Anthony shares thoughts from a special late summer weekend visit to North Cornwall, staying in Tintagel, exploring this location’s role in the life of the legendary King Arthur, an early morning sea swim, a beautiful coastal country walk and discovering the natural wonder of a woodland trail meandering through St Nectans Glen, to a magnificent and powerful waterfall.
Tintagel
Situated in the far South West of the UK, about 5.5hrs West of London and 1.5hrs from Exeter, Tintagel has developed its place in the mythology of King Arthur ( Round Table, Avalon, Lake, Sword etc) over the last 1000 years. The pretty small village certainly benefits from this focus on the North Cornish tourist trail, as well as being a great stopping place on the South West Coastal footpath .
According to English Heritage “The site of Tintagel Castle has been inhabited at least since the late Roman period, and a community flourished here in the 5th to 7th centuries. In the 12th century Tintagel gained literary fame when Geoffrey of Monmouth named it as the place where King Arthur was conceived. These Arthurian associations may have inspired the fabulously rich Richard, Earl of Cornwall, to build a castle at Tintagel in the 1230s, and the enduring legend still ensures Tintagel’s international renown.” Find out more about the history of Tintagel Castle at English Heritage
Early Morning Swim- Trebarwith Beach – (approx. 3miles drive from Tintagel)
Trebarwith Beach is a beautiful small cove approximately 45minutes walk along the Coastal Footpath, or 10 minutes drive, from Tintagel (see photos below). Facilities are pretty basic – Beach, Sea, Toilets, Carpark, Pub …. and a few holiday cottages and B&Bs. We headed over here from Tintagel for an early morning swim before breakfast. We arrived about 730am, passing quite a few people on their way out … so obviously a popular activity this time of day. A few surfers were also arriving. The sea was cold (its England after all), but it was a refreshing “start of the day” sort of thing to do, to justify a hearty breakfast back at the hotel!.
St Nectans Glen – Woodland Trail and Amazing Waterfall (meditation room and tea room) Saint Nectan’s Glen is an area of woodland in Trethevy, just over a mile from Tintagel, stretching for around one mile along both banks of the Trevillet River. The glen’s most prominent feature is St Nectan’s Kieve, a spectacular sixty foot waterfall through a hole in the rocks (see below). The reward for the 15 min walk up the Glen, is the amazing waterfall, but also an interesting little Meditation room created at the top of the falls and an excellent Tea Room, and facilities, with beautiful gardens to recuperate, before the trek back down the Glen
Rocky Valley, Trethevy,Tintagel
Walking back through St Nectan’s Glen to Tintagel, you have the option to visit Rocky Valley. This is a small valley that has been carved by the Trevillet River in Trethevy around one mile east of Tintagel. Rocky Valley was mentioned in travel books as a place of exceptional beauty as early as 1897. The valley is owned by the National Trust and is home to 161 different species of moss.
Along the Rocky Valley path you pass three mills, ( Trewethett Mill, Trevillet Mill and Halgabron Mill.). Trevillet Mill is now a private residence (shown below) and was made famous by an 1851 painting by Thomas Creswick. The lowest, Trethevy Mill, is derelict and was used in the eighteenth century to manufacture woollen textiles.
In addition there two spiral Rock carving (see photo below) discovered in 1948 and believed to be from the early Bronze Age (1800-1400 BC), although there is some speculation over the exact dates of their creation. Regardless, the area around these carvings has apparently become somewhat of a focus for Neopaganism and New Age beliefs. The Spiral Labyrinth copies one of the most ancient geometric symbols– the spiral. This geometrical pattern appears on ancient Egyptian temples as well as Celtic monuments; in nature, the spiral pattern appears in plants, on certain seashells and, most significant of all, it is the design of our galaxy. Worth checking out more.
As you head north you reach the South West Coastal Footpath which descends into and out of the valley a little way inland due to the sheer cliffs on the coast. The path drops away off the Coastal Footpath to the Canyon and sea (see video). At their highest point the slate canyon walls tower over seventy feet above the river and sea entrance below. Care must be taken navigating this path, but it is beautiful place to appreciate the sheer power of nature.
Heading back into Tintagel, and before you leave, check out the St Nectan’s Glen Gift Shop, for a superb arrays of Crystals (see photo below). It is actually located on the Fore Street in Tintagel, almost opposite the Museum.
Places to Stay – Check out places to stay through this link – Place to Stay