Author: lowenna

“When you enter the water, something, like a metamorphosis happens […] you go through the looking glass surface and enter a new world…”
Roger Deakin, Waterlog

Clambering across rocks, leaping from cliff ledges into shimmering pools, inching through ancient gullies, swimming into sea caves: coasteering on Cornwall’s rugged north coast reveals hidden Atlantic worlds entered only by the intrepid. As spring ushers in lighter, brighter days and calmer waters, we take a deeper dive into this unique mode of coastal exploration.

“Coasteering is thought to have developed from mountain-starved climbers traversing sea cliffs in preparation for Alpine routes.”

Image credit: Cornish Wave

Elemental adventure

Navigating the wave-lapped fringes of the land – with nothing between body and elements but a neoprene layer of wetsuit – coasteering presents the ultimate immersive coastal adventure: a unique blend of exploration, adrenaline and nature.

The term ‘coasteering’ (an amalgamation of ‘coast’ and ‘mountaineering’) first appeared in the 1973 book Sea Cliff Climbing before being trademarked by a Pembrokeshire company two decades later. According to Jey Massingham, founder of Newquay surf and adventure centre Cornish Wave, “coasteering is thought to have developed from mountain-starved climbers traversing sea cliffs in preparation for Alpine routes.” And, as Jey can attest, it’s an activity made all the more alluring by the calm of quieter seaside seasons.

The perks of off-peak

“In the quieter months, you get this sense of true wilderness,” says Jey. “It feels like you’re out in the big wide open, and you can go hours without seeing another person. You don’t get that same experience in the summertime when there’s paddleboarders and kayakers around and the beaches are buzzing.”

Dale Unnuk, founding director of Big Green Adventures, an award-winning activity centre on Newquay’s Crantock Beach, agrees. “The last few seasons, we’ve had pretty wild and wet summers,” he says. “Whereas spring so far has been absolutely stunning down here. While previously people might have avoided April, May and June, these months are increasingly blessed with the best weather of the entire year.”

Image credit: Big Green Adventures

Walk on the wild side

Coasteering isn’t all about the adrenaline rush – it’s also an opportunity to connect with nature. But in the summer, crowds and coasteering groups swell, meaning more noise and more elusive wildlife, says Dale: “In spring and autumn, we tend to get smaller, adult groups – and lots more encounters with wildlife. We can move more discreetly and find a good spot to watch the wildlife without disturbing their natural behaviour.”

But sometimes, the wildlife wants to join in the fun. On one secret season outing, Dale recalls meeting a particularly playful seal: “We saw the seal at the entrance to one of the caves we use, so we bypassed it because it looked like he was trying to catch fish. But this seal was so interested in what we were doing that he followed us for the rest of the session. Even in pitch-black caves, you could hear him splashing about right behind us.”

““Then there’s all the non-animal life as well,” says Dale, “like the plants, seaweed and algae. It’s an amazing way to feel a part of the local ecosystem.”

Seal sightings never fail to add magic to Jey’s coasteering adventures either: “Seeing a seal up close is different to going on a coastal walk and seeing one out in the waves – when you’re actually in the water and a seal pops up just a few meters away, it gives you an intense appreciation of wild nature.”

Sea birds are another star attraction on Jey and Dale’s coastal explorations. “Then there’s all the non-animal life as well,” says Dale, “like the plants, seaweed and algae. It’s an amazing way to feel a part of the local ecosystem.”

Image credit: Cornish Wave

“As much as everyone thinks that coasteering is all about jumping off things, we see it as a way of educating people about the natural environment and showing them how to enjoy it without damaging it,” says Dale. “If we see plastic waste floating by, we’ll explain why it’s important to clear it up. Being so closely connected to nature has a massive positive impact on people. It’s not abstract – when you’re immersed in the environment, it’s obvious why we must protect it.”

 “From bobbing about in natural whirlpools to zooming through narrow zawns (a Cornish term for a steep-sided inlet in the cliff face often formed by erosion), Jey’s team are expert at utilising the flow of water.”

Hidden sea caves and natural whirlpools

While coasteering might not be all cliff jumps and daredevil highs, a keen sense of adventure remains firmly at its core – and Cornwall’s instructors have a mental map of the coastline’s secret caves, coves, gullies and whirlpools, ready to wow their guests.

