SMUGGLERS’ CAVE
Below the Wales Coast Path near the village of Port Enyon is a walled sea cave known as Culver Hole, which can be reached from the cliffs by a stone staircase. Believed to date from the 13th or 14th century, the cave is sealed off by a tall wall of limestone, approximately 60ft (18m) high, with three openings: an arched door, rectangular window and circular hole. Legend has it that a hidden tunnel connected the cave to the nearby salt house at Port Enyon, and stories of smugglers using this secret passageway abound. However, the internal wall face is honeycombed with more than 30 tiers of nesting boxes, which appear integral to the structure and suggest it was actually designed as a dovecot. The word ‘culver’ derives from the old English word ‘culfre’, meaning pigeon or dove. Today, Culver Hole is within a Site of Special Scientific Interest and is a Scheduled Ancient Monument.