Walking Lamorna Cove to Mousehole - 2.5 miles

OS Explorer 102: grid reference SW451241 to SW470263

Walk Duration 1 Hour 20 minutes

Park your car at Mousehole (pronounced Mouzel), walk past the Old Coastguard Hotel and through the village. Our walk followed Walk 5 in Book 1 of the Classic Walks Cornwall Series. Continue up Raginnis Hill, passing the Mousehole Wild Bird Hospital and the Carn-Du Hotel. Proceed as indicated onto the coastpath where the road veers to the right. After a few minutes look for, and follow the waymarker post signed 'Lamorna Inland Route'. Follow the well signed, if slightly overgrown, route into Lamorna. Have a quick rest and look around - why not check out the Lamorna Pottery. We shall now commence our walk proper...

Start at Lamorna harbour looking out to sea. The striking headland of Carn-Du lies to your left. Pause a while to look for the path over the headland so that you can see exactly what lies ahead of you. Climb away from the harbour following the wide path. The track shortly begins to level out as it narrows, then climbs steps. Few realise that granite from the quarries here was used to construct the lighthouses on Wolf Rock and Bishop Rock. After a few more minutes, cross tumbled boulders with care then gradually ascend up Carn-Du. The view and noise from the harbour fading as you walk on. Take care here as some sections run close to the cliff edge. Continue climbing up the roughly laid granite steps to the top of Carn-Du - grid ref. SW457238.

Take time out to enjoy the view on a clear day. The harbour now lying behind you with the lighthouse at Tater-Du also visible across the cove to your right.

Drop down the other side using the granite steps once again to promote confidence. The land filling your view runs from St. Michael's Mount on the left to Lizard Point on the right. On a sunny day it may be possible to make out the glint of the satellite dishes at Goonhilly on the Lizard along with some of the larger beaches of the Peninsula. The walk is fairly level now along Kemyel Cliff passing Kemyel Point and the chasm of Zawn Organ on your right.

Now about 35 minutes into your walk, follow the trail down into a woodland tunnel before climbing out to a log seat at the Cornwall Wildlife Trust Reserve of Kemyel Crease. Proceed down steps to cross the stream at Slinke Dean then continue rising and falling as the coastpath undulates on its way to Penzer Point at grid reference SW465249. Take a few minutes here to catch your breath before attempting to climb the steep slope up to the top. Ascent is made easier by what seems to be never-ending steps. Pass the Coastguard lookout building on the summit. About 1 hour into your walk you should pass familar territory - a sign indicating the 'Lamorna Inland Route'. If it is a fine day look across Mount's Bay to the imposing St. Michael's Mount.

Follow the track to its junction with the road, then walk down Raginnis Hill into Mousehole. To your right lies Point Spaniard - the suspected landing place of the Spanish invaders of 1595 that ransacked Newlyn, Paul and Penzance as well as Mousehole. As you pass the hotel if you were to look seaward you may just see Merlyn Rock. The cave that gave the village its name lies just south of this rock - The Mousehole. Take time out here to explore The Sandpiper Gallery, The Millpool Gallery, The Essex Tyler Gallery and the Mousehole Craft Shop.

Previous walk: Penberth to Lamorna Cove
Next walk: Mousehole to Newlyn