Walk
159 Portreath to Perranporth (Cornwall)
(Third
leg of English coastal walk – Lands End to Bristol)
Map:
L/R 203 and L/R 200
Distance:
14 miles or 24 km.
Difficulty:
Moderate
Terrain:
mainly coastal cliff paths
Access:
Parking at both ends.
Public
transport: Buses run from Redruth to both places. However, travelling
this way does eat into the time you have for walking especially as
the trip back from Perranporth involves a change of buses. On the
other hand buses go early in the morning and run until mid evening.
Check with Traveline for precise details before travelling.
The
path out of Portreath soon passes alongside fenced off MOD land with
occasional notices telling you to keep out. It is marked on the map
as a disused airfield. On the coast side of the path are, what appear
to be, remnants of World War 2 defences.
A
couple of miles further along is Porthtowan. This was once a booming
copper mining town which became a seaside resort in Victorian and
Edwardian times. When the tide is out the whitish sand stretches for
one and a half miles.
After
about
a mile the path skirts around the back of the beach at
Chapel
Porth. I understand the tide can rush in here and there is a danger
of getting cut off if you venture out on to the sands.
At
Tubby's Head there are some excellent views of the bright blue sea
contrasting with the
white
sand of the beaches. Near
to
Agnes Head Iron age barrows
(burial
mounds) have been discovered.
Looking
back
inland towards the town of St Agnes are old mining buildings with
their distinctive chimneys.
Huge steam engines pumped water
out of the mines and drove the machinery. Copper, tin and arsenic
were mined here until the 1920s and three harbours were built over
the years.
Sadly, the last one was washed away in 1934.
In
the middle of the 19th
century two thirds of the world's copper was produced in Cornwall and
combined
with
other mining, especially tin, 50,000 men were employed. However,
competition from abroad meant that production fell drastically and
thousands of Cornish miners were forced to emigrate to countries such
as Australia and South Africa.
Look
out for the The Motor Cycling Club gates near Trevallas Porth. It was
formed in 1901. Car
and motorbike trials started in 1908 and
still
attract crowds of people. In 2013, 140 old motor cycles and 250 cars
took part in
rallies over the
Easter period.
This area was known as the Blue Hills because of the bluish slate
which was mined.
Enjoy
the views as the path winds its way around the last few miles to
Perranporth.
Perranporth
is named after St Piran who is the patron saint of 'tinners'. He is
supposed to have floated over from Ireland on a millstone. Look out
for the millennium sculpture on the cliffs at Perranporth, it looks
part mini Stonehenge structure and part concrete bollards with a
nautical structure in the middle. Author Winston Graham lived in the
village where he wrote and set his famous Poldark novels. The beach
is very popular with surfers.
Photos show: Tin mine on path near Portreath; the cycling club gate on the Blue Hills; a view and blue sea on the walk to Perranporth.
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