September 2017
Starting at the car park in Bossiney, I intended to head off and find Bossiney Cove, but somehow I took a wrong turn along the way or missed the turning. If you want to take in the beauty spot that is Bossiney Cove, keep your eyes open for a narrow path leading off to the right. Not to worry if you don’t, we can come back to this later.
Head towards the coast, and once you find the South West Coast Path, follow it towards Tintagel. You have to go through a gate and down some serious steps. Cross over the little wooden bridge at the bottom and then follow the winding path that weaves its way up towards Willapark. This is a quite a climb up to the top.
From up high here you can take in the views, once again the satellites from Morwenstow are clearly visible on a good day (see Sandy Mouth To Bude) if you look towards the North East, and if you look South Westerly you can take in the imposing Camelot Castle Hotel, which featured in the 1990’s adaptation of Roald Dahl’s The Witches starring Angelica Huston.
Willapark is an outcrop of clifftop, that juts out from the Coastal Path. It’s optional whether you investigate this further, although in harsh winds it’s probably wise not to.
Follow the coast path further towards Tintagel. After a nice clifftop stroll, looking down onto the beaches below, and opening up into more spectacular views with every corner you walk around, you will soon meet another scenic headland, this one known as Barras Nose. Barras Nose was the first Coastal Land to have been acquired by the National Trust.
Again you can take a walk out to the headland again, and stand above the crashing oceans, and from here it is clear to see your next location, the famous Tintagel castle, and the rocky island (now owned and preserved by the National Heritage).
Head back inland, and plod across the natural slate path towards the remains of Tintagel Castle. Unfortunately on my own visit, access to the island was closed, but there is still plenty to see on the land.
Head towards the bridge that crosses to the island, and you will come across a plaque on the floor which points to the various places of interest regarding the legend of King Arthur, including Winchester, where the Round Table hangs, Glastonbury, where Arthur was buried to name but a few.
Make your way over to the bridge, if you are going to go onto the island you will have to purchase a ticket from the information centre first, if not, then do as I did and take the steps up the clifftop opposite the bridge. It is a steep climb but worth it when you reach the ruins of Tintagel Castle at the top. Its a fascinating monument, and one of historical significance.
Walk through the castle and you can take some more steps up to the remains of the upper courtyard too. This is where my journey ended and I returned, you can walk on through the upper courtyard and continue along the coastal path towards Glebe Cliff, but my path was blocked by a group of druids chanting – or something like that. Besides, I was going to return to look for a spot to wild camp.
So, I returned down to the ruins, and back down the steep steps, and back past the plaque on the floor and headed back towards Barras Nose. (But before I got there, I took an alternate route up onto the open land ahead of the Camelot Castle, and this is where I really ballsed it up and got lost in some gorse, before making my way towards a rocky outcrop in the middle of a field which was not really ideal for camping anyway, and so I bailed and headed back to Bossiney Cove…)
If you don’t wish to follow my route, then to get back to Bossiney Cove, you simply follow the Coastal Path back the way you came, and all the way past Willapark, weaving back around the rocks and over the wooden bridge and back up the steep steps that lead down from Bossiney.
When you reach the top, you come out in a ​little-hedged walkway, you can either veer right to return to the car park, or if you take a left, and follow the path down it will lead you directly to the secluded pretty little beach that is Bossiney Cove.
As always, you can watch the video from this outing by following the link below, and make sure to Subcribe to Summit or Nothing on YouTube for many more videos of the coast path and other fantastic locations!
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