Walking the Coastal Path from Polkerris, Cornwall : 12 Photos

A few photos I snapped from the coastal path after leaving Polkerris - see my Polkerris Post. It's a pleasant walk along the cliff tops, with lots of open sea views.

Only a few boats in the sea. The yachts below were from Polkerris - where various lessons are available.

Looking across to the far coastline, Carlyon Bay and Spit Beach can be seen.

The whitish looking beach, to the left of the photo below, is Carlyon Bay.

The china clay works, in the middle of the next photo, were once a hive of activity but all is now quiet.

The people paddling in the sea have walked out from Par Beach - as you can tell, the tide goes out a very long way!

Small rippling waves as the tide gradually flows in.

As well as looking out to sea, there are often interesting things happening inland. The farmer below was turning over his cut grass, which was drying out nicely in the sunshine.

The grass had just been cut on other fields.

And we were lucky enough to see a few horses roaming free in the fields.

Finally back at the sand dunes of Par Beach (also known as Par Sands).

Other Posts From this area :

(1) Photos of the Magical Polkerris Harbour, Cornwall on a Perfect Sunshine Day 
(2) The Meeting With Barrel Jellyfish at Carlyon Bay, Cornwall 
(3) What The Low Tide Reveals at Spit Beach, Cornwall

The Secret Cornish Beach : Booley Beach

Booley Beach isn't well known as it is tucked away and has no facilities. It has the advantage though of being quite peaceful. I have never seen it to be very busy. 

There are no restrictions for dogs and swimming is considered safe, if the conditions are right - but care should obviously be taken and also with any inflatables. 

There are, I guess, two disadvantages to Booley: there is a walk to get to the beach (thus why it is often known as being secret) and a lot of the sand disappears at high tide. 

My photos were taken in June.

Okay, to get to Booley Beach the best place to park the car is at Par Sands. Go into the main car park, it's bit lumpy bumpy, and park on the left, near to the Car Park machine - regrettably, as in most car parks, there is a small charge.

From here you should be able to see the start of the Public Footpath, there's what looks like a small footbridge. The coastal path climbs from here, but this means there are lots of views over the sea.

It's a well trodden path and after about ten or fifteen minutes you will see Booley Beach on the right. There's a stony path down to the sand.

If you aren't happy with the beach keep on walking and you will reach Polkerris harbour, with all the facilities required - a pub on the beach, food, ice-creams and so on. More details on my post : Photos of the Magical Polkerris Harbour, Cornwall on a Perfect Sunshine Day.

It's also possible to reach Booley Beach from Polkeris but the village gets very busy in the summer season and car parking is limited. It's also quite a climb up the steps to join the coastal path.

Photos of the Magical Polkerris Harbour, Cornwall on a Perfect Sunshine Day

Thursday was such a lovely day it couldn't be wasted so we walked along the cliff top coastal path to Polkerris. The cove is tucked away from the maddening crowd down a narrow lane, though we approached it down a path from the cliff top. 

The photo above shows the harbour wall and a few boats - the tide was out.

The next pic is from the footpath as it wiggles quite steeply down from the cliff top. It's quite safe though.

Polkerris has a long history, it's an old fortified harbour or safe haven.

From the cliff top path the harbour and small beach is approached alongside the Rashleigh Inn - the 'Inn on the Beach' as it is often called. There's a balcony to the front overlooking the sea and harbour. A pleasant place to have a drink and watch the sun go down.

We had our lunch with us so sat on the harbour wall with our mug of tea and a pasty.

Looking from the harbour wall it shows how secluded Polkerris actually is. If travelling by car there is only one narrow road in and out of the village so it's necessary to use the car park. There are a few spaces behind the Rashleigh Inn but these are usually filled.

From the harbour wall you can see the Rashleigh Inn and another food outlet.

The Cornish flag was flying high on the harbour wall - a white cross on a black background.

Also on the wall are some cannons - embedded in the harbour wall!

