a chart of the sea bed, it shows the bank very clearly.
0:13:56 > 0:13:59The Nash Bank itself is this area here.
0:13:59 > 0:14:03As you take sand out from this area,
0:14:03 > 0:14:05is it being replenished?
0:14:05 > 0:14:08You must remember that there are no renewable sources of sand,
0:14:08 > 0:14:11just like oil, there's no renewable sources of oil.
0:14:11 > 0:14:15You just must use those resources carefully.
0:14:15 > 0:14:20The sand in Nash Bank was made in the last Ice Age.
0:14:20 > 0:14:22If the visibility of the water was better,
0:14:22 > 0:14:25you'd be able to see that the sand lies on the sea bed
0:14:25 > 0:14:27in remarkable, 20-metre-high waves,
0:14:27 > 0:14:30gradually being eaten away by dredging.
0:14:34 > 0:14:40Since the 1920s, one fifth of the Nash Bank has already been consumed
0:14:40 > 0:14:43and it will never be replaced.
0:14:46 > 0:14:49We may not be taking precious sand directly from our beaches,
0:14:49 > 0:14:52but some worry that dredging sandbanks
0:14:52 > 0:14:57unleashes the power of the sea to erode the beaches away.
0:14:57 > 0:15:01Can you be absolutely sure that if you remove the sand down here,
0:15:01 > 0:15:04it's not going to have an effect on the coastline?
0:15:04 > 0:15:08These beaches have been changing for thousands of years,
0:15:08 > 0:15:10they've been coming and going.
0:15:10 > 0:15:12Yet we see a change perhaps in a decade,
0:15:12 > 0:15:15and we think it's important, but actually, it isn't.
0:15:15 > 0:15:19That change has been occurring over many hundreds of years.
0:15:20 > 0:15:22Whatever the effect of dredging,
0:15:22 > 0:15:26one thing is for sure. Sand is a finite resource.
0:15:26 > 0:15:28Once it's gone, it's gone for good.
0:15:30 > 0:15:34But if we want to use sand for our buildings and gravel for our gardens,
0:15:34 > 0:15:36we've got to get it from somewhere.
0:15:50 > 0:15:51The steelworks at Port Talbot
0:15:51 > 0:15:55is the first sign of a metal-working tradition
0:15:55 > 0:15:58that's carried on here for generations.
0:16:02 > 0:16:06Its roots lie around the bay in Swansea.
0:16:06 > 0:16:09The town was nicknamed Copperopolis
0:16:09 > 0:16:12because an amazing two thirds of the world's copper
0:16:12 > 0:16:14was once produced there.
0:16:14 > 0:16:20Mark Horton's looking to uncover the story of the city's metal monopoly.
0:16:22 > 0:16:27I'm here to discover an alchemist's ancient secret
0:16:27 > 0:16:32that once made Swansea the copper capital of the world.
0:16:32 > 0:16:35Open it at the bottom, close it at the top.
0:16:35 > 0:16:38Eddie Daughton is an experimental archaeologist.
0:16:38 > 0:16:41This is rather fun, isn't it?
0:16:41 > 0:16:43Erm, to start with!
0:16:43 > 0:16:47We're using 4,000-year-old methods
0:16:47 > 0:16:53to rediscover the magic of turning rock into metal.
0:16:53 > 0:16:58The Welsh knew the secret and Eddie thinks he's cracked it.
0:16:58 > 0:17:01First, we have to get the fire hot enough,
0:17:01 > 0:17:03and it's not as easy as it looks.
0:17:03 > 0:17:05So if you want to stop bellowing.
0:17:05 > 0:17:08Phew! That was exhausting!
0:17:08 > 0:17:11So, what's the recipe to make copper?
0:17:11 > 0:17:15For this furnace, it's about 10 kilograms of charcoal...
0:17:16 > 0:17:19..half a kilogram of copper ore...
0:17:21 > 0:17:23..a little tiny bit of iron stone,
0:17:24 > 0:17:28..and we should end up making a quarter of a kilogram of copper.
0:17:28 > 0:17:30Maybe not quite that much.
0:17:30 > 0:17:37So what you're saying is you need 10 times as much fuel - carbon -
0:17:37 > 0:17:40- to make the copper than the copper ore itself.- Yeah!
0:17:40 > 0:17:46- So that explains why Swansea's here...- Coal!- ..masses of coal!
0:17:46 > 0:17:47Masses of carbon.
0:17:49 > 0:17:53Put together copper ore with coal to make the metal,
0:17:53 > 0:17:57and the sea to transport it and you get a winning formula!
0:17:57 > 0:18:01- Do you think this is going to work? - With luck.
0:18:01 > 0:18:04I'm deeply sceptical.
0:18:04 > 0:18:06It's so simple! Believe!
0:18:06 > 0:18:10As Swansea's metal workers mastered the art of copper extraction,
0:18:10 > 0:18:14a city grew from primitive beginnings
0:18:14 > 0:18:17into a scene of Satanic industry.
0:18:20 > 0:18:27By the late-18th century, the whole of the Tawe Valley was filled smelters.
0:18:27 > 0:18:32The works operated day and night, producing sulphurous fumes,
0:18:32 > 0:18:37so horrendous that downwind, the land is still toxic to this day.
0:18:41 > 0:18:45These docks were built to expand the trade still further.
0:18:47 > 0:18:52200 years ago, Swansea's copper was in demand.
0:18:52 > 0:18:55Who was after it? The Royal Navy.
0:18:55 > 0:18:57Hello, David.
0:18:57 > 0:18:59Hello, Mark! I saw you on the telly.
