Maenporth to Portscatho: South West Coast Path Day 29 Guide

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Just for something different it rained heavily overnight, with plenty of wind to go with it. At about 3 a.m. I’d thought to myself that Bay View Camping would have been a lot better if the bay view had been blocked by a tall bank of trees; at least it would have blocked some of the weather as well.

The rain didn’t slow until 8 a.m., at which point I packed up in double-quick time and headed back down to the path. The drizzle came and went as I walked towards Falmouth, passing the optimistically-named Sunny Cove and rounding Pennance Point before arriving on the outskirts of town at Swanpool half an hour later.

From here, the path became increasingly urban and increasingly damp. I’d had a bit of shelter from hedges and trees up until now, but walking along the footpath above the beach, that shelter disappeared just in time for the heavens to really open.

This was by far the heaviest rain I’d encountered so far on the entire South West Coast Path; I’m pretty sure the even the five minutes I’d spent in the shower last night was drier than this.

Ducking into a doorway, I pulled out my phone to see if there were any cafes nearby. “There’s moisture in your charging port”, it cheerfully informed me. Yeah, no kidding. There’s moisture everywhere else as well, mate: right now the charging port was the least of my worries.

Squelching grimly along Cliff Road, I finally spotted a sign for Castle Beach Cafe, pointing down a ramp to a long building above the sand where I ordered a coffee, sandwich, and complete change of clothes. They could only help with two out of three of those, a deal I ecstatically accepted if meant I could be inside for a while.

The other patrons glanced briefly my way as I turned the floor into a swimming pool, before returning to their previous activity of comparing weather forecasts while watching the rain hammer sideways into the windows. Suffice to say, I was in no hurry for my coffee to arrive, and in even less of a hurry to drink it.

After half an hour the rain eventually slowed from a biblical deluge to mere drizzle, and then finally something approaching dry weather. That was my cue to leave: like yesterday, I had two ferries to catch, and the day wasn’t getting any younger.

From here, the Coast Path does a big loop around Pendennis Point before continuing on past the docks into the centre of town: if you’re less of a completionist than me, you could easily cut across the headland and save yourself 3-4 miles of walking.

Resolved not to take shortcuts, however, I continued on along Cliff Road, which became Castle Drive as it passed, well, the driveway leading up to the castle on the top of the hill. Usually I wouldn’t have been thrilled about walking on hard pavement, but given how wet the ground was, it didn’t feel like a bad option right now.

After following the path out to the tip of the headland, past a carpark and an old fort alongside it, I started back up the other side. This section was prettier, winding through a patch of woodland instead of staying up on the road: I was glad of the shelter almost immediately when the rain came back once more.

It didn’t last long, though, and the sun was trying to peek through as I passed the vast Falmouth Docks and headed for the Prince of Wales pier in the middle of town. Wandering up to ask about the next ferry to St Mawes, I was told (a) I’d just missed it and (b) the next one wasn’t for another hour.

That gave me just enough time to grab a quick, excellent brunch from Good Vibes cafe, and then get my head shaved at the barber just up the road. For once, a sparser Sunday timetable was a good thing. Now that’s unusual.

Right on time, a small boat pulled up alongside the pier and I jumped in with a few other walkers and day trippers. It was a short but scenic journey across the bay, passing hundreds of small boats and the distinctive round St Mawes Castle on the headland before arriving at a small harbour.

I knew I needed to catch a second ferry across to St Anthony, visible across the river mouth, but wasn’t entirely sure how the process worked. In the end it couldn’t have been easier: an even smaller boat sat waiting at the next jetty, and I literally walked straight off one and onto the other.

Five minutes later I was back on dry land, walking up from the beach past the gates to the grand Place House that I’d seen from the water. It’s private, so the gates are as close as you’ll get.

The sun was properly out by this point, which made the stroll around St Anthony Head a hell of a lot more enjoyable than the damp slog through Falmouth a couple of hours earlier. With great views back over the estuary, hidden beaches with hardly a soul on them, gentle hills, and grassy trails, this was one of the most enjoyable hours of walking I’d had in while.

I spotted the lighthouse well before I got to it, perched on the southwestern tip of this little peninsula. It’s not the biggest or most impressive lighthouse I’ve ever seen–it’s not even the biggest or most impressive on the South West Coast Path–but it was today’s highlight all the same.

Why? Because it was the home of the Fraggles, of course! That wonderful Jim Henson show was my absolute favourite when I was growing up (with the best theme music ever), and this lighthouse was the setting for it. It’s right there in the intro!

The lighthouse isn’t open to the public so I couldn’t go and explore it, but you better believe I was singing that theme song to myself for at least the next half hour.

