- Little Orme
The Little Orme is known in Welsh as "Rhiwledyn" and is 141 metres (or 463 feet) in height. It is one of two
headlands that are situated at either end ofLlandudno Bay, inConwy county borough , northWales . The other, larger, headland is theGreat Orme .Uses
Unlike the Great Orme, the Little Orme has not been developed for
copper mining ortourism . There has beenlimestone quarry ing since the mid 1800s on thePenrhyn Bay side. It was centered on Porth Dyniewyd and served by its own narrow gauge railway, but quarrying ceased in 1936. There is some farming on the lower slopes.The cliffs are a popular challenge for highly experienced rock climbers. The Coast Guard Rescue Unit use the Little Orme for training.
Ecology & environment
Parts of the Little Orme (notably the
NWWT 's Rhiwledyn Nature Reserve) are aSite of Special Scientific Interest . TheNorth Wales Bird Trust is located on its lower slopes, and the Little Orme is a warden-patrolled sanctuary forsea bird s. Bird viewing around the cliffs can be facilitated by trips using small boats.The
North Wales Path runs across the Little Orme, using the severalpublic footpaths on its summit.History
The Little Orme was inhabited during the Upper
Paleolithic , notably the "Pant y Wennol" cave.A small hoard of
Iron Age Celt ic metalwork was found in a cave on the Little Orme.The medieval chapel of Blessed Mary of Penrhyn, abandoned in 1930 and now in ruins, is at the foot of the Little Orme in the grounds of Penrhyn Hall at
Penrhyn Bay .On
14 April 1587 , printing material forCatholic literature was found in a cave on the Little Orme, where it had been used by the recusant Robert Pugh (squire of Penrhyn Hall) and his Chaplain Father William Davies to print "Y Drych Cristianogawl" ("The Christian Mirror"), the first book to be printed in Wales. They had taken refuge there during the persecution of Catholics instigated byQueen Elizabeth I in May1586 .The
Royal Artillery coastal gunnery school, 198 battery, was posted to Little Orme during the Second World War. Target practice was undertaken from the headland to anchored boats, and unspent ammunition and unexploded shells may still be encountered offshore.References
*Ivor Wynne Jones. "Llandudno Queen of Welsh Resorts" Landmark, Ashbourne Derbyshire 2002 ISBN 1-84306-048-5
External links
* [http://www.wildlifetrust.org.uk/northwales/Rhiwledyn.html North Wales Wildlife Trust: Rhiwledyn] (nature reserve official WWW page)
* [http://www.geograph.org.uk/search.php?i=2798556 www.geograph.co.uk : photos of Little Orme and surrounding area]
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