0:18:59 > 0:19:07David Jenkins knows the story of the city's copper-bottomed deal with Nelson's Navy.
0:19:07 > 0:19:11This is an ingot of pure copper, as would have been produced in Swansea.
0:19:11 > 0:19:14This is pure copper?
0:19:14 > 0:19:17That is pure, pure copper, the essential product.
0:19:17 > 0:19:19What did they need it for in the 19th century?
0:19:19 > 0:19:22Well, the main use of copper was this.
0:19:22 > 0:19:26This is what gave Nelson's Navy massive tactical advantages.
0:19:26 > 0:19:29- That's fantastic. - It's a sheet of copper ore
0:19:29 > 0:19:32from the hull of HMS Victory.
0:19:32 > 0:19:34You can see here "Vivian and Sons, Swansea."
0:19:34 > 0:19:38I can see a number, 2802.
0:19:38 > 0:19:42That's right, copper ore and obviously copper itself was very, very valuable,
0:19:42 > 0:19:45but its value was not so much monetary as tactical.
0:19:45 > 0:19:49Indeed, the manoeuvring that took place before the Battle of Trafalgar
0:19:49 > 0:19:50owed a great deal of its success
0:19:50 > 0:19:54to the fact that Nelson's ships had this on their bottoms.
0:19:54 > 0:19:57And it means that no weeds grow on the hull of your ship,
0:19:57 > 0:20:00the water slips much more quickly over the hull,
0:20:00 > 0:20:04and therefore it gives the ship excellent manoeuvrability.
0:20:06 > 0:20:09Swansea's dominance of the world copper trade
0:20:09 > 0:20:15meant the Royal Navy had copper-bottomed boats, but the French didn't...
0:20:16 > 0:20:20..a tactical advantage that can be traced back 4,000 years
0:20:20 > 0:20:25to those prehistoric Welsh experiments in metallurgy.
0:20:27 > 0:20:32Now, have we managed to rediscover the secrets of their success?
0:20:32 > 0:20:35Do I have to carry on pumping?
0:20:35 > 0:20:38- Carry on pumping!- God, you must be stiff by now.- Just a bit.
0:20:38 > 0:20:42- Do you think you've got copper? - I think so.
0:20:42 > 0:20:45I hope so, but I'm not giving any guarantees.
0:20:45 > 0:20:48All right, I'm gonna stop pumping.
0:20:48 > 0:20:50- Keep pumping.- Right.
0:20:55 > 0:20:58OK, stop pumping. Get round the other side with a stick.
0:21:11 > 0:21:13- Wow!- Wow!
0:21:13 > 0:21:15Isn't that fantastic?
0:21:15 > 0:21:17That's it!
0:21:18 > 0:21:21It's probably frozen by now.
0:21:21 > 0:21:25I can probably pick that up with the tongs. That is copper.
0:21:25 > 0:21:28- A small ingot of copper. - A small lump of copper.
0:21:28 > 0:21:33It's absolutely incredible when you think of that energy and that effort
0:21:33 > 0:21:36that's gone into winning a metal.
0:21:36 > 0:21:42Copper poured out of Swansea, but it became a victim of its own success.
0:21:42 > 0:21:47The industry exhausted the domestic copper supply.
0:21:47 > 0:21:50To feed the voracious smelters,
0:21:50 > 0:21:53the precious ore had to be shipped in
0:21:53 > 0:21:56from further and further overseas.
0:22:01 > 0:22:05Swansea mariner's became known as Cape Horners,
0:22:05 > 0:22:11so-called because they repeatedly braved the treacherous seas south of Cape Horn.
0:22:14 > 0:22:16Many never came back.
0:22:20 > 0:22:24The Falkland Islands were the nearest shelter,
0:22:24 > 0:22:29and Swansea's abandoned copper ships are still rotting there.
0:22:29 > 0:22:34Eventually, the copper communities of Swansea disintegrated.
0:22:34 > 0:22:38As workers emigrated to the ore-producing countries,
0:22:38 > 0:22:43their home town's metal monopoly was finished for good.
0:22:49 > 0:22:54Swansea Bay is sheltered from the prevailing wind by the rocks of the Mumbles.
0:22:54 > 0:22:56They mark a turning point.
0:22:56 > 0:23:00We're leaving the populated shores of the industrial east behind,
0:23:00 > 0:23:03to head to the wilder west.
0:23:08 > 0:23:12Few places have sites as celebrated as the Gower Peninsula,
0:23:12 > 0:23:15the first place in Britain to be designated
0:23:15 > 0:23:18an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty.
0:23:20 > 0:23:22It's a land of unexpected riches!
0:23:22 > 0:23:26A feast for the eye and the taste buds!
0:23:28 > 0:23:30This is Langland Bay.
0:23:30 > 0:23:34At low tide, a select few are drawn to its beaches
0:23:34 > 0:23:37for a somewhat dubious gastronomic delight!
0:23:41 > 0:23:45I'm told there's a rather special seafood you can find down here,
0:23:45 > 0:23:48if you know what you are looking for, that is.
0:23:50 > 0:23:55Betty Phillips is one of the few people who can still recognise a peculiar Welsh delicacy.
0:23:55 > 0:24:00- Hello, are you all right? - What is you're looking for? Not just any old weed, I take it?
0:24:00 > 0:24:03No, it's special. Laver weed.
0:24:03 > 0:24:06It's like polythene in a way, it's like plastic.
0:24:06 > 0:24:09- Are you sure that's not what it is? - Black plastic bags.
0:24:09 > 0:24:12I can't say it looks terrible appetising.