I’d stayed close to sea level all day, a hell of a rarity on the Coast Path, but the path now climbed up past the lighthouse onto low cliffs along the eastern side of the peninsula. That just made the views even better, with a soft, rolling path towards and past Porthbeor Beach. It’s a small, narrow stretch of sand, not helped by the large rockfall in the middle that cuts it almost completely in two.

There’d been a few other people out enjoying the afternoon sunshine around St Anthony Head, but the further north I went, the sparser they became. This stretch was a little more rugged but no less enjoyable for it, around a small headland and onward towards Towan Beach, the only place I saw anybody at all for the next hour of easy walking along the cliffs towards Portscatho.

It hadn’t been a long day in terms of distance, but waiting around for ferries to arrive and storms to pass meant it was already mid afternoon. That felt like a good time to stop, so I took a hard left just before reaching town and headed up to Treloan Coastal Holidays.

The campsite was a bit bigger than I expected, but the staff and guests all seemed pretty friendly, and I had my pick of a few different spots to pitch the tent. As usual I chose the most sheltered one I could find, in a corner pressed up against two hedges. I’ll take better sleep over views or aesthetics every time!

After checking out the facilities (✅showers ✅picnic tables ✅cage full of guinea pigs), I headed down the road into Portscatho village to find some dinner. It didn’t take long, both because options were limited and because one look inside the Plume of Feathers (great name) told me I’d almost certainly like the place.

It was a popular spot on the sunny Sunday evening, and the only spare space was a seat beside the door with a whiskey barrel for a table. Given how hungry I was, I’d have eaten off the floor by this point, so a barrel seemed like quite an upgrade despite the staff member’s apology.

A burger and a pint later, all was right with the world. The wind had died out, the sun was still shining, and I was in a great mood as I wandered back up towards the campsite. That only improved when I ran into a couple I’d briefly met earlier, who were walking the Coast Path a week at a time with their cute little dog.

Sitting around their tent with a can of cider and talking absolute rubbish was the perfect way to spend the rest of the evening. Well, right up until the one dark cloud in the entire sky sidled up overhead and decided to rain on us. That put an end to the festivities pretty quickly.

Can’t have it all, I guess, but after a miserable start, today had come pretty damn close.

Planning

Started at: Bay View Camping (0.2 miles/0.3km off-trail)

Finished at: Treloan Coastal Holidays (0.3 miles/0.5km off-trail)

This campsite was in a great location just outside Portscatho, which perhaps explains its popularity: even in early September, it was pretty full. Even so, it was relaxed and quiet both during the day and at night, and I had my pick of a few different spots when I wandered up mid-afternoon.

There are two fields, the main one that’s open year round (where I stayed) and a large, flat camping field alongside that had just closed for the season. There were three shower and toilet blocks, which were clean and well-maintained, and the staff member on duty was happy to charge my power bank for me: he even dropped it back to my tent while I was at the pub!

I paid £10 for my pitch, which is a discounted rate for walkers. With a few different options of where to go, I chose the most sheltered spot, in a corner where two tall hedges met. It meant less sun, but also less wind. You win some, you lose some.

There are two pubs nearby: the Standard Inn is closer, but I wanted to check out Portscatho, so continued on to the Plume of Feathers. Even then, you’re only looking at about a ten minute downhill walk to get there, and the food and vibes were great.

All up, I really liked both the campsite and the village: I’d happily come back and stay there again, whether I was walking or not.

Transport and Parking

Maenporth isn’t served by public transport, but Falmouth definitely is.

There’s a straightforward day walk option from Falmouth where you use the ferry to get to St Mawes, then walk to Portscatho along the Coast Path. At the end, just take the number 50 bus back to St Mawes and the ferry back to Falmouth.

The bus runs every day, on a schedule that varies throughout the day. Sunday services run every two hours, but it’s more frequent the rest of the time. I talk about the ferry in more detail below.

If the ferries aren’t running, there’s an alternative long way round between Falmouth and Portscatho. Take a GWR train from any Falmouth station to Truro, and then catch the number 50 bus back to Portscatho.

Speaking of trains, if you’re starting or finishing your time on the Coast Path in Falmouth, that train to Truro runs every half-hour. From there you can catch onward trains to London Paddington via Plymouth, Exeter, Taunton, and Reading.

If you’re leaving a car somewhere, there’s a somewhat expensive pay and display lot at Maenporth Beach, and more usefully for public transport connections, many options in Falmouth.

There are two long-stay parking lots near the Prince of Wales pier (Church Street and Town Quarry), but they’re expensive: between April and October you’ll pay over £11 for 24 hours.

The long-stay pricing is a little better at Swanpool beach, but if you don’t want to pay at all, your best choice by far is the free parking lot right on the Coast Path at Pendennis Head. From there, just follow the trail past the docks and into the centre of town.

