03/06/2014

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Wild Cornwall - the county's most awesome scenery

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The Cornish coastline is dramatic and inspiring

Along its 300 miles of coast that borders the Atlantic and English Channel, Cornwall has some of Britain's most dramatic scenery. We've picked three of the county's most magnificent stretches of coast.

Land’s End

Where? The English Channel meets the mighty Atlantic... Follow the A30 from Penzance to the end of England!
Where to park: The Land’s End tourist attraction has a large car park.

Here at the tip of England, the western most point of the UK, at the famous Land’s End, lies some of the most awesome coast anywhere in Cornwall. It’s not just the magic of this iconic cycling and walking destination – Scotland’s John O’Groats is a daunting 874 miles from here. It’s the drama of the scenery, a place untainted by tourism – yet close to a huddle of family attractions.

The signpost under which every visitor, it seems, is photographed, doesn’t just point 874 miles to Scotland, it points to the most spectacularly dramatic coastal vista you can imagine. This is the real Land’s End – forget the shops selling expensive outdoor clothing and speciality ciders here. Feast your eyes, instead, on jagged islands, vertical rock stacks, foaming sea surging around cliffs far below you. This is a place to observe seals, sharks and seabirds; there’s a hide for shelter, close to the edge of the cliffs. You really feel you have reached the very tip of Britain.

Porth Island

Where? 2 miles north of Newquay
Where to park: Across the B3278 is a large car park, bordering Porth Beach Tourist Park

Just north of Newquay lies a small headland that’s often overlooked. It’s less famous than Land’s End and Bedruthan Steps – but it’s well worth exploring, for it’s spellbindingly spectacular. If you’re staying at quiet, quality Porth Beach Tourist Park just across the road, you are five minutes’ walk from Porth Island. A path leads up onto the headland – also called Trevelgue Head – and on, across a wooden bridge that strings across to the island. Views of the sheltered, horseshoe-shaped cove of Porth Beach, to the south, are spectacular from here. To the north, and out to sea, the near-vertical cliffs are amazing. Giant rock stacks stand close to the coast like mini islands.

But there’s more to Porth Island – or Trevelgue Head – than meets the eye as you take a walk here. For this is the site of an Iron Age coastal settlement. Evidence has been found of eight massive ramparts, made of stone and earth, and two large early Bronze Age burial chambers. In calm weather this is a great place for a spectacular short walk, to sit and admire the fantastic vistas in all directions – and enjoy a picnic, perhaps.

But when the wind whips up the sea this place takes on a different character. White foam swirls around the stacks and dashes upwards with huge energy as the water is funnelled between the rocks. Standing on the island, so close to the shore, high above the beach, and yet remote, you get the sense that you are experiencing the enormity of sea power. This is wild Cornwall, unchanged through centuries – and unmissable.

Bedruthan Steps

Where? At Carnewas, between Newquay and Padstow
Where to park: A National Trust car park is a short walk away

Pounded by the Atlantic, a series of stacks stands far below the cliff path that runs north from Newquay towards Trevone Head and Padstow. Legend has it that a giant called Bedruthan strode along the beach from stack to stack...

The Cornish love their legends, but you don’t need made-up magic to enhance this amazing scene. At high tide the ocean swirls menacingly around these volcanic rocks that have been left behind when the softer sandstones and slates were eroded by the sea. At low tide you can walk down 142 steep steps to the shore – but, take it from us, it’s a long way down (and a long way back up); the steps are steep, often slippery and VERY close to the cliff edge. But if you don’t fancy the perilous steps that will test your stamina, you can take in the magnificent view of the rock stacks from a platform that has been built by the National Trust.

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