0:24:12 > 0:24:14- You don't fancy it, do you? - I'm not convinced.
0:24:14 > 0:24:17- Are you going to eat it when I cook it for you?- I'll give it a lash.
0:24:17 > 0:24:20- Will you? You've got to. - Let's give it a try.
0:24:20 > 0:24:23- Give it a try. OK, shall we pick a little bit more?- OK.
0:24:23 > 0:24:26I can see you'll take a bit of convincing.
0:24:26 > 0:24:27It doesn't sell itself very well.
0:24:27 > 0:24:29Looks like green slime.
0:24:29 > 0:24:32Oh no, it's not slimy. It's not a bit slimy.
0:24:32 > 0:24:34It's all very well if you know you can eat it.
0:24:34 > 0:24:37- It's not like this when it's cooked. - How would you know that?
0:24:37 > 0:24:40What sort of person finds this stuff on a rock and says,
0:24:40 > 0:24:42"That would look good on a sandwich."
0:24:42 > 0:24:44- Do you know what I mean? - Yes, I know.
0:24:44 > 0:24:47The proof of the pudding will be in the eating.
0:24:47 > 0:24:50- OK.- I want to see this done. - Right, OK, follow me.
0:24:50 > 0:24:55Laver weed is the same seaweed the Japanese use to wrap sushi.
0:24:55 > 0:25:02The Japanese dry theirs, the Welsh cook it for hours.
0:25:02 > 0:25:07It doesn't look like the sort of thing you should put in your mouth!
0:25:07 > 0:25:11- OK, you promise this isn't a practical joke.- No, no, no, no...
0:25:11 > 0:25:13- You really do eat this?- Yes.
0:25:17 > 0:25:18That's fantastic.
0:25:18 > 0:25:20Well done. Well done.
0:25:20 > 0:25:22It is.
0:25:22 > 0:25:24That's brilliant. What is that?
0:25:24 > 0:25:28Mmm... It tastes of many things. It's got the sea in it.
0:25:28 > 0:25:32It's got a pickled flavour to it. And there's kind of a...
0:25:32 > 0:25:33It's got the texture of spinach.
0:25:33 > 0:25:35- Mmm.- That's brilliant.
0:25:40 > 0:25:42I'll remember Langland Bay
0:25:42 > 0:25:46as the place I joined the select seaweed appreciation society!
0:25:52 > 0:25:57The distinctive Gower Peninsula juts out into the Bristol Channel.
0:26:12 > 0:26:16The Gower's landscape was sculpted by ice.
0:26:16 > 0:26:2050,000 years ago, massive glaciers bulldozed its fertile soils.
0:26:33 > 0:26:39Now, the peninsula's conjunction of land and sea produces food of distinction.
0:26:42 > 0:26:46Below Weobley Castle lies Llanrhidian Marsh.
0:26:46 > 0:26:50It's a harsh land that takes skill and know-how to farm.
0:27:09 > 0:27:15Rowland Pritchard rears 1,200 sheep on some 4,000 acres of salt marsh.
0:27:15 > 0:27:21Rowland is one of a tiny band of sheep farmers whose pasture is regularly under water.
0:27:23 > 0:27:26How extreme are the tides?
0:27:26 > 0:27:30The tides are very, very high.
0:27:30 > 0:27:34All this we're standing on now, this time next week, will be under water.
0:27:34 > 0:27:37- This'll be sea bed in a few days' time?- Yes.
0:27:37 > 0:27:40And it comes in very, very quickly,
0:27:40 > 0:27:42at a good walking pace.
0:27:42 > 0:27:44Because the land is so flat,
0:27:44 > 0:27:47you find once it starts rising above a certain level,
0:27:47 > 0:27:52it just shoots over the top, so it is very dangerous for the sheep.
0:27:52 > 0:27:54Do they learn to avoid the tide, or what?
0:27:54 > 0:27:57Oh no, they'll stand there when the tide comes in.
0:27:57 > 0:28:00We've actually got to go out and fetch them in
0:28:00 > 0:28:01before the tide comes in.
0:28:01 > 0:28:05It's strange because sheep are good swimmers, but they won't swim.
0:28:05 > 0:28:06They just stand there.
0:28:08 > 0:28:12The salt marsh might keep Rowland and his sheep on their toes,
0:28:12 > 0:28:14but the ebb and flow of the tide
0:28:14 > 0:28:16creates a richly varied coastal pasture.
0:28:18 > 0:28:22Does the grazing here affect the meat, do you think?
0:28:22 > 0:28:24Oh, yes, significantly.
0:28:24 > 0:28:28There's sort of no ryegrasses that you get on conventional fields.
0:28:28 > 0:28:32More the herbs that we get. That really does affect the flavour of the meat.
0:28:32 > 0:28:33What sort of herbs are out here?
0:28:33 > 0:28:35Well we've got the marsh pinks
0:28:35 > 0:28:39and the samphire you'll see in the gutters now.
0:28:39 > 0:28:41I would call that wild asparagus.
0:28:41 > 0:28:46Yeah, a lot of people call it a poor man's asparagus.
0:28:46 > 0:28:48I prefer to call it a rich man's asparagus.
0:28:48 > 0:28:50You can taste the salt in it, can't you?
0:28:56 > 0:28:59Originally, sheep were put here out of necessity -
0:28:59 > 0:29:02poor communities making the most of the land they had.
0:29:02 > 0:29:05Now, the salt lamb has become a great delicacy.
0:29:16 > 0:29:20The coast beyond the Gower boasts some spectacular beaches.
