The beach is a mile long stretch of golden sand with some boulders near the high tide line at either end. It's reputed to be the best surf beach on the south coast - its location west of The Lizard means it gets the large swells coming around the corner from the Atlantic that have also made Porthleven a popular storm watching spot. The cliffs are unstable - prone to falling stones and collapses - so sitting directly underneath them is unwise.
West Cornwall locals pronounce it "pray", and "prah" is frowned upon although is likely to be closer to the sound of the original Cornish name. It was recorded in 1331 as Polwragh (witch's cove) but Cornish place names expert Craig Wetherhill points out it could actually be "wrasse cove" as the word for wrasse and witch is the same in Cornish. The rocky headlands are an ideal habitat for wrasse.
In August 1905 the sailing ship "Noisiel" was carrying a cargo of 600 tonnes of armour plate along The Channel on a voyage from France to Italy. After encountering a severe storm, the vessel changed course for Plymouth to attempt to reach a safe harbour but (due to the heavy cargo shifting) developed a severe list and drifted off course. The main mast snapped and sails on the remaining (mizzen) mast were badly torn. In Mount's Bay, the captain attempted to anchor but the anchor rope snapped. The rope to a second anchor held but the anchor dragged on the sandy bottom. The ship eventually ran aground at Praa Sands. Six of the crew jumped into the breakers but two drowned. One of the surviving four - the ship's cook - made it to one of the cottages to get help and the remaining crew were rescued using a line secured from the ship to the shore. The vessel and cargo were both lost.
Kenneggy Sands is a crescent-shaped sandy beach with a mix of golden yellow and greyish sand. The south-facing aspect means it gets the sun all year. It is recorded on the OS map as Kenneggy Sand (with no "s" at the end) but is generally known as "Sands". The final section of the path to the beach involves ladders. The beach is mostly covered at high tide so care should be taken not to be cut off by the tide. The beach is sometimes used by naturists.
The earliest working recorded at Wheel Speedwell is from 1814. The mine closed and re-opened a few times during the Victorian period. Predominantly copper ore was extracted but also some tin. Because there are no nearby streams that could provide a source of water needed for tin separation, tin ore was transported by cart for processing at Chyrase near Millpool.
The Greater Black-backed Gull is the largest member of the gull family and a bird of formidable size, with a wingspan of nearly 6ft. Unlike other gulls, the Greater Black-backed Gull is highly predatory. Young birds are a significant portion of its diet and it tends to live amongst other seabirds where it can eat the neighbours. It has also been known to swallow whole rabbits and even eat young lambs. It often steals food from other seabirds using its large size to intimidate them into dropping it, and consequently it is sometimes referred to as a pirate.
Prussia Cove is a collective name for the four small coves of Piskies (known locally as Pixies) Cove, Bessy's Cove, King's Cove and Coules' Cove. The name Prussia Cove is from the famous 18th Century smuggler John Carter who was also known as "The King of Prussia", after the role he had always played in childhood war games. John and his brother Harry conducted trade with Brittany, with Harry doing the sailing and John running the operation from their headquarters at Prussia Cove.
Bessy's Cove is a shingle beach with a large area of flat rocks on the western side, and is thought to have been the principal landing location for smuggled goods at Prussia Cove, although King's Cove and Piskies Cove are also thought to have been used to a lesser extent. A harbour has been cut into the rocks and the remains of a carriageway is visible which was partially cut and partially worn by cartwheels As well as landing contraband, it's likely that the cart way was used to collect seaweed from the beach for use as fertiliser.
Ivy is unusual in that it flowers particularly late in the year - from September to November - and therefore provides vital nectar for insects such as bees and moths. Ivy berries are an important winter food source for birds and will remain on the plant all the way through the winter until spring. The berries also have a high fat content so provide a dense source of energy at a time when animals need lots to keep warm.
Postboxes are a Victorian invention. The first pillar boxes were erected in the 1850s and by 1857, the first roadside wall boxes were in place. Early postboxes were green and it wasn't until 1874 that some in London were painted red. Over the next 10 years this was applied elsewhere. Postboxes are initialled with the reigning monarch at the time which allows them to be approximately dated. For example Edward 7th (marked as E VII) was only on the throne for 10 years so these date from the 1900s before the First World War.
