The South West Coast Path

West Cornwall

The South West Coast Path can be reached from Roselands Caravan Park within a short drive or a nice 1 hour walk

The coastline of South West England has always been a powerful magnet, drawing people to it to live, work and relax. Walking on the Coast Path you will find plenty of evidence of this on the ground and can build up a picture of the ways is which we have interacted with both land and sea over the centuries

Beyond St Ives and Penzance lies the unique peninsula of West Penwith. Natural forces dominate and the rugged mass of granite exposed to the Atlantic often feels remote and wild.
And yet there is evidence of human activity since the Neolithic period (4,000 – 2,500 BC). There are ancient sites like the Iron Age cliff castles at Gurnard’s Head and Bosigran and a pattern of tiny fields that has existed for at least 2,000 years. Fishing settlements developed in the south, while tin and copper mining around Pendeen and St Just has left a veneer of redundant engine houses and shafts.

The changing hues of the coastal heathland are complemented by the remarkable quality of light. But it is the granite that remains dominant. Whether in the spectacular, jointed cliffs, the stone-faced hedgebanks or the church towers, West Penwith’s geology is constantly visible

Tin Mine on coast path at Botallack

Today it may seem strange to associate the landscape of the Coast Path with industry and trade. But there is a rich industrial heritage relating to quarrying, mining, lime burning, fishing and boat building. Trade with other coastal settlements near and far has also taken place over many centuries.