Shortly into the walk and you come across an inauspicious skateboard ramp on the grass verge between the seafront promenade and the always busy main road to Mumbles. But the significance of this part of the route is that you can see across to the Afan and Swansea Valleys and follow the arc of the bay as it winds past Port Talbot and on towards Margan, Kenfig and eventually Sker Point.

Looking back you can embrace the full extent of the contribution the area made to the development of the Industrial Revolution because in the far distance you can still see some of the country's heaviest industries, such as the Port Talbot Steelworks. Many have now passed into history, but as an industrial era it lives on, thanks in part to David Thomas, the man dubbed as the "father of the American iron industry," who helped the United States to become such an economic and industrial powerhouse. His Welsh background played a major role, of course, because he was born in Swansea.

Looking west to the picturesque seaside resort of Mumbles - where the only industry is tourism and fishing - the lighthouse dominates the view with the slipway for the Mumbles Lifeboat just in front. The lighthouse was built in 1794 as an essential aid to keep ships away from the dangerous Mixon Sands and Cherry Stone Rock. At the time Swansea was fast becoming one of the world's greatest seaports and so these precious vessels had to be protested at all costs. Initially lit by coal and then replaced by oil in 1799, it used to be paid for by passing ships. When the Great Western Railway took over in 1912 they insisted that all the keepers should be Mumbles men. The last keeper to man the lighthouse was Charles Cottie, serving until 1934. Charles would often have to stay on for up to a week if the weather was too rough for him to wade or row back to the mainland.

The lifeboat was established in 1835, again because of Swansea's increasing importance as an international seaport and it suffered its share of tragedies over the years. The worst single disaster came on April 23 1947, when all eight lifeboat men of Edward, Prince of Wales were lost attempting to rescue the 39 crew of the Newport-bound Samtampa.
On a lighter note, Derek Scott, former coxswain of the lifeboat, later became a renowned painter when he retired from active duty.

But the skateboard ramp, meanwhile, is not just an important viewpoint over the bay: towering above it through the trees on the other side of the road is the magnificent mansion home of Skewen-born singing star Bonnie Tyler - if you're lucky you might even catch a glimpse of her.

Onward to Part 3...