Tag Archives: cornish coves

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Cadgwith a fishing village lost in time

Traditional fishing harbour and village - Cadgwith

We looked back to Cadgwith with the fishing boats pulled up just below the cottages at low tide

If you are planning to visit just one fishing village in Cornwall then make it Cadgwith sheltering in the lea of the most southerly point of The Lizard.

There is a timeless air about the glorious jumble of thatched cottages hugging the slipway to the sea where the fishing boats lay on the shingle beach waiting for the tide, just as they always have been over the centuries.

Two rough hewn granite posts topped by jaunty ovoid boulders mark the entrance to Cadgwith giving it a sense of stepping back in time to a carefully guarded community unchanging with the centuries.

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Autumn a season of joys and consolations

Bronze Autumn Bracken frames a view across the sea to St Michael's Mount

St Michael’s Mount from the coastal footpath around Mounts bay

Autumn days brings those glorious days of bright sunshine and cool clear air, days of racing waves trailing plumes of vapour and the thoughts of cosy warm suppers tucked beside the ancient inglenook of a pub high on the moors.

The country lanes are filled with tawny leaves drifting underfoot, the high warm banks dressed in russet bracken now with rich red berries spangling the hedgerows occasionally I meet the occasional walkers clasping an Ordnance Survey map in lanes softly enveloped by autumn at its best.

The changing pace of life of the autumn has finally given us a chance to purge the debris generated by “The Beast from the East with bonfires sending lazy plumes of smoke up into the air.

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Is it autumn yet?

Autumn russet bracken framing ST Michael's Mount in a blue sea

St Michael’s Mount from the coastal footpath near Perranuthnoe

Should we say it is autumn yet I wonder? Well this week summer blew Cornwall a parting kiss and delivered blues skies, warm seas and gorgeous sunshine to the days, as we drift between the meteorological* autumn and the autumn equinox* in the hinterland known as late summer.

These balmy late summer days are just perfect to walk along the tranquil coastal footpaths and soak up the sun on the empty beaches, so join me in this week’s blog to explore a secluded cove in the shadow of St Michael’s Mount and watch dusk fall over a fish supper in Marazion, as summer blows a parting kiss.

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Trebah Gardens an autumn pilgrimage

Sub tropical gardens -Trebah

Trebah Gardens in November

We explored Trebah garden again yesterday, as the golden leaves of autumn swirled around our feet. This magnificent garden is in a lush sheltered river valley running down to the sea and the garden coaxes you along its well manicured paths with all of the authority of a vintage Rolls Royce.

The Walk from the lush palms at the top of the garden down through the valley is always accompanied by the gurgle of water passing through the gardens heart, until finally the sound of the waves landing on the shore below signal the Helford River and the sea.
Trebah is so evocative of the heady bygone worlds described by Rosamunde Pilcher and Daphne Du Maurier etched in my imagination yet there is poignancy there too, in the memory of the men that left the rarefied world of the sub tropical valley at Trebah, one dark night for the D day landings never to return. Continue reading “Trebah Gardens an autumn pilgrimage” »

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The haunting beauty of Kynance Cove

turquoise seas blue skies - kynance coveKynance Cove truly does have a haunting beauty set below the undulating contours of enfolded green cliffs on the Lizard Peninsular.  This soft sandy world of mysterious plazas, punctuated by towering stacks of gleaming dark serpentine, is not to be missed when visiting Cornwall.

On a picture perfect October day this autumn we visited Kynance Cove, , when the clear blue skies showed the famously clear, turquoise blue sea there, at their very best. Continue reading “The haunting beauty of Kynance Cove” »

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Secret Cornwall – twelve secluded beaches

cornwall secret beaches looking down on sandy beachExplore the secrets of West Cornwall with twelve of the most unspoilt secluded beaches and coves this week set along the hauntingly beautiful coast. They are almost a secret but not quite if you are armed with a well thumbed ordnance survey map and a pair of walking boots to follow Cornwall’s dramatic cliff top walks and lush valleys to the sound of the sea. So shh don’t tell and I will tell you some of my favourite spots to enjoy an idyllic day away from the tourist spots in unspoilt secret West Cornwall. Continue reading “Secret Cornwall – twelve secluded beaches” »

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Memories of Sennen

Nostalgic cornish harbourAs the winter days stretch out before us I’ve found myself looking fondly back on our autumn beach adventures and realised I hadn’t shared our memories of Sennen. Sennen was one of the last beaches that we visited before settling down to working life and routines of a winter farm.

The storm crested waves tore across the cove at Sennen that day, trailing plumes of spray that day and yet when we walked up towards the sheltered honeyed granite harbour with sea worn walls the sea lay surprisingly tranquil. What a timeless memory of a visit to sennen Cove to see my photo album
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Explore Gunwalloe, Dollar and Poldhu Coves

Gunwalloe and Dollar coves from the cliff topWe’ve made the most of the balmy autumn days to explore some of the pretty coves and villages and made a visit to The Lizard on a beautiful autumn day to seek out the intriguingly named Gunwalloe Cove and Dollar Cove that are  separated by the romantically named “The church of Storms” before travelling on to the popular beach of Poldhu just around the point.

This AONB (the area of outstanding natural beauty) that has the same protection as a national park and flanks the Helford River and it encompasses The Lizard Peninsular as well as the coastline all the way through Perranuthnoe to St Michael’s Mount near Penzance.

I had another reason to visit too because the ley lines cross at Gunwalloe as they do at St Michael’s Mount and so it has a very special place in local heritage. Continue reading “Explore Gunwalloe, Dollar and Poldhu Coves” »

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Kennegy Beach – a secret sandy bay beyond Prussia Cove

Kennegy beach at low tide with the sea still glistening on the sandsThis autumn we’ve set out to explore the beautiful hidden beaches of West Cornwall that are within easy reach of Ednovean Farm. This week we visited the secret sandy bay just beyond Prussia cove, known as Kennegy Beach a beautiful cove of pristine golden sands framed by heathland with farmland dipping down to the cliffs edge

As we scrambled across the rock to the great sweep of golden sands, ours were the only footprints on the beach and our only company the seagulls preening at the waters edge. Continue reading “Kennegy Beach – a secret sandy bay beyond Prussia Cove” »

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Discover the hidden silver sands at Portheras Cove

A sandy cove surounded by wild windswept cliffs in CornwallWe set out last week to discover the hauntingly beautiful Portheras Cove of silvery white sands, and found it was a perfect walk for an autumn day with the magic of summer still lingering in the air.

Portheras Cove is set between Pendeen and Morvah and it can only be reach on foot along the coastal path. But it is so worth taking the walk to this quiet and secluded cove that attracts only the dedicated locals who look after the beach, passing walkers along the coastal route around West Cornwall and seals resting on the sands Continue reading “Discover the hidden silver sands at Portheras Cove” »