As I said earlier this was a fortified cove and it is believed that these canons are from the Napoleonic Era.

Polkerris is a very pleasant place to visit and can be approached from coastal footpaths to the west and east - if you are a walker.

To leave Polkerris it's back past the Rashleigh Inn … 

… and time to face the steep path and steps up to the coastal path. From the top another look at Polkerris and the wonderful coastline. It's a touch of magic when the sun is shining and the sky is blue. It looks a little different though in the winter, as a previous post Polkerris The Fortified Cove, Cornwall shows.

Raining In Cornwall But There's A Rainbow Melting Troubles Like Lemon Drops

A shorter than usual post today as I have had a small computer problem - but will soon be sorted! Plenty of photos on my previous post - 24 to be precise.

Anyway, today's four photos show that it does rain in Cornwall at times. The photos are all of St.Austell. Above shows the White Hart Hotel, Restaurant and Bar with the 'Red Bank', a Grade II listed building, in the background.

The listing for the Red Bank reads:

"A large 'Queen Anne' style 4 storeyed bank building occupying a prominent location in the centre if St. Austell. The building was designed by Silvanus Trevail and was completed in 1898"

Opposite the White Hart is the Holy Trinity church, where a Royal Mail van (photo below) decided to park while deliveries were made.

The Holy Trinity Church  tower dates back to between 1478 and 1487, though there has been a church here for many more years.

I'll finish with a rainbow above the chimney pots - where troubles melt like lemon drops - well that's how the song goes.

Have a Happy Day.

Walking From Portmellon Cornwall: Stunning Views and Crashing Waves : 24 Photos

Last Thursday we decided to walk from Portmellon along the coastal path towards Gorran Haven.

The first two photos (of 24) show the sea at Portmellon. 

We parked our car in a side road at Portmellon and walked to the start of the coastal path - up a long hill.

Once on the actual coast path the views are quite stunning, though a little muted because of the hazy weather.

The coastal path is narrow in places but easy to walk - lots of greenery everywhere.

The section below was straight across a field to Chapel Point headland - the yellow arrow showed the way.

On Chapel Point there is a wonderful property - a very special house - you can just see the building in the above photo and also below.

Chapel Point House is Grade II Listed and was designed by the renowned Arts and Crafts architect, John Campbell, in 1936. The property has been featured in several publications over the years and is reported to have been the subject of a novel by Daphne du Maurier.

Looking out at the cove ...

... and walking downhill on the coast path to sea level where there is a boathouse...

... .this belongs to the house on Chapel Point.

Continuing on the walk there are green fields inland with lots of sheep - but most where camera shy.

Below - looking back at the cove and showing the coastal path.

Next we reach Bodrugans Leap - and, of course, there is a story to be told! The story varies but the outcome is the same.

Sir Henry Bodrugan was a powerful Cornish land owner and a High Sheriff of Cornwall. Some say he was also a pirate and thief but, whatever, back in 1487, he was being chased by Sir Richard Edgcumbe and associates for claims of treason.

Bodrugan made for the cliffs south of St.Austell. His only escape was to leap off the cliffs, perhaps with his horse, at Turbot Point.  With or without his horse a boat was waiting for him, which ferried him across the English Channel to safety.

The terrain gradually becomes more rugged ...

... though there is a seat for those who may wish to contemplate the sea or whatever.

We walked a steep path ...

... it was interesting to watch the sea and the waves crashing onto the rocks.

Unfortunately we could feel that the weather was about to change ...

... so decided to make our way back to Portmellon.

We did stop to watch a seal in the sea, though I couldn't get a decent photo. There's a small black dot in the photo below - that's the seal!

The next two photos show how everything was getting less and less clear ...

... the views were gradually disappearing.

We got back to Portmellon where the sea was crashing onto the road!

Our car was just round the corner from here so we made a run for it - though I did manage to snap a couple more photos.

Our car was fine and dry, but we did have to drive along the wet stretch of road - somehow we managed to dodge the waves. So all was well and we'd had an interesting walk.