Trevone

A popular family beach near Padstow because it is gently shelving sand and when the tide is out there are lots of shallow tide pools, rock pools and sandy coves along the sides where the kids can play; it also has a handy beach cafe! Today ibeing a bright though overcast Sunday and at low tide, families are out in force. Two children are actually playing in the water, but the chill is still enough to send you retreating instead to the home fireside.

Harlyn Bay

Harlyn is one of the beaches near Padstow: a big, flat expanse of sand, at least when the tide is out. Today the surf is messy, and it's cold, windy and rainy. Couples sit in their cars overlooking the bay, reading their papers while their dogs gaze out longingly. I brave the elements anyway, and get the beach all to myself. It stops raining soon after I leave...

Towan (in Roseland)

Towan in the Roseland seems in the middle of nowhere. There is no village nearby. A man and his dog, then a white sail heading home towards the Carrick Roads near sundown, and then I have the whole world to myself as far as the eye can see, and the cold seeping through my gloves doesn't matter...

Harbour Cove (Padstow)

Today the wind blows icy cold straight in from the sea, bringing mists and haze to the coast around Padstow. You glimpse the sun for maybe just a moment, and it feels already later than it is. With the tide begining to ebb, the beach stretching from Padstow to Harbour Cove is a long ribbon of sand, and walking into the mist along the water's edge, your feet sink with each step, almost to the tops of your shoes. Beyond the cove, you lose the protection of the headland on the opposite shore, and wild white horses ride the sea in full gallop towards the shore...

Pentewan Sands

Pentewan Sands is the public beach at Pentewan, on the east side of the river. Today at low tide it is actually showing above water, in three parts or more. The evidence of Pentewan's past as an industrial port is all around but has somehow been softened by wind and water, while the little coves at the far end are delightful to just sit and watch the skies slowly darken after sunset.

Readymoney Cove

Readymoney is well positioned at the mouth of the Fowey river facing Polruan on the other side. It's sheltered by the headland and in summer they anchor a large pontoon just a little way offshore, so the kids can wade out to it from this gently shelving beach. Today I see my first sailing boat head out to sea, and return before sunset. A few rowing gigs also dash back and forth for practice late in the day. Impossible to see a sailboat in this weather without desperately yearning to be out there myself once more. Soon, maybe, it will be time for me to abandon the beaches and head out to sea again...

Bedruthan

You climb down a long narrow steep set of steps to get to the bottom where giant granite stacks rise out of the sand and water. These are the famous Bedruthan Steps, all in a ragged row along this beach for several hundred metres, awesome to behold in any weather, from above or below. Walking along Bedruthan beach with the steep rocky cliff on one side and the giant columns on the other is like being in a canyon by the sea...