One of Jey’s favourite local routes starts at a spot he calls “adventure gully,” just up from Newquay Harbour. “Coasteering is all about the journey, and that route’s got all of the elements we look for – opportunities for little jumps, the wildlife, the smugglers’ caves.”

Big Green Adventures run most of their coasteering on Pentire, with route variations dependent on “what direction the swell’s coming from, what stage the tide’s at, and the wind conditions,” says Dale.

The unique geological maze of Dale’s chosen route provides plenty of excitement: “We’ve got an amazing cave system here at Crantock that we’re able to explore, and the geology on our route involves swimming through gullies, which is always a thrill.”

From bobbing about in natural whirlpools to zooming through narrow zawns (a Cornish term for a steep-sided inlet in the cliff face often formed by erosion), Jey’s team are expert at utilising the flow of water – “that gentle up and down motion that the rise and fall of the swell creates” – between rocks for exhilarating fun. “If we find the right spot at the right tidal point, we can whoosh through the gaps between rocks on our stomachs,” says Jey. “And by swimming between sections, you can reach areas inaccessible from land, uncovering hidden rock formations and coves.”

Safety first

Both Dale and Jey are keen to stress that in every coasteering session, safety comes first.

“We always start with the basics, even with the most gung-ho guests!” says Dale. “Simple stuff like nice, easy entries into the water. As guides, we’ll be judging how clients deal with those exercises. We only build up to the bigger stuff, a) if it’s safe and b) if it’s enjoyable.”

 “Ultimately, the unique, elemental experience of the world reduced to self, sea, rocks and sky, keeps adventurous spirits coming back for more.”

Image credit: Cornish Wave

Jey echoes this sentiment: “We always start small, and build up in confidence and ability.” Coasteering, he explains, can be tailored to the individual. “If we’ve got a five year old, we could do lots of little jumps for them, but then we could find big 20-footers for Dad. You don’t have to do anything you don’t want to do – it’s very much ‘challenged by choice’. Even just being in the sea might be enough of a challenge for some people.” Wetsuits, helmets and buoyancy aids help to ensure a safe session.

Ultimately, the unique, elemental experience of the world reduced to self, sea, rocks and sky, keeps adventurous spirits coming back for more. “When you’re seeing very wild places with just a wetsuit between your body and the environment, you feel totally immersed in it,” says Jey. “It’s such a good feeling, the energy it gives you.”

Stay in Newquay, Porth or Watergate Bay and explore more of the north Cornish coast…

Twelve Stories for Twelve Sections takes you on a journey into Cornwall’s unique land, culture and heritage. Discover a new Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty with every tale.

Seeking to explore a new side of Cornwall? Find inspiration in the pages of Twelve Stories for Twelve Sections. This anthology brings together a series of short fictions set in Cornwall’s twelve Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty, each written by one of the county’s gifted storytellers.

From tales of grief and hope in Gwithian’s rolling dunes, to family May Day traditions in ‘the forgotten corner of Cornwall’ Rame Head, these stories take you deep into Cornwall’s land, culture and heritage. Find a quiet nook to sample these stories of sand and sea.

 Section 05: St Agnes

Stretching from the southern edge of Perranporth to the north of Porthtowan, in this section you’ll find wide expanses of sand, swell, dunes and heathland. Derelict engine houses and mining industry remnants are scattered across the landscape on craggy rocks.

Perran In The Sands by Emma Timpany is set in Perranporth’s dunes and tells the story of St Piran, Cornwall’s patron saint. Timpany takes us from the 5th century to modern-day Cornwall, exploring how faith twists and turns over time – but a powerful history remains, with St Piran’s earliest followers laid buried in the dunes.

“In early spring, the people come to stand and sing, carrying his flag and, for us, armfuls of sun-bright daffodils. We ask them to talk to us, and while they talk, we listen. We have always listened. We take their prayers to keep, to echo amongst us like precious shells whispering with sea-sound. We keep the secrets of their souls, their hopes, their fears, their anger, and their pain. We lie in their blood like mead and stir them fire warm. When they leave, we nestle in their clothing – a spring of mint, a swirled snail shell, a tiny speck of grit. We understand that faith moves like the sand, that it both comes and goes.

