Ynys Lochtyn is a tiny island on the coast of Cardigan Bay, Wales, between the town of New Quay, Ceredigion and the village of Llangrannog.
At low-tide it is possible to visit the island by using a short section of the Ceredigion Coast Path to gain access to the area of sea cliffs on a peninsula adjacent to the island. Then it is possible to carefully climb down the cliff between the island and the mainland and cross the short rock ledge and then, by entering a small cave where there are stone ledges that can be climbed, to gain access to the island.
There is also excellent snorkelling available around the island, but care must be taken as ocean currents can be unpredictable and strong at times.
There are also two sandy beaches on the western and the eastern side of the mainland adjacent to the island. The eastern beach is often mostly in shade from the cliffs above, but is more sheltered from westerly winds and currents, whilst the western beach is mostly in sunshine but can suffer from breezy conditions.
In February 1997, a Nissan Mistral (called Nissan Terrano in UK) driven by a Coastguard Officer (who was carrying out a survey prior to arranging an air-sea rescue practice test) slipped on wet grass on the cliffs above the beach adjacent to Ynys Lochtyn and it was unable to gain traction. It slipped backwards to the cliff and fell down the cliff onto the beach below. The coastguard officer managed to jump clear before impact with the beach and was mostly unhurt as he landed in shallow water. The vehicle landed on its roof and was totally crushed. The local Coastguard team from New Quay removed the Coastguard radios and other equipment from the vehicle the same day. The vehicle was then left on the beach. Later the tidal movement drove the vehicle up against the cliffs and rocks which caused considerable further damage for several days before it was finally removed by the Coastguard authority.
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