WhereToSwim.eu

Clarach South

Good to go

No current pollution alerts — always assess conditions yourself.

Checked against Natural Resources Wales · data last changed 2 months ago.

Sea conditions

Water temperature

15.5°C

Cool — comfortable for a shorter swim

Wave height

0.6 m

Significant wave height offshore; inshore conditions vary.

Tide

Going out

  • Low water around UTC
  • High water around UTC

Modelled values, not measurements — coastal water often differs from the open-sea model, and tide times are approximate to within about half an hour. Use official tide tables for anything that depends on precise timing.

This spot’s record

Clarach South is in Ceredigion, about 2 km from Aberystwyth. Clarach South has been rated Good in each of the 4 bathing seasons classified by Natural Resources Wales, 2022 through 2025. Across the 12 most recent samples published by Natural Resources Wales, E. coli counts ranged from 10 to 864 per 100 ml. The highest was taken on 8 September 2026. A classification is calculated from percentiles across four seasons, so no single reading decides how this water is rated.

Recent sample results

The last 12 bacterial samples published by Natural Resources Wales, most recent on the right. Counts are per 100 ml of water.

Dashed line: 500 E. coli per 100 ml, the Bathing Water Directive guide value for coastal / transitional waters.

Recent bacterial sample results for this bathing water
DateE. coliEnterococciAssessment
8 Sept864340—
1 Sept1010—
21 Aug1091—
3 Aug4518—
23 Jul1036—
7 Jul1010—

A bathing water's official classification is calculated from percentiles across four bathing seasons, not from any single sample — so one high reading doesn't mean a spot is unsafe, and one low reading doesn't mean it's clean today.

Quality over the last 4 years

  1. Good2022
  2. Good2023
  3. Good2024
  4. Good2025

This water has been rated Good in each of the last 4 years.

Facilities & access

Parking
YesClarach Bay South about 100 m away (OpenStreetMap)

Official water quality

Classified Good in 2025.

Official bathing-water profile

What Excellent, Good, Sufficient and Poor actually mean

Common questions

Can you swim at Clarach South right now?
Clarach South is currently marked "Good to go". No current pollution alerts — always assess conditions yourself. This reflects the latest data published by Natural Resources Wales. Conditions change quickly — always assess the water yourself before entering.
What is the water quality like at Clarach South?
Natural Resources Wales classified Clarach South as Good in 2025. Classifications are a rolling assessment of bacterial samples taken over four bathing seasons, measured against E. coli and intestinal enterococci limits set by the EU Bathing Water Directive.
Is there a swimming ban or warning at Clarach South?
There are no active bathing restrictions published by Natural Resources Wales for Clarach South. That is not a guarantee of safety — assess conditions yourself.
What facilities are there at Clarach South?
Clarach South has parking. Facility information comes from OpenStreetMap contributors.

Get told when this changes

We’ll email you when the swim status at Clarach South moves — a pollution alert opening, or one lifting. Not a newsletter: only this spot, only when it changes, at most once every 12 hours.

Your address is used for these alerts and nothing else, is never shared, and is deleted the moment you unsubscribe — a link is in every email.

Nearby swimming spots

See all swimming spots near Aberystwyth — about 2 km away.

© Environment Agency copyright and/or database right 2026. All rights reserved.

Contains Natural Resources Wales information © Natural Resources Wales and database right 2026. All rights reserved.

Contains SEPA data © Scottish Environment Protection Agency, licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.

Contains DAERA and Ordnance Survey of Northern Ireland information, licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.

Sea temperature, wave and tide data from Open-Meteo.com, licensed under CC BY 4.0. Modelled values, not measurements.

© OpenStreetMap contributors, licensed under the ODbL.