The small buildings near Bessy's Cove were built to store fishing gear and provide very basic one room accommodation for fishermen, with a fireplace to keep warm. They date originally from Victorian times but have been patched up with more modern materials during the 20th Century.
The post on the headland is a spar from the wreck of HMS Warspite.
In 1947, the HMS Warspite was under tow to the breakers yard by two tugs but the cable from one broke in the severe south-west gale. The tugs spent a day fighting against the storm but eventually had to abandon the ship which was driven ashore at Prussia Cove. It was partially salvaged here before being moved to St. Michael's Mount, where the salvage operation took several years. There is still a fair amount of wreckage left on the seabed in the centre of Prussia Cove and interesting artefacts are still sometimes discovered by divers.
The carpets of tiny blue flowers on the coast during April and May are the appropriately-named spring squill, which up close is a star-shaped pale blue flower with a dark blue stamen. They achieve their early flowering by storing energy over the winter in a bulb so they can be the first flowers out on the cliffs before they become overshadowed by larger plants. They thrive in locations which are beaten with wind and salt-laden spray which they are able to tolerate but other plants, which might otherwise out-compete them, cannot.
The Hottentot Fig (Carpobrotus edulis), was once classified as a Mesembryanthemum but as plant genetics were better understood, was found to be a close relative but in a different sub-family of the larger ice-plant family. They are called ice plants due to hairs on the leaves which refract sunlight and make them sparkle. The plant is native to South Africa and was originally grown ornamentally in gardens but has subsequently gone feral and settled on the coastline where it thrives in sandy soils, helped by its resistance to wind and salt. It forms a dense mat which crowds out other species and is therefore considered invasive.
Jackdaws also use a their calls in a democratic process to make group decisions for a flock such as whether to move location. If enough of the birds "vote" by making their voice heard, the entire flock will respect this and take off, even the birds that didn't vote for it.
Piskies Cove (also known locally as Pixies Cove) is the only sandy beach amongst those that make up Prussia Cove, but there is no beach at high tide. It faces southwest towards Little Cudden point and is therefore quite sheltered and well positioned to catch the afternoon sun.
Heathers and heaths are members of the Ericaceae family. The formal definition of a heather is a member of the Calluna genus within this family whereas heaths are members of the Erica genus. Bell heather is actually an Erica and therefore technically not a heather but a heath.
The lighthouse at the end of the most distant point is Tater Du.
The Tater Du lighthouse was built in 1965 after a Spanish coaster capsized in 1963 with the loss of 11 lives, following a campaign from the Newlyn and Mousehole Fishermen's Association to prevent further disasters. From its construction, the lighthouse was designed to be fully automatic, being controlled remotely from the Trinity House depot in Penzance. The lighthouse also had a fog horn, but this was turned off in 2012.
After the Norman conquest in 1066, St Michael's Mount became the possession of the monks of Mont St Michel in Normandy. In the 12th Century they built the church and priory on the island. The original building was destroyed in an earthquake in 1275 and rebuilt in the 14th Century. When Henry V went to war with France, the priory was seized and the French monks evicted, ending the connection with Mont St Michel. After improvements to the harbour in 1727, the mount flourished as a sea port with 53 houses and 3 pubs recorded in 1811. The mount was given to the National Trust in 1954 but the St Aubyn family retained a 999 year lease to inhabit the castle.
The four storey castellated mansion known as Acton Castle was built in the 1770s by the botanist John Stackhouse so that he could study marine algae on the nearby beaches. The house was extended in the 20th Century by adding two matching wings either side of the original central structure, with a turret on each end.
Blackberries are high in vitamin C, K and antioxidants. The seeds, despite being a bit crunchy, contain omega-3 and -6 fatty acids and further enhance blackberries' "superfood" status.
The tree cover provides shelter for small birds such as tits.
