CAPTURING

(^86) ŠCornwall Life: August 2019
T
he South West Coast
Path Association
(SWCPA), the charity
that looks after England’s
longest and best loved National
Trail has launched its annual
photography competition and
is calling on coast lovers in
Cornwall to get involved. Young
or old, professional or amateur

• this competition is a chance
  for everyone to celebrate the
  magic and wonder of the South
  West Coast Path and all it has to
  offer. The competition, which
  has been running since 2010 has
  over the years, seen five winning
  photos from our beautiful
  Cornish coast. As renowned
  photographer Ansell Adam’s once
  said, “There are no rules for good
  photographs, there are only good
  photographs.” So get out there,
  get inspired and get snapping!
  From its start this walk has
  drama. At St Nectan’s Kieve the

ROCK Y

VALLEY

Length:

3.7 miles (6km)

Difficulty:

Easy. Woodland

paths that

may be

muddy, stony

tracks, rocky,

footpaths,

steps and steep

slopes. Wear

good shoes!

Start and

finish:

Halgabron

Rocky Valley

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River Trevillet plunges down

a 60-foot waterfall with such

force that it has carved a series

of basins in the rock. From here

it flows through St Nectan’s

Glen and on past the ruins of

a medieval mill, where the

carvings on the rock-face are said

to be almost 4,000-years-old.

If you can’t find a decent photo

here, the last leg of the journey

reveals a vista of the sea tumbling

and splashing through a deep

canyon it has sculpted through

a breathtakingly beautiful

wilderness.

For lovers of flora and fauna,

you will pass through a Site of

Special Scientific Interest (SSSI)

filled with ferns and mosses and

two rare liverworts grow here, as

well as rare mosses. The maritime

grassland in Rocky Valley is full

of wildflowers, and occasionally

an otter is seen in the river. The

flowers ensure a thriving insect

population which includes the

dramatically-patterned tiger moth

and the thrift clearwing moth.

Nectan is said to have been one

of the 24 missionary offspring of

the fifth-century King Brychan of

Brycheiniog. During your walk

you will also pass St Piran’s Well.

Cornwall’s patron saint of tin

miners is said to have fallen to his

death here, at the ripe old age of

200, after a drinking session with

his pal St Nectan.

Further on Trewethet Mill is

particularly renowned for the

Celtic labyrinth carved into

the rock-face beside it. There

is evidence of people living

here in the Mesolithic (Middle

Stone Age) period, but the

carvings are thought to be from

the early Bronze Age although

some historians believe that the

carvings were faked in Victorian

times to bring in the tourists.

Decide for yourself! 

Photographer: Andrew Ray