Ramla Bay
Ramla Bay is a bay with a sandy beach in the north of the island of Gozo in the Maltese archipelago.
Location and size
The bay has a width of approximately 400 meters and is bounded by two mesas. Central is located in the bay a short river, the rainfall contributes to heavy rain in the bay, but otherwise is mostly dried up. The Ramla Bay is located between the Marsalforn Bay on the west and the San Blas Bay to the east and is accessible by road from the villages of Nadur and Xaghra.
Geology
In the delta-shaped bay, the typical geological stratification of the island of Gozo is easy to recognize. At the top of the mountains, above a height of about 105 meters around the bay you can find a relatively young limestone layer, the Upper Coralline Limestone Formation. This situation has here a thickness of about 35 meters and an age of about 7 million years ago. Underneath, in relatively thin layers, about 50 cm wide, the Greensand formation. This layer is made of sandstone, which really stand out for its green color, caused by the high concentrations of the mineral glauconite. The age of this layer is approximately 6 to 10 million years. In the hill areas, the Blue Clay Formation, a layer of clay minerals dominated characterized by its grayish discoloration. She has here a thickness of about 50 meters and an age 10 to 15 million years ago. At the bottom of the bay is the beige Globigerina Limestone Formation, giving in particular the typical building material for Malta is made. This location is here about 18 feet thick and has an age of 15 to 20 million years. The beach of the bay consists of large proportions of this situation. On the beach there is a 400- long strip of sand dunes close to that is several meters high in some places. The outer areas are covered with vegetation.
Importance for tourism
Ramla Bay is considered the finest and most important beach on the island of Gozo. Thus, the importance for the local tourism is high. Above the bay is the Calypso Cave, ( Calypso Grotto ), from which it is said, there have Odysseus lived seven years with the nymph Calypso.
Environment
Ramla Bay was once an important nesting site for turtles. But for many years no more turtles came to lay their eggs in the bay. The Malta Environment and Planing Authority ( MEPA ) is now considering the range of Ghan Barranji to San Blas Bay recorded as a reserve. As part of the "Poseidon" project is also the Ramla Bay be declared a marine reserve.
Vegetation
On the steep slopes above the bay you can find typical mediterranean plants such as tamarisk ( Tamarix africana and Tamarix gallica ), figs (Ficus carica ), prickly pear ( Opuntia ) and capers ( Capparis spinosa). The vegetation of Ramla Bay and the nearby San Blas Bay is very similar.
History
Over several centuries, Gozo victims of raids by Turkish and North African corsairs. The ships of the corsairs landed their troops in the Ramla Bay. For this reason, walls were built under water, which should prevent these landings.