0:29:20 > 0:29:25Low tides uncover vast tracts of sand created by storm waves
0:29:25 > 0:29:29that roll here all the way from the Caribbean.
0:29:32 > 0:29:37At seven miles long, Pendine Sands is one of Britain's biggest beaches.
0:29:37 > 0:29:41On a day this wet, it's virtually deserted.
0:29:41 > 0:29:46Except for Simon Haslett from Bath Spa University -
0:29:46 > 0:29:50he's out defying the elements to investigate these sands' unique qualities.
0:29:50 > 0:29:56Simon, what on earth are you doing out here?
0:29:56 > 0:29:59- I'm actually auguring into the beach here.- Can I help?
0:29:59 > 0:30:00Indeed you can, yeah.
0:30:00 > 0:30:02It's not very sophisticated.
0:30:02 > 0:30:04It's just brute force!
0:30:06 > 0:30:10If we lift it up and see if we can get some of this sand out.
0:30:12 > 0:30:14So what kind of sand is this?
0:30:14 > 0:30:16This is actually very fine sand.
0:30:16 > 0:30:20I can demonstrate that by using a grain size comparator.
0:30:20 > 0:30:23This is a little card that has pictures on it
0:30:23 > 0:30:26of all the different grain sizes, from fine sand
0:30:26 > 0:30:28all the way up to very coarse sand.
0:30:28 > 0:30:32About the point where sand stops being sand and just becomes dust.
0:30:32 > 0:30:34Below that, it becomes silt and clay.
0:30:34 > 0:30:38I've got here some sand that I collected in North Devon
0:30:38 > 0:30:40just across the Bristol Channel from Barnstaple,
0:30:40 > 0:30:42just for comparison.
0:30:42 > 0:30:43- Oh, yes.- You can really see...
0:30:43 > 0:30:46They're practically gigantic pebbles.
0:30:46 > 0:30:47They are.
0:30:47 > 0:30:50What that shows is even within the Bristol Channel area,
0:30:50 > 0:30:54sand sizes on the beaches can vary immensely.
0:30:58 > 0:31:01Because Pendine has such super-fine sand particles,
0:31:01 > 0:31:06its beach is very hard and very flat.
0:31:06 > 0:31:10This smooth surface combined with its sheer scale made it a Mecca
0:31:10 > 0:31:14for a brave band of death-defying gentlemen.
0:31:14 > 0:31:19For a brief period between 1924 and 1927,
0:31:19 > 0:31:23Pendine became world famous when its beach took centre stage
0:31:23 > 0:31:26for a series of world land speed record attempts.
0:31:29 > 0:31:31In April 1926,
0:31:31 > 0:31:36this car was brought to this beach and together, they created history.
0:31:36 > 0:31:39The old girl still occasionally gets the chance
0:31:39 > 0:31:41to blow away a few cobwebs.
0:31:43 > 0:31:46She looks for all the world like a giant Meccano toy.
0:31:46 > 0:31:50In the '20s, was this really capable of the world record?
0:31:50 > 0:31:53Yes, this is a 171 mph land speed record-holding car.
0:31:53 > 0:31:57This is still capable of high speeds?
0:31:57 > 0:32:01It's certainly capable of doing the wrong side of 150 mph.
0:32:01 > 0:32:04No wonder they called it the Roaring Twenties!
0:32:04 > 0:32:07I'm sure these things had something to do with it.
0:32:07 > 0:32:11A 27-litre aero engine doing its stuff with no silencers
0:32:11 > 0:32:14and a short exhaust where you can see the valves and feel
0:32:14 > 0:32:18you can smell the burnt fuel as it's coming out hot...
0:32:18 > 0:32:21Yeah, it's pretty good.
0:32:21 > 0:32:24Given that it's a World War I aircraft engine,
0:32:24 > 0:32:28it takes a little persuasion to get started.
0:32:39 > 0:32:42When it does get going, it's something to behold.
0:32:43 > 0:32:46That's unbelievable.
0:32:54 > 0:32:58It's like a big child's toy or a cartoon of a car.
0:32:58 > 0:33:03In the '20s, this beach was the only place in Britain big enough
0:33:03 > 0:33:06and flat enough to really let Babs rip.
0:33:11 > 0:33:18Babs was the car was owned by Wales' very own magnificent man in a flying machine, Parry Thomas.
0:33:18 > 0:33:21He vied with Pendine's other famous racer,
0:33:21 > 0:33:24Scotsman Malcolm Campbell, to be the fastest man on Earth.
0:33:27 > 0:33:32For two years, these men took it turns to break each other's records.
0:33:32 > 0:33:36Fierce rivals united by the need for speed
0:33:36 > 0:33:39and sand.
0:33:39 > 0:33:44In March 1927, it was Thomas's turn to try to regain the crown.
0:33:44 > 0:33:48The tide was right, but he had an uneasy wait for the weather.
0:33:48 > 0:33:51It was three days before it became clear enough
0:33:51 > 0:33:53for Thomas to make an attempt.
0:33:55 > 0:33:58He wasn't a well man, he wasn't feeling particularly well
0:33:58 > 0:34:02and he had a number of difficulties with the run.
0:34:02 > 0:34:04He'd done a run at 180 mph,
0:34:04 > 0:34:07then there was a technicality with the timing
0:34:07 > 0:34:10and eventually, he made another run down the beach.
0:34:10 > 0:34:15As he slowed down beyond the measured mile, there was a cloud of spray and sand
0:34:15 > 0:34:20and the car had had a major accident at significant speed
0:34:20 > 0:34:21and Thomas was killed.
