Newgale faces west and is therefore open to winds from the Atlantic making it popular with surfers, windsurfers, kite surfers, kayakers and anglers, as well as beach-goers.
The pebble bank was formed by rising sea levels at the end of the Ice Age and the preserved stumps of a drowned forest can sometimes be seen off the northern end of the beach at low tide. At high tide, the beach is often completely submerged. Coal was mined at Newgale as early as the 15th century and the ruins of a colliery, marked by a tall chimney, overlook the southern end of the beach.