The name "tit" is thought to be from a Viking word for "small" and the tit family of birds were also known as the titmouse. This is nothing to do with mice but is from a Middle English word recorded in the 14th Century as titmose. This is thought to be based on Old English word for the tit family of birds - māse - which became mose in Middle English.
Swallows have evolved a long slender body and pointed wings that makes their flight more than twice as efficient as other birds of a similar size. In flight, swallows can reach 35 mph which is particularly impressive given they weigh only 20 grams.
The expression "Blackthorn Winter" is a rural expression for a final cold snap in late March or early April when the blackthorn is in flower. It was generally used in the context of not getting too carried away (e.g. planting crops) if there was a warm week in early March as more frosts may still be yet to come.
Unlike many birds that just sing in spring, robins sing nearly all year round. In fact during winter if you hear birdsong, it's most likely to be a robin. Despite how cute robins look, they are actually very territorial and the chirp is an aggressive warning to any would-be intruders not to even think of trying it. When robins don't sing, this a sign that their body fat reserves are low and they are conserving what little they have left until food becomes more plentiful.
The trees along the bottom of the field are sculpted by the wind.
The salt-laden breeze coming off the sea dries out leaf buds and inhibits growth so the plants end up growing most vigorously in the lee of the wind. In the direction facing the prevailing wind, the growth is therefore more compact and stunted whereas in the lee of the wind, the branches are much more straggly. The result is that the trees appear to point away from the prevailing wind. Where there are no obstacles interfering with the wind direction, the shape of the trees can be used as a compass. Prevailing winds come from the southwest, so in general, trees in Cornwall point northeast.
Brassicas such as cabbage and cauliflower do best on soils which are well-drained and not acidic. For this reason they are often grown in sandy soils by the coast where fragments of seashell in the soil both improve drainage and act as a natural source of lime. Further inland, artificial sources of lime may be required to increase the pH of the soil. In the past, beach sand was transported inland for this purpose.
Tamarisks, also known as salt cedars, are able to withstand drought, soil salinity, and salt-water spray and therefore thrive in mild coastal areas such as the Cornish coastline. Their ability to accumulate salt and then excrete this through glands in their leaves prevents less salt-tolerant plants from growing around their base.
Bosvean is Cornish for "small dwelling" and Trevean is "small farm".
The collective noun for a group of crows is a "murder". The term has been traced back to around the 15th Century, originally as a murthre (which was a Middle English word that meant "murder"). It is thought that the expression may be based on crows scavenging carcasses.
Nettles are the theme of German and Dutch colloquial expressions for a troublesome situation. The German equivalent of "having a bit of a nightmare" is to be "sat in the nettles". The Dutch have abbreviated this further, so you'd be having a bit of a "nettle situation".
The oldest moth fossils found so far are from the Carboniferous period 300 million years ago. By the Middle Triassic (age of amphibians - before the dinosaurs), moths had evolved their proboscis used to collect nectar from flowers. Day-flying butterflies were on the scene in the Late Cretaceous (when Tyrannosaurs were around). Originally it was thought day-flying was to avoid night-flying bats but it's now thought more likely that this was mainly to take advantage of the abundance of nectar that was originally targeted at bees.
Alexanders are a member of the carrot family and grow along roadsides in places similar to cow parsley. The leaves are more solid than the lacy cow parsley leaves and the flowers are yellow rather than white. The name arises because the plant was introduced to the UK by the Romans and was known as the "pot herb of Alexandria". It is also sometimes known as horse parsley.
The place name Rosudgeon is thought to be from the for Cornish word for ox (ojyon). The word ros can be used to mean a few different things in Cornish (e.g. hill-spur) but in this case, the most likely meaning is thought to be along the lines of "uncultivated land". So the gist would be something like "cow grazing land".
Rosudgeon Common is the site of two tin mines - Georgia Mine on the western side and Wheal Florence on the eastern side. These were later worked with Wheal Grylls on the opposite side of the main road as part of a complex of connected mines. Georgia Mine was rebranded as "South Wheal Grylls" and Wheal Florence became "Grylls Wheal Florence".