0:34:25 > 0:34:28Once he'd lost control, Parry Thomas never stood a chance.
0:34:28 > 0:34:34Hard sand and high speed are an unforgiving combination.
0:34:39 > 0:34:42In an almost pagan ritual, Babs' seats were slashed
0:34:42 > 0:34:47and her dials smashed before she was buried in the dunes.
0:34:47 > 0:34:51The little community of record breakers migrated to the sands of America.
0:34:51 > 0:34:54Pendine fell silent as a grave.
0:35:00 > 0:35:01But one man returned,
0:35:01 > 0:35:06determined to ensure the memory of Parry Thomas shouldn't stay buried.
0:35:06 > 0:35:09In 1968, Owen Wyn Owen excavated the wreckage
0:35:09 > 0:35:13and painstakingly brought Babs back to life.
0:35:17 > 0:35:20Now occasionally, he brings the car back to the beach that Babs
0:35:20 > 0:35:25and Parry Thomas once made the fastest place on earth.
0:35:35 > 0:35:38At the western end of Carmarthen Bay is Tenby.
0:35:44 > 0:35:47On a natural promontory, the Normans built a castle
0:35:47 > 0:35:52and the oh-so English town sprang up within its walls.
0:35:54 > 0:35:58Every summer, the English still like to invade the area's beaches.
0:36:03 > 0:36:04From the harbour,
0:36:04 > 0:36:07it's a short hop to the tranquillity of Caldey Island.
0:36:13 > 0:36:18There have been monks living on here since the sixth century.
0:36:20 > 0:36:24These days, it attracts a broader church who come here searching
0:36:24 > 0:36:28for their own particular brand of spiritual solace.
0:36:32 > 0:36:36This is an extremely spiritual place.
0:36:36 > 0:36:40You definitely feel something different when you arrive.
0:36:45 > 0:36:49My life normally is just so noisy and so hectic
0:36:49 > 0:36:52and very, very intense.
0:36:55 > 0:36:59So to come here and escape from my normal life
0:36:59 > 0:37:02in Birmingham is just so special.
0:37:02 > 0:37:04Just to come and recharge my batteries.
0:37:08 > 0:37:10Caldey Island, for me, is yoga.
0:37:10 > 0:37:17It's where my soul feels completely happy and completely peaceful.
0:37:27 > 0:37:31The Pembrokeshire coast has a history of inspiring spiritual communities.
0:37:31 > 0:37:35It's littered with pagan and early Christian relics.
0:37:47 > 0:37:50Wedged in a cleft amid the limestone cliffs
0:37:50 > 0:37:53is the secluded splendour of St Govan's Chapel.
0:37:58 > 0:38:01The headland that bears St Govan's name marks the point
0:38:01 > 0:38:06where the Bristol Channel finishes and the Atlantic begins.
0:38:10 > 0:38:14The mixing of these waters attracts some very special families
0:38:14 > 0:38:16to visit this community coast.
0:38:16 > 0:38:20It's family groups of dolphins that Miranda's in search of.
0:38:22 > 0:38:26We've got the engines on and we're cruising at a fairly steady pace
0:38:26 > 0:38:28and if there are dolphins in the area,
0:38:28 > 0:38:31there's a good chance they'll come to the boat.
0:38:31 > 0:38:34They love to ride on the front bow wave.
0:38:34 > 0:38:36I'm with volunteers from the Sea Trust.
0:38:36 > 0:38:40They collect data on the marine mammals in this area.
0:38:40 > 0:38:43Today, we're searching for short-beaked common dolphins
0:38:43 > 0:38:46who come here in the spring and summer.
0:38:46 > 0:38:49Nothing as yet. We're still looking.
0:38:53 > 0:38:56No sign of dolphins yet but we have chanced across
0:38:56 > 0:38:59another summer visitor.
0:38:59 > 0:39:02A very strange-looking one at that!
0:39:02 > 0:39:05This fish is actually a sunfish.
0:39:05 > 0:39:09The heaviest bony fish in the ocean. They're absolutely huge.
0:39:09 > 0:39:12And this weird dorsal fin that it's waving at the top
0:39:12 > 0:39:14it actually uses for propulsion.
0:39:14 > 0:39:17They often come up to the surface to bathe in the sun, to warm up.
0:39:17 > 0:39:21More probably to get things like parasites off.
0:39:21 > 0:39:24People have seen gulls pick parasites off the skin.
0:39:27 > 0:39:32Rare sightings like this sunfish, and the normally more reliable dolphins,
0:39:32 > 0:39:36mean wildlife watches are popular with tourists.
0:39:38 > 0:39:41In contrast, fishermen like to avoid the dolphins
0:39:41 > 0:39:46but the vast nets of their trawlers are a constant hazard.
0:39:46 > 0:39:50Every winter, common dolphins are washed up on the south-west coast
0:39:50 > 0:39:53bearing scars from fishing nets.
0:39:56 > 0:39:59That's one of the reasons the Sea Trust volunteers
0:39:59 > 0:40:02are carefully surveying dolphin numbers,
0:40:02 > 0:40:06but first, you've got to spot one.
0:40:17 > 0:40:23Suddenly in seconds, we are surrounded by about 20 dolphins
0:40:23 > 0:40:25checking us out and riding the bow wave.
0:40:30 > 0:40:33Brilliant, brilliant, there's another one.
0:40:36 > 0:40:38This is fantastic.
0:40:38 > 0:40:42We can see them swimming, see them moving, see them interacting.
0:40:42 > 0:40:45There is a really small baby.
0:40:45 > 0:40:47Two, two together.
