Back Roads Great Britain (Eyewitness Travel Back Roads)

33

EAT AND DRINK

ST IVES

Sloop Inn inexpensive

Overlooking the harbour and noted

for its seafood, this is one of Cornwall’s

oldest inns. It dates back to 1312 with

wood beams, slate floors and cobbles.

The Wharf, TR26 1LP; 01736 796 584;

http://www.sloop-inn.co.uk

Porthgwidden Café moderate

Small white stone building with

terrace at Porthgwidden Beach. Noted

for its steak, fresh fish and waffles.

Porthgwidden Beach, TR26 1PL; 01736

796 791

AROUND PORTHCURNO

Logan Rock Inn inexpensive–moderate

Pub known for its real ales and home-

cooked food – pasties, steaks and crab.

Open fire in winter, beer garden and

pre-Minack theatre dinners available.

Treen, TR19 6LG (1.5 km/1 mile east of

Porthcurno); 01736 810 495

2 Zennor
Cornwall; TR26 3DA
Did the mermaid depicted on a pew
in the 12th-century church of
St Senara really lure a chorister to his
death by her singing? Or did the story
serve to discourage outsiders from
venturing down to the cove, a local
smugglers’ haunt? Whatever the truth
of the tale, the factual side of Zennor’s
history since the Bronze Age is shown
in the Wayside Museum (open daily,
Apr–Oct) housed in a 16th-century
miller’s cottage. The great Methodist
evangelist John Wesley preached in
Zennor in the mid-18th century and
another notable visitor was the writer
DH Lawrence during World War I. He
stayed with his German wife, Frieda, at
the Tinners Arms pub, while writing
Women in Love. The Zennor Quoit
burial chamber, just southeast of the
village on Amalveor Downs, is one of
the area’s many prehistoric remains.
ª Carry along the B3306 to Pendeen.
Geevor Tin Mine car park is on the right.

DRIVE 1: Lizard Point and the South Cornwall Coast

4 Porthcurno

Cornwall; TR19 6JX

The unique feature of this small

sandy cove is the Minack Theatre,

hewn out of the cliffs above it. With

the sea as a backdrop, the Greek-

style theatre, created in the 1930s,

has an incomparable setting. The

visitor centre tells its story (open daily;

performances May–Sep; http://www.minack.

com). A small white pyramid on the

cliff marks the spot where the first

transatlantic telephone cable was

laid in 1880. The history of telegraphy

is told in the Porthcurno Telegraph

Museum (Mar–Oct, closed Wed; Nov–

Apr, open Sun, Mon only).

ª Return to B3315; after 8 km (5 miles),

turn right for Mousehole car park.

3 Pendeen
Cornwall; TR19 7NL
The ruined stacks and engine houses
dotted along the coast, a UNESCO
World Heritage site for Cornish mining,
are reminders of the area’s boom time
in the 19th century. At Pendeen,
Geevor Tin Mine (closed Sat) shows
how tin was mined and processed.
Carry on along the B3306, past
granite outcrops, where remains of
prehistoric habitation, such as
standing stones and burial mounds,
can often be seen amongst the
bracken. Turn right at St Just to Cape
Cornwall, a windswept headland
topped by a slender chimney stack
which evokes a true end-of-the-
world feeling. In fact, Land’s End lies

slightly further west but much of the

majesty of the site has been lost due

to the development of the area.

ª Take the B3306 to St Just and take

the A3071, then turn right onto B3306

(signed Land’s End). Turn right onto

A30. After Sennen, turn left onto B3315,

then right to Porthcurno. Follow signs

and park at the Minack Theatre.

Below Smeaton’s Pier and the harbour at low

tide, St Ives, Cornwall

Above left Shop selling traditional beach

toys, St Ives Above centre The Tate St Ives

building overlooking Porthmeor Beach

Above The stage and beautiful setting of the

Minack Theatre, Porthcurno