Japanese knotweed was introduced into the UK in the early 19th Century as an ornamental plant but has escaped into the wild. It spreads via underground stems (rhizomes), forming a dense colony that out-competes native vegetation. A new plant can propagate from a tiny fragment (the weight of a grain of salt) of rhizome or stem which is how it spreads to new locations. Consequently cut plant material is classified as "controlled waste" that needs careful disposal and mechanical vegetation management techniques such as strimming cause it to spread more widely rather than controlling it. Even some herbicides can cause it to either put up more shoots or go into a dormant state and re-shoot several years later. It evolved to grow in the harsh environment of active volcanoes so is able to come back from having all its foliage scorched.
If you spot Japanese knotweed on a public footpath, please use this form to report it. The form asks for a grid reference. One way to get that is to use Cornwall Council mapping on a computer where the grid reference of your mouse arrow is shown at the bottom of the screen as you move it around the map.
In this specific case, the stand of knotweed has already been reported to Cornwall Council for regular treatment.
Since modern birds don't have teeth to chew up their food, they swallow stones to do this for them. Gizzard stones have also been found in some dinosaur fossils (some herbivorous dinosaurs also had beak-like mouths) indicating that they used a similar approach.
A small mine known as Wheal Wellington was worked on and off for tin between the 1820s-1850s. Early mining in the area was done by private miners on a small scale for shallow tin and copper reserves.
In the 1860s Wheal Wellington was renamed Wheal Grylls and was worked quite successfully on a larger scale as part of a complex of mines stretching to the other side of the main road. This network also included an old mine on Greenberry Moor which was renamed as East Wheal Grylls and others to the west on the Kenneggy Downs given the names Great Wheal Grylls and West Wheal Grylls. During the 1870s, the network of mines was re-worked under the name Great Western Mines but continued working of the lodes at large scale was not found to be that successful and an attempt to re-open the mines in the early 20th Century fizzled out fairly quickly.
The orchids are one of the largest families of plants with over 28,000 recorded species, many of which live in the tropics. It is thought that the first orchids evolved somewhere between 80 and 100 million years ago. The word "orchid" comes from the Greek word for testicle on account of the shape of the plant's tuber. Consequently, in mediaeval times, the plant was known as bollockwort.
Water pepper, as the name implies, grows on wet ground such as on the margins of lakes (it's also known as marsh pepper). It's relatively late to appear, not really getting going until June.
Water pepper leaves can be used as a herb and has a lemony flavour similar to sorrel followed by heat which is a little like chilli. Its used in Japanese cuisine, particularly with fish. The young shoots are used to garnish sushi or sashimi.
During winter, from November to March, winter heliotrope is visible along the edges of roads and paths as carpets of rounded heart-shaped leaves.
Despite only having the male form in the UK (is and therefore unable to produce seeds), it can spread vegetatively through its network of underground roots. A small fragment of root can give rise to a new plant which allows it to colonise new locations. Within less than 30 years of its introduction it had been recorded in the wild in Middlesex. Roughly a century later it has become one of the most common plants along roads and bridleways in Cornwall.
If you have secateurs, give the brambles a good hack back along this path (or a bash with a walking pole). It's a lost old coaching road that's been submitted to Cornwall Council to be recorded in the rights of way network. Once it is, it will benefit from organised cutting but in the meantime regular use and snipping from walkers is keeping it alive.
Wagtails are easily recognised from the tail pumping behaviour that their name suggests. Despite being very conspicuous, the function of this curious behaviour is not well understood. It is possibly a signal to predators that the wagtail has seen them, so there's no point trying anything.
Two of the wagtail species are easy to confuse as they are both grey and yellow.
Grey wagtails nest close to fast-running streams as they feed on aquatic invertebrates. They have pink (skin-coloured) legs.
Yellow wagtails are more often found in open fields and have black legs.
The third kind of wagtail more often seen in urban environments - the pied wagtail - is easy to distinguish due to the lack of yellow: it's entirely black-and-white.