0:40:47 > 0:40:49Lots of mothers and calves.
0:40:49 > 0:40:53It seems to be a maternal group and that is what we seem to get a lot round here.
0:40:53 > 0:40:57You have got another one there with what we call a rugby ball,
0:40:57 > 0:40:58the newborn.
0:40:58 > 0:41:01- They are tiny.- Amazing.
0:41:03 > 0:41:07Why do the dolphins come here? What is so special about the waters here?
0:41:07 > 0:41:12It is an incredibly rich area for food and like all breeding animals,
0:41:12 > 0:41:17they need the food and if the food is there, they will thrive.
0:41:17 > 0:41:22Over the years, we have come to the conclusion that this is a nursery area.
0:41:22 > 0:41:26Important in world terms.
0:41:28 > 0:41:31Usually out dolphin watching, you are lucky to get five
0:41:31 > 0:41:36or 10 minutes with them but this group were brilliant and they stayed with us for nearly an hour.
0:41:40 > 0:41:44Before the Sea Trust volunteers started their survey,
0:41:44 > 0:41:47little was known about the common dolphins off this coast.
0:41:47 > 0:41:51With each encounter, it is becoming clearer that these waters are
0:41:51 > 0:41:57crucial for families of dolphins raising their young and it is a real privilege to watch them do it.
0:42:02 > 0:42:07We're heading west along the South Wales Coast in search of a Haven.
0:42:10 > 0:42:13Admiral Lord Nelson described Milford Haven
0:42:13 > 0:42:16as one of the finest natural harbours in the world.
0:42:16 > 0:42:18In its glory days,
0:42:18 > 0:42:22this was the largest deep water port on the Atlantic.
0:42:22 > 0:42:24The historic defences that ring the estuary
0:42:24 > 0:42:27show how highly it was prized.
0:42:29 > 0:42:33The military have now abandoned these coastal forts.
0:42:33 > 0:42:35They've fallen into private hands
0:42:35 > 0:42:40and they make an ideal spot for the security conscious.
0:42:40 > 0:42:44Talk about taking things to the limit.
0:42:44 > 0:42:48Look, VR 1891, Queen Victoria.
0:42:48 > 0:42:51She didn't like to be taken by surprise either.
0:42:52 > 0:42:53How do you get in here?
0:42:56 > 0:42:59BELL RINGS
0:42:59 > 0:43:00Classy doorbell.
0:43:00 > 0:43:02Hello the house.
0:43:05 > 0:43:07- George.- Hello, you must be Neil.
0:43:07 > 0:43:09- Yes.- Welcome to Chapel Bay Fort.
0:43:09 > 0:43:11What a fantastic place!
0:43:11 > 0:43:14George Geer bought his coastal fort 14 years ago.
0:43:14 > 0:43:19Since then, he's devoted himself to restoring it to its former glory.
0:43:21 > 0:43:23What about this brute, George?
0:43:23 > 0:43:25What does this fire?
0:43:25 > 0:43:28This is an 18-tonne 10-inch rifle muzzle loader,
0:43:28 > 0:43:32fired a pointed armour-piercing Palliser projectile,
0:43:32 > 0:43:36penetrating nearly a foot of armour plating from 1,000 yards.
0:43:36 > 0:43:39This is the original gun put here in 1891.
0:43:39 > 0:43:42If you fire something out of the end of this, how far does it go?
0:43:42 > 0:43:45About three of four miles at this sort of elevation,
0:43:45 > 0:43:4812 degrees, I think the range is three miles.
0:43:48 > 0:43:51George's restoration has been a labour of love.
0:43:51 > 0:43:57The previous residents were pigs, a pig farm to be precise.
0:43:59 > 0:44:03Even in its heyday, the fort never actually saw action.
0:44:05 > 0:44:10But it was used to train artillerymen before they faced the Western Front in World War I.
0:44:10 > 0:44:13This is the battery control station which
0:44:13 > 0:44:16we have nearly finished restoring, with help from the Lottery.
0:44:16 > 0:44:20You are under an inch and a half of steel armour plate.
0:44:22 > 0:44:28Up in here is where, if you like, this was the nerve centre for this battery.
0:44:28 > 0:44:31- This is the brains of the whole operation.- This is the brains.
0:44:31 > 0:44:36From here, you can see everywhere from the entrance to the Haven, all the way round past Dale,
0:44:36 > 0:44:39you can see all the way down the Haven to the dockyard.
0:44:39 > 0:44:43So nothing passes this fort, but the men in here can see it.
0:44:43 > 0:44:48- And they're in communication with the guns. - So how do you do the clever bit?
0:44:48 > 0:44:51The clever bit comes from this instrument,
0:44:51 > 0:44:53which is a Watkin Depression Range Finder.
0:44:53 > 0:44:57First appeared in 1873. It was so good,
0:44:57 > 0:45:02it was still in use in 1956 when Coast Artillery was closed down.
0:45:02 > 0:45:07So by working these controls together, you can keep the cross hairs on the waterline of the ship.
0:45:07 > 0:45:11Absolutely, and get a continuous read out of range.
0:45:11 > 0:45:14Brilliant. I've got one, George.
0:45:14 > 0:45:18Right now, your number two would pass the range to the chap sitting behind you,
0:45:18 > 0:45:20who by telephone and loudspeaker
0:45:20 > 0:45:24would relay the elevation and the azimuth to the guns.
0:45:24 > 0:45:29Coast gunnery was the very peak of artillery of the period,
0:45:29 > 0:45:33the most intelligent men were posted to Coast Artillery batteries
0:45:33 > 0:45:36because it was so dependent on engineering and mathematics.
