This walk takes in some fine estuary views, an old fishing village and some lovely secluded bays.
Distance: 3 miles (return)
Difficulty: 2/5, good paths throughout although there’s a couple of steep sections around Durgan.
Our start point for this walk is the National Trust car park at Bosveal, from there head south towards the coast, past the beautiful Bosloe house on a lane that is dotted with giant towering pines, a concurrent feature along this walk. At the end of this path we meet a road at which we turn eastwards towards Durgan. For those wanting a day at the beach this is also where we can head down to the water to visit Grebe beach.
The approach into Durgan after a few minutes offers some quintessentially Cornish views of the pint sized village nestled on the backs of the Helford. The National Trust has done a fabulous job of preserving its lost in time character. A small community of twenty or so fisherman’s cottages are dotted around the small boat launch next to the old school house. It’s worth taking some time here to mull around the village and splash about in the calm beach waters.
To the rear of the village, rising up through the thick wooded valley is Glendurgan Garden (also owned by the National Trust). This is the way we head next, keeping to the eastern side of the village and following the path straddles the edge of the garden’s boundaries. This takes us up through some thick woods through a couple of hairpin bends and opens out again across a wide field with views across the river and estuary before heading down and past Trebah Gardens’ secluded beach.
Continuing along the water’s edge we end our walk by entering Helford Passage Village on the eastern edge of the beach. It’s a popular little spot with loads of activity. There’s a small jetty for the ferry that crosses the creek various boat and watercraft moored on and around the beach where there’s always something going on. We recommend timing your walk to have a bite to each at the 300 year old Ferry Boat Inn which has some comfortable outdoor seating and wonderful views.
Trewena Cottages are the perfect base for exploring Cornwall on foot. Just 10 minutes from the centre of Falmouth and some of Cornwall’s finest hikes, you can choose from ‘Little Avalon’ our 1850s labourers cottage, or ‘The Pigsty’ our converted barn. We also have some lovely hikes right from our doorstep!