“The track leads down to the dunes. By a small stream hedged by hawthorn and elder, the budding spires of musk-pink agrimony. The sky’s unbroken blue is a portent of late-morning heat. The tall pole on the dune is stark, its true shape hidden until the bar comes into view. A cross. A magpie stops to rest on it, its piebald feathers wet with sun. Nearby, snug in their towans, the stone bones of two ruins lie open to the sky.”

St Piran’s Oratory is one of the oldest known Christian sites in Britain. It was covered by shifting sands in the 10th century but dug out in 2014 so you can visit the remains in the expansive dunes of Penhale Sands just outside Perranporth.

Section 06: Godrevy to Portreath

Sheer slate cliffs, Red River valleys and mazes of wild dunes make up this stretch of coastline in north west Cornwall, where surfers flock year-round for the Atlantic swell. If you’re seeking ocean adventure or a rugged clifftop walk, this stretch is hard to beat.

Little Lights by Clare Howdle is a tale of two lost souls, Violet and Nina, of different ages and backgrounds sharing the ebbs and flows of grief set in this section. These disparate souls find connection to each other – and to the healing power of nature on Gwithian’s towans. Here, Violet takes the newly arrived Nina to explore the world surrounding her home for the first time.

“Outside the sun is already high and hazy. Seagulls wheel and screech. The girl shades her eyes and looks out to sea. Breathes.

Violet leads them to the cliff edge where tourists and daytrippers park, carry their brightly coloured windbreaks past the lifeguard hut and through the rocks, to the beach.

The track here used to go straight down, Violet says, pointing at all the cars lined up along the top. When my mother was little, they would drive right onto the sand.

She hadn’t meant to say it, wishes she could take it back, but the girl’s expression has already lifted with the hint of a smile. She leans in.

It has changed a lot?

Violet watches the lines of swell advance, dark shadows rising, peaking, then toppling to the shore.

In some ways, she says hurriedly, moving them along. In others, not at all.”

Follow Violet and Nina’s footsteps: walk the coast path above Gwithian Beach, continuing past Godrevy Lighthouse, the inspiration for Virgina Woolf’s To The Lighthouse. Pause with your binoculars on the headland at Mutton Cove to spot its colony of grey seals hauled up on the beach below.

Section 11: Rame Head

The Rame Peninsula is tucked away in Cornwall’s far south east, overlooking Plymouth Sound and the River Tamar. It’s sometimes dubbed the ‘forgotten corner of Cornwall’ – which is a shame because Mount Edgcumbe Country Park and the laidback seaside villages of Kingsand and Cawsand are well worth a visit.

In The Black Prince by Edward Rowe, we meet David and his mother and father preparing for Kingsand’s and Cawsand’s traditional May Day celebration: The Black Prince Flower Boat Festival. His aging mother Sarah is losing her eyesight and fears this may be the last time she’ll get to witness the boat launch and street parade.

“Your nan loved the May Day celebrations, dear of her. She’d be up before dawn dressing the house. Whistling the Flora Day tune, Mum says.

That’s where you get it from I expect, Mum.

Yes, I ‘speck so. Comes around quick.

I let her gaze into the pictures without saying a word, and her toast runs cool on the table until all the butter has run through the bread.

Come on, let’s drink these outside.

Okay. Where’s Tony? She says, and I shrug. Where’s your father? she says again.

Not sure. Maybe out the front? I think he was feeding his roses before dressing the house.

He better get a wriggle on, she says. Won’t be long.

We walk slowly into the small back garden where she tends her sweet peas, which she has sown into every available bit of earth. Like the family photos, she has to work with the earth and seed close to her face.

A young boy runs down Garret Street with a cornet in his hand. I can just about hear the band warming up on the harbour, minus a young cornet player.”

The maypole dancers, traditional outfits, town procession and flower bedecked boat are a colourful spectacle to behold. Visit on the May Day bank holiday to join in the community celebrations and welcome the sunnier days of spring.

Order your copy of Twelve Stories for Twelve Sections here. Discover more inspiration and places to stay in north, south and west Cornwall.