0:45:36 > 0:45:39This really WAS the brains of the outfit.
0:45:39 > 0:45:44This was the white heat of military technology 100 years ago.
0:45:46 > 0:45:49The trainee gunners would've had no shortage of ships
0:45:49 > 0:45:52passing through their sights.
0:45:52 > 0:45:56Over the years, fishermen, the Navy and even the odd whaler
0:45:56 > 0:45:59have made the most of Milford Haven's deep waters.
0:46:03 > 0:46:06More recently, prosperity has come aboard oil tankers.
0:46:06 > 0:46:08But there's been a high price to pay.
0:46:13 > 0:46:16Remember the Sea Empress disaster in 1996?
0:46:16 > 0:46:19Everybody round here does.
0:46:19 > 0:46:2372,000 tonnes of crude oil poured out of the stricken ship
0:46:23 > 0:46:25into this marine sanctuary.
0:46:29 > 0:46:32The clean-up bill was £60 million.
0:46:37 > 0:46:41More than a decade on from the disaster, Milford's once again
0:46:41 > 0:46:45in the frontline of our insatiable appetite for energy.
0:46:47 > 0:46:51Nick Crane is on the trail of a super-sized new breed of ship,
0:46:51 > 0:46:53the gas tanker.
0:46:56 > 0:47:00Cheap supplies from the North Sea in the '80s and '90s made us a nation
0:47:00 > 0:47:06of gas junkies, but the gas fields close to home are running dry fast.
0:47:06 > 0:47:10The plan now is to turn this corner of the Pembrokeshire National Park
0:47:10 > 0:47:15into a storage site for gas brought all the way from the Middle East.
0:47:15 > 0:47:21Here in Milford Haven, they'll soon be importing natural gas by ship
0:47:21 > 0:47:25but just how are they going to do it and why here?
0:47:25 > 0:47:30The one place on the Haven that you can see construction happening is around that jetty.
0:47:30 > 0:47:35By the end of 2007, some of the world's biggest ships
0:47:35 > 0:47:38should be navigating their way to this pier.
0:47:38 > 0:47:41Apparently, once it's built,
0:47:41 > 0:47:44one fifth of the UK's gas will be pumped along it.
0:47:44 > 0:47:47The gas is coming all the way from Qatar,
0:47:47 > 0:47:51a country half the size of Wales on the Arabian Gulf.
0:47:52 > 0:47:58Their reserve is so big, it could keep the UK going for 250 years.
0:47:58 > 0:48:05Transporting Qatar's gas 7,000 miles to us relies on a remarkable idea -
0:48:05 > 0:48:08turn the gas into liquid.
0:48:08 > 0:48:11This refrigeration plant concentrates the gas down
0:48:11 > 0:48:14into liquid by super-cooling it.
0:48:14 > 0:48:17Jo Harris is going to show me the idea.
0:48:17 > 0:48:20My breath in a balloon is the gas we're going to shrink.
0:48:20 > 0:48:22Is that enough?
0:48:22 > 0:48:23That should be fine, yes.
0:48:23 > 0:48:27So we are pretending this is
0:48:27 > 0:48:30natural gas straight out of the ground in Qatar.
0:48:30 > 0:48:34We're shrinking my breath by immersing it in liquid nitrogen
0:48:34 > 0:48:38chilled to -190 degrees Celsius.
0:48:38 > 0:48:44As any gas cools, it takes up less space, eventually turning to liquid.
0:48:44 > 0:48:49When they bring this liquefied gas back to Milford Haven,
0:48:49 > 0:48:51how do they turn it back into gas?
0:48:51 > 0:48:54All they need to do is warm it back up to room temperature.
0:48:54 > 0:48:56It's self-inflating,
0:48:56 > 0:49:01that's completely astonishing. It's that fast.
0:49:01 > 0:49:04Yes.
0:49:04 > 0:49:0814 super tankers are being specially built to keep the natural gas
0:49:08 > 0:49:13insulated so it stays liquid on its trip from Qatar.
0:49:13 > 0:49:20When natural gas is super-chilled, its volume shrinks by 600 times
0:49:20 > 0:49:23and this makes it economic to ship.
0:49:23 > 0:49:28So a fifth of our gas will arrive here in Milford Haven as super-cold liquid.
0:49:28 > 0:49:34It's then got to be kept chilled to store it as a liquid.
0:49:34 > 0:49:38From the bottom of the site, these tanks didn't look much,
0:49:38 > 0:49:41but up close, they are absolutely massive.
0:49:47 > 0:49:51Each storage tank in the Pembrokeshire National Park
0:49:51 > 0:49:57is big enough to contain the Albert Hall and there are five of them.
0:49:59 > 0:50:02On the lid of tank number one is Don Rees.
0:50:02 > 0:50:06It's his job to get the site ready on time.
0:50:06 > 0:50:09How are you going to keep this super-chilled gas as a liquid?
0:50:09 > 0:50:13Perlite - small round balls of insulation.
0:50:13 > 0:50:16Some people have even got them in their lofts of their houses.
0:50:16 > 0:50:20Do you mean this liquid gas is being kept cold by loft insulation?
0:50:20 > 0:50:23- You're kidding!- I'm not. It works!
0:50:24 > 0:50:29These tanks act like giant Thermos flasks.
0:50:29 > 0:50:31They'll be full of liquid natural gas
0:50:31 > 0:50:35stored at -160 degrees Celsius.
0:50:35 > 0:50:39When it's warmed up again, it'll expand 600 times,
0:50:39 > 0:50:44making huge amounts of gas ready for us to use.