Spanish bluebells have been planted in gardens and these have hybridised with native bluebells producing fertile seeds. This has produced hybrid swarms around sites of introductions and, since the hybrids are able to thrive in a wider range of environmental conditions, the hybrids are frequently out-competing the native English bluebells. Sir Francis Drake would not be impressed! The Spanish form can be fairly easily recognised by the flowers on either side of the stem. In the English form, they are all on one side. In general, the English bluebells also have longer, less-flared flowers and are often a deeper colour. However, the easiest way to tell the difference between native and non-native bluebells is to look at the colour of the pollen: if it is creamy-white then the bluebell is native; if it is any other colour such as pale green or blue then it's not native.
There is evidence of prehistoric activity at Praa Sands from Neolithic times and the Bronze Age.
A number of flint tools have been discovered at Praa Sands, both on the beach and also on the slopes of the hill. A number of flakes from flint beach pebbles have been found, scrapers made from flint and what appears to be a flint blade.
Remains of a Bronze Age beaker and metal axe have also been found on the slopes of the hill. Further up the hill there have been some other Bronze Age finds including a greenstone hammer and a granite artefact that may be a grinding stone.
Before the 20th Century, the settlement of Praa Sands didn't exist. In the early 1900s, the area above the cliffs was grass with some disused mine workings and on the hill above this was fields. By 1909, the first houses are recorded near the footpath from Hendra Lane. After the First World War was over, during the 1920s, it became a popular holiday resort with a holiday camp. By 1930, the settlement of "Prah Sands" (as it was spelt then) was firmly established.
One of the most common fish on inshore reefs is the wrasse. The name for the fish is from the Cornish word wragh meaning "old hag". This is probably based on its lack of popularity for culinary consumption and is the reason why it is still quite common whereas most other species have been depleted by several centuries of fishing. Recently, wrasse has been "rediscovered" as a good eating fish if not overcooked. However, wrasse are very slow growing so are not an ideal culinary fish for conservation reasons: they cannot reproduce until they are 6-10 years old and large individuals may be over 30 years old.
Skylarks are the most common member of the lark family in Britain and are often known simply as "larks".
Skylarks are one of the most widely distributed of all British birds, found from coastal dunes to mountain tops. In Cornwall, they can be seen both in coastal fields and on Bodmin Moor. The coastal heath is a particularly good habitat for them, being mild but with fairly short vegetation in which they can hunt for insects.
The phrase "to lark about" may have its origins in the aerobatics of the skylark. At the start of the 19th Century, young boys who played about in the rigging of ships were known as "skylarks". The use of "to lark" as a verb can be traced back as far as the early 19th Century. By the middle of the century, it had reach America where "larking about" is first recorded.
In late spring and summer, listen out for the characteristic song of skylarks hovering high above the ground. The rapid song takes place in quite a narrow frequency range but can contain more than 450 syllables used in highly variable patterns. This is the reason it sounds a bit like the "modem" devices used to transfer digital data as an audio signal.
The phrase "up with the lark", used to describe early risers, dates back to at least the 16th century. Skylarks are the first birds to sing in the dawn chorus, often whilst it's still dark.
The collective noun for larks ("an exaltation") dates back to "The Book of Saint Albans" printed in 1486 which provided tips on hunting, hawking, and heraldry. It also included "a murmuration of starlings", "an unkindness of ravens" and "a clattering of choughs".
During mediaeval times, skylarks were eaten and there are records of the food price for larks from the 13th Century onward. Larks were captured by dragging nets across fields at night, not unlike modern commercial fishing techniques.
Almost all European countries have reported a rapid decline in lark numbers over recent years. In Britain, two-thirds of the population has disappeared in 30 years. This is thought mainly to be due to intensive agriculture and particularly the autumn sowing of cereals. When cereals were sown in the spring, the fields of stubble that remained after harvest provided an environment where larks could nest during the winter.
Lark shooting was a popular sport in Victorian times. Revolving mirrors were used to attract the migrating birds, which would hover over the mirror. There are records of over 1,000 birds being shot at a single mirror in a day. Despite being flagged as high conservation concern on the the IUCN Red List, at the time of writing in 2020, skylarks can still be legally shot in France and still are in large numbers.
Full page maps cannot be printed due to copyright and terms of use.