Fishing the Heron Ponds

Burry Port: Tranquil haven

See that concrete 'platform' below the train? That is the exact spot where my friends and I would go fishing for flatfish and mullet (only ever caught a flattie) in Burry Port. Looking at it again, after all these years of relying on smoky memories, is like opening a door to another realm and getting fired back into the ages. Ah, such sudden, blissful jolts of remembrance! What a soothing picture that sends the memories cartwheeling back through my mind like foxgloves falling on a freshly mowed lawn.
The spot itself is long gone now of course, having been replaced by the new Millennium Coastal park, but as you can see by the hilly background, it was a very peaceful place to go and set up rod and reel. Or with a good book on a summers day. Just beyond the railway line, was what we used to call the "Heron Ponds", and it was a haven for wildlife; herons, coots, moorhens, swans, rabbits, weasels, cormorants, wild geese, the list was almost endless as to what one could see there. And with the wild estuary looking out toward the beautiful Gower, it truly was one the best spots to visit in Burry Port (that ever so softly 'touched' the blink-and-miss-it Pwll.)
There was a sandy cove nearby too, and I used to think of it as my own private beach. Save the odd dog walker, it rarely saw much humans, for young boys growing up it was paradise. Swimming, fishing, camping, hunting; no prizes for guessing where a lot of the summer holidays were spent. We used to set up tents and pick limpets from the rocky shore to boil on a camp fire while the sun sank behind the distant hills. Oh how the city boys missed such magic moments! I keep saying it, and I always will but I am truly blessed to have grown up in this thorny, barnacled town in west Wales.

Jack Mariti

Local hero Jack Mariti

Visitors to Burry Port won't know the face behind the name Jack Mariti on the plaque dedicated to him near Burry Port's lifeboat station but perchance they stumble onto this site (having found it while looking for info on the town before a visit perhaps) I will share with you a photograph of the man here (courtesy of the Memories of Burry Port Facebook page.)
Jack Mariti was a lifeguard around Burry Port harbour who also taught local youngsters how to swim and his tribute 'down the harbour' is well deserved. Well I remember my grandmother telling stories of Jack, how he came to the aid of many in distress and saved many from a watery doom. A gentle giant, a real character (and legend) of the town.

One Fine Horizon

Ah bliss!

One of the finest things you can do in Burry Port is also the most simple; buying a parcel of chips (with fish, pie, rissole, etc), taking it down the harbour and eating while watching the boats do their bobbing thing on the water. Or looking out toward the Gower. Take it from someone who has done this a thousand times, its grand.
Summer is the best time to do this but all year round works too. Careful how you go though, the sea air has a lethal effect on appetite and you might find yourself heading back for more chips! Those ones in the above photo I had from Bev's chip shop at the end of New Street but that chippy is no longer open. Luckily we are blessed with more than one great fish & chip shop in Burry Port, which means you ought to sample this 'chips down the harbour' delight a couple of times. Just to make sure *WINK*