Explore 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” »
Tag Archives: Secluded coves
This 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” »
We 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” »
Maybe we should have checked the tide table before we set out because it was high tide when we reached Rinsey beach but we enjoyed watching the first big waves of autumn rolling across the cove for the afternoon anyway.
This September I want to show you some of the less publicised beaches in west Cornwall that are a little bit off of the beaten track so perfect for a quiet day beside the sea and so this week we went to the hidden gem that is Rinsey Beach that is about a ten minute drive from us at Ednovean Farm. The breaking waves make this secluded unspoilt beach a popular spot for local surfers but there is also a great tidal pool – Ray Pool – to the east of the beach for less arduous bathing! Continue reading “High tide at Rinsey beach” »
Porth Chapel beach is idyllically set below tall granite cliffs, with sands of broken shells dipping to the sea – it’s just a short walk from St Levan, tucked between Porthcurno and Porthgwarra and quite near to Land’s End. It is just a perfect spot for an afternoon away form the tourist’s hot spots of Cornwall for a few hours of peace and near solitude.
With soft summer days still before us this September, we still have time to discover some of the secret less know spot of Cornwall and this week we visited Port Chapel beach. Continue reading “Discover Porth Chapel Beach in West Cornwall” »
The August bank holiday turned out to be a classic Cornish weekend with still clear tranquil seas bathed in sunshine one day turning to dramatic tumbling waves racing across Mounts bay in the blink of an eye.
For the last Bank Holiday of the year we walked from the farm to visit a nearby favourite cove to enjoy the summer sunshine, spurning the busy roads and we enjoyed two very special days of contrasts that must be the very essence of experience of Classic Cornwall. Continue reading “A classic Cornish weekend beside the sea with silent coves and tumbling waves” »
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Land’s End to St Ives
Cape Cornwall from the air
The final part of the Penwith tour will take you from Land’s End to St Ives and surely this drive must be Cornwall’s own route 66. The road contained by ancient banks twists through farmland flanked by tiny fields whose boundaries date back to the bronze age. with the sea an eve present backdrop it is not surprising it has been voted one of the nation’s favourite drives. Expect to pass through tiny hamlets and farmyards; to see remnants of the Cornish mining industry romantic now in their decay; to see villages flanked by towering moorland cairns on a winding road that will almost transport you back to an earlier era.
I am indebted to Mike McNally photography for the aerial views I am about to share with you. Mike and his wife took a scenic flight from Lands End when they stayed with us at Ednovean Farm and kindly sent us a disk of snaps of West Cornwall.
Just east of Perranuthnoe, a hidden slipway leads to Trebarvah Beach reached by a hidden slipway or walk along the sands from Perran at very low tide.
There is something so evocative of the memories Cornish holidays of spending the days wandering around the coastal footpath before finally settling in a secluded cove to picnic and then later, much later, driving around the Bay to find a traditional harbour side pub for supper. It has to be Fish and Chips of course anything else would be sacrilege to tradition!
This bank Holiday the weather has been so kind to Cornwall and we have basked in the sunshine and we were tempted to walk again down to the coastal footpath to see the last of the spring flowers with the tide lapping the rocks below us. Continue reading “Coastal walks and harbour pubs” »
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A spring walk to the sea
The May is slow to flower this year but Perranuthnoe’s sandy beach had just been exposed by the tide and St Michael’s Mount was framed by Penzance
Everybody has their spring rituals I’m sure and for us, it is a walk down to the sea again, that stretch of blue that frames our horizon The sea so close that it frames our days and yet with winter jobs to do in the stables, it is so very so very far away. But with the weather set fair on Saturday we set off to walk across the couple of fields that leads to Trebarvah and then follow the narrow lane down to the fork to towards the coastal footpath in what has become our own spring ritual – the first walk to the sea for the year! Continue reading “A spring walk to the sea” »
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A visit to Prussia Cove
Prussia Cove has a still peaceful silence now that hides a shadowy deep history of smuggling days
We made a trip to Prussia Cove today – it wasn’t planned but we woke up to such a fabulous morning here in West Cornwall. As i opened the curtains I spotted high thready cloud across Mounts Bay floating in front of Penzance and a silky smooth sea at first light from my kitchen window and knew it would be a special day.
A special day but a busy day too, so it was a nice surprise to find we had a couple of hours to spare and so for once we used the ar and drove the five minutes along the road to explore Prussia Cove instead of walking the coastal footpath to the sea. Continue reading “A visit to Prussia Cove” »