The Mumbles Lighthouse A5358

Latitude: 51°33.99'N

Longitude: 03°58.21'W

Height: of tower: 17 metres

Elevation: 35 metres
Character: FL W (4)  20s
Range: 16 M

Fog Signal: Horn (3)60s

Range of Fog horn: 2 M

Electrified: 1969

Automated: 1934

It was a cold day in the middle of December, when a few dedicated enthusiasts made their way across a muscle encrusted cause way to the Mumbles lighthouse. It was cold and windy, but the invitations had gone out to come and see this light station.

This is the sort of invitation we can not refuse, so we joined the Welsh section of the ALK and a few guests on the trip across to the little island.

You can see that the walk is a bit precarious, but well worth it! The picture was taken from the lighthouse, looking back over what was once a cause way with a railway, until it was blown up.

Click here   if you want to hear the Mumbles Fog Horn  Please be patient. It will take a little while to load , because this is a video clip we recorded. You can hear the wind and imagine how cold it was.

The lighthouse was built in 1794, after the Swansea Harbour Trustees were given the power to provide a light at the outer Mumbles. It originally displayed two open coal fire lights one above the other. But because it was difficult to maintain these lights, they were quickly replaced by a single oil fired light. This consisted of argand lamps and reflectors within a cast iron lantern.

In the 210 years the lighthouse has guided shipping through these waters, there have been many changes. A dioptric light was fitted in 1860. The occulting mechanism in 1905 and in 1934 the station was automated.

The battery which surrounds the lighthouse was built in 1860 by the War Department. The lighthouse was owned and operated by the British Transport Docks Board until 1975, when Trinity House took over the responsibility for this station.

The lantern, which had badly deteriorated and was beyond repair, was removed. Ten years later a lantern which had been removed from Light Vessel 25 (Abertay) was installed on top of the tower.

In 1995 a pair of biform Tideland ML300 Beacons were installed (main light & emergency light) and the station was converted to solar power. The lantern is linked to the Trinity House Control Centre in Harwich.

The ALK members huddle on the lower part of the tower, listening to the keeper.

Three banks of solar panels power the light now. The arrow points at the fog detection. While we were there the keeper inserted the round disk you can just see, to mimic fog and so start the fog horn.

Everyone - except us - climbed the actual tower and as you can see here, froze in the icy winds.