Sunset beach

Look skyward this month as September brings a spectacular show of sunsets over Cornwall’s waters

With more than 300 miles of coast path in Cornwall, there’s plenty of spots to enjoy the drama of an autumnal sunset. This high-cliff walk begins at Gwithian car park, above the lighthouse featured in Virginia Woolf’s classic novel To The Lighthouse and on around The Knavocks offering spectacular views at any time of day – but as the golden hour approaches the sunsets are astounding. Enjoy views around St Ives Bay, with its long sandy beaches backed by the Towans (dunes). In summer the cliffs are fringed with wildflowers and rowdy with nesting seabirds. Look out for seals at Navax Point, where as many as 70 are sometimes spotted on the rocks below.

Fact file

Start/parking: Gwithian National Trust car park – TR27 5ED

Terrain/level of difficulty: Moderate – A good level path for much of the way, with some short sections of ascent and descent

Distance: 3.3 miles (5.3 km)

refreshments: Godrevy National Trust café Sandsifter café/bar at Gwithian

Public toilets: cafés

More walks: southwest coast path.org.uk

BOOTS ON? LET’S GO!

1. From the National Trust car park at Gwithian pick up the South West Coast Path, by the entrance, and follow it above the sea towards Godrevy Island and the lighthouse.

Archaeological excavations on the beach at Porth Godrevy turned up a prehistoric flint-working site, thought to date from the Mesolithic (Middle Stone Age) period, between 6,000 and 12,000 years ago.