A meander along the North Coast of Cornwall

It's always a joy to show off our part of the world to friends. And this is what we did recently. Here are a few photographs as evidence.

The area of our jaunt was the North Cornwall coast between Trebarwith Strand to the west and Crackington Haven to the east, with Boscastle and Tintagel in between. Stunning scenery and crashing seas. And, at this time of the year, no tourists to get in the way!

There's not a lot in Crackington Haven but it has a stony/rocky foreshore and a reasonably sized sandy beach at low tide. That's Gull Rock in the distance and this is view is sometimes seen in various TV series - Doc Martin and Poldark are just two.

If you want a spot to view the waves without walking too far, Trebarwith Strand is as good a place as any - as long as it's out of season. In season, forget it. Too many people for such a small place with limited parking and narrow single lane access.

More waves. We do like the sea and would hate not to be within easy travelling distance. It takes us about 45 minutes to get here from home.

It also takes about the same length of time to get to Boscastle, famous because of the flood of August 2004, which caused extensive damage to the village. It took many years to repair it all and, notwithstanding the enormous trauma caused by the flood, Boscastle now has an enhanced tourist profile, which probably benefits local businesses. No gain without pain?



 Boscastle is on a natural inlet protected by two stone harbour walls built in 1584 by Sir Richard Grenville. It's the only significant harbour for some 20 miles of coast. 

Fishing nowadays from Boscastle is restricted to catching crabs and lobsters, most of the latter going out of county and even out of country to the end-consumer.



A load of old bollards at the harbour. I liked the textures and their sea-worn look.

What a load of old rope.

More waves off Boscastle harbour. You can imagine the difficulties in navigating into the safe haven in conditions such as these.

Not a sign you see often, particularly at a beach as stony as the one in Crackington Haven. But it was a big enough problem for the local Parish Council to take steps to threaten errant holiday-makers with large fines. Apparently one such miscreant drove several hundred miles to return their ill-gotten stones. The rationale behind it all was "the stones are part of the essential sea-defences of the low-lying hamlet and, if we allowed people to pinch stones willy-nilly, then all the stones would soon be gone and the houses and cafes inundated". It's a view not shared by every parishioner or, for that matter, by many sane people.

As you can plainly see, Crackington Beach is almost devoid of stones.

It may not have many stones but the beach does have lots of very interesting geological features, including these folds.

And these are not stones, they are boulders. Lots of them. Pinch them if you are strong enough - and if you don't mind risking the wrath of the Parish Council.

The beach here doesn't look much at present but it's appearance, and the amount of sand, varies with the storms. Sometimes there's lots of sand at low tide and, at other times, very little. It's a good beach for surfing, apparently.

A bonus for the small but select band of trig point baggers who read my blog. S5504 at Tresparrett Down on the way to Crackington Haven. A serendipitous find as I'm not that sad that I'd drive out of my way to find one (well, not often. But it has been known). If you are interested, it's a secondary pillar and was first erected in 1949.