0:50:44 > 0:50:48By 2008, we'll all be connected to this coast.
0:50:48 > 0:50:51To get the fuel to your home and mine,
0:50:51 > 0:50:54Milford Haven is being joined up to the national grid.
0:50:54 > 0:50:59That means laying 23,000 sections of pipe over 200 miles.
0:51:06 > 0:51:09I'm leaving with very mixed feelings -
0:51:09 > 0:51:13impressed by the ingenuity and engineering skills,
0:51:13 > 0:51:16and concerned that it has to be here at all.
0:51:19 > 0:51:23But we have an insatiable demand for energy and the commercial solution
0:51:23 > 0:51:28to that is to convert this beautiful inlet into a gas port.
0:51:38 > 0:51:42Beyond Milford Haven, the coast hangs a sharp right.
0:51:42 > 0:51:46The waters off these rugged bluffs teem with marine life.
0:51:55 > 0:51:59Many people are drawn to the coast to watch wildlife.
0:51:59 > 0:52:03Tony Pearce has been coming here for 30 years to listen to it.
0:52:11 > 0:52:16When I go down to the coast, it is a nice relaxing day out,
0:52:16 > 0:52:18to get out and hear the wildlife
0:52:18 > 0:52:22and the sea against the cliffs and know that where you are,
0:52:22 > 0:52:26it's how it's been for hundreds of years.
0:52:32 > 0:52:37People say when you go blind, your hearing gets better,
0:52:37 > 0:52:38but I don't think it does.
0:52:38 > 0:52:45It is just that you concentrate on it more and therefore, you hear more things.
0:52:45 > 0:52:48There aren't many seals on the beach today.
0:52:48 > 0:52:53- There's an adult with a cub. - Is the mother not coming to it?
0:52:53 > 0:52:55The mother's with it.
0:52:55 > 0:52:57I wonder why it keeps calling, then.
0:53:14 > 0:53:17When you are listening to the recordings, you do see the picture
0:53:17 > 0:53:22of what was there, like if you were listening to sea birds on cliffs,
0:53:22 > 0:53:26you can imagine the cliffs and the waves
0:53:26 > 0:53:31breaking at the bottom of the cliffs and the birds wheeling round in the air.
0:53:52 > 0:53:57From Wooltack Point, the coast sweeps round into St Brides Bay.
0:53:59 > 0:54:03The headlands and cliffs that mark its western extremity
0:54:03 > 0:54:08attract those who like to get hands on with their coastline.
0:54:11 > 0:54:14In fact, it's so inspiring that people round here
0:54:14 > 0:54:17have pioneered a sport of their own - coasteering.
0:54:19 > 0:54:25It's the challenge of getting around the shore anyway you can,
0:54:25 > 0:54:28scrabbling over rocks, swimming deep gullies
0:54:28 > 0:54:31and trying not to disturb the wildlife.
0:54:39 > 0:54:45There's nothing the local aficionados like better than showing a group of beginners how it's done.
0:54:48 > 0:54:52Sports like these are helping to revitalise this remote corner of Wales.
0:54:52 > 0:54:56New-fangled lifestyles replacing old-fashioned industries.
0:54:58 > 0:55:03In the 19th century, folk were drawn to this coast to labour for coal.
0:55:06 > 0:55:08Right in the middle of St Brides Bay
0:55:08 > 0:55:12is a colliery too small to appear on many maps.
0:55:12 > 0:55:17Once, it was the most westerly mining community in Wales.
0:55:29 > 0:55:32This coal is quite beautiful.
0:55:32 > 0:55:37It shines like a semi-precious stone.
0:55:37 > 0:55:40It almost looks like you could make jewellery out of it.
0:55:40 > 0:55:42It burns at a very high temperature
0:55:42 > 0:55:45and when it burns, it is quite clean.
0:55:45 > 0:55:49It is so clean in fact that Queen Victoria insisted on this coal,
0:55:49 > 0:55:53from this seam to burn in her palaces.
0:55:53 > 0:55:56How very green of Her Majesty, I would say.
0:56:08 > 0:56:12A stone's throw from the colliery is St David's Head,
0:56:12 > 0:56:16where it's believed the Welsh patron saint worked his wonders.
0:56:16 > 0:56:18Mine's a well-trodden path.
0:56:18 > 0:56:22For 1,500 years, it's been a site of pilgrimage.
0:56:25 > 0:56:29St David's is Wales's largest cathedral
0:56:29 > 0:56:32set in Britain's smallest city.
0:56:34 > 0:56:39It's a throbbing metropolis of just four streets and 2,000 souls.
0:56:44 > 0:56:49This peninsula is the most westerly point of mainland Wales
0:56:49 > 0:56:50and as far as I go.
0:56:56 > 0:57:01On my journey, I've discovered a real community feel to this coastline.
0:57:01 > 0:57:04From Cardiff Bay's new boat people...
0:57:05 > 0:57:09..to colossal caravan parks.
0:57:09 > 0:57:13The people of South Wales are drawn to their coast
0:57:13 > 0:57:17and it embodies the communal spirit of the nation.
0:57:22 > 0:57:25"Welsh" is an English word and it means "foreigner",
0:57:25 > 0:57:29but the people living here call themselves "Y Cymri".
0:57:29 > 0:57:33That can be translated as "compatriots", people you can rely on
0:57:33 > 0:57:35and that's what community is all about.
0:57:43 > 0:57:45Subtitles by Red Bee Media Ltd
0:57:45 > 0:57:49E-mail subtitling@bbc.co.uk