All-day parking is reasonably priced at the lot in St Mawes, right beside the harbour. There are two National Trust carparks around St Anthony, one at St Anthony Head beside the lighthouse, and the other at Porth Farm, a five minute walk from the path at Towan Beach.

Finally, there’s a free parking lot in Gerrans (on Treloan Lane, between the campsite I stayed at and the Standard Inn down the road), and a reasonably-priced one beside the trail as you’re leaving Portscatho.

River Crossings

You’ve got two ferries to catch today, one from Falmouth to St Mawes, and then immediately after, one from St Mawes to Place.

St Mawes Ferry

Tide and weather permitting, the St Mawes ferry runs every day, up to three times an hour in summer. It’s less frequent at other times of year and on Sundays and bank holidays, but should run at least once an hour. During the busier months, services leave from both Prince of Wales pier (which is the one I took) and Custom House Quay a little further south.

At Prince of Wales Pier, buy a ticket from the little kiosk at the start of the pier. You can pay by cash or card there: it’s £11 for a single adult ticket, or £16.50 for a day return. This is by far the most expensive ferry on the South West Coast Path, but I guess it’s also the longest journey: it takes about 20 minutes.

The ferry arrives at the base of the pier, so you’ll need to go down anything up to 20 steps at low tide to get onboard.

If the ferry isn’t running or for some reason you don’t want to take it, I outlined the (much longer) alternative above. Take the train to Truro, then the number 50 bus to St Mawes. Falmouth Water Taxi and A2B Water Taxi also run between Falmouth and either St Mawes or Place: you’ll want to contact them a couple of days in advance.

Place Ferry

The Place ferry is a little open-topped boat that runs across the mouth of the Percuil River between St Mawes and Place. The journey takes all of five minutes, and costs £6.30 one way (£8.60 return), payable by card onboard. It runs every half-hour between 9:15 a.m. and 4:00 p.m, April through October.

On the day I took it, the boat was already tied up on the floating jetty alongside where the St Mawes Ferry had just arrived, so I walked from one to the other and got onboard. The process couldn’t have been simpler.

If the boat isn’t running or you don’t want to take it, it’s possible to walk between St Mawes and Place via Gerrans. It adds an extra nine miles/13km to your day, so rather you than me, but if you do need or want to do it, the full details are in the official guidebook.

Waymarking and Navigation

As usual when walking through a city or good-sized town, waymarking was more sparse than usual in Falmouth. It wasn’t hard to stay on the right track as far as Pendennis Head since the Coast Path just follows the road along the water, but it was a bit more difficult after that.

In particular, you’ll likely need your map to navigate the section where the trail goes inland near the docks to avoid the railway lines. From Place onwards, it was all pretty straightforward, with good signage and obvious paths along the shoreline and then up on the cliff all the way to Portscatho.

I used AllTrails as my main navigation app for the entire South West Coast Path, and it worked well throughout. The first part of the day from Maenporth is included on this map, while the Falmouth to Portscatho section is covered here.

The app is free to use, although I pay a couple of pounds a month for a subscription so I can download maps to my phone in advance.

Phone Service

For once, phone service wasn’t much of an issue today. Other than a short section when I first started out near Maenporth, I had reasonable amounts of signal everywhere I checked it. The only area it got a little hit and miss was around St Anthony Head.

As a backup, I’d also paid a few pounds for a data eSIM from Instabridge that let me swap between all three UK networks, EE, O2, and Vodafone/Three. It worked really well as a fallback option all along the Coast Path: if I didn’t have service with my usual provider (O2), I’d just switch to another. As long as there were any mobile phone towers in range, I’d have service.

Facilities

While there was nowhere to eat or drink right where I started out near Maenporth, it wasn’t an issue. It’s only a mile from there until the first cafe in Swanpool, and they come thick and fast after that as you head into Falmouth.

Even if it doesn’t feel like it when you’re getting heavily rained on and desperately looking for a place to stop.

My coffee and sandwich at Castle Beach Cafe would have been well worth it even if it weren’t for the apocalyptic conditions outside at the time, and I was very impressed with my brunch at Good Vibes Cafe in the middle of town as well. I can confirm the vibes were indeed excellent.

Obviously there are many other places to eat and drink in Falmouth; it’s a pretty big town after all. Many of them are clustered along the water between Custom House Quay and the Prince of Wales Pier, or up Killigrew Street as you walk inland from the pier, so those are good places to start.

St Mawes is a popular tourist spot, so there are several options there as well, just east of the harbour. They’re not all ice cream and fudge shops, either (although those definitely also exist); there are several pubs, cafes, and swanky restaurants basically right beside each other.

There’s nothing after that until you get to Towan Beach; just head very slightly inland to the tearooms at Porth Farm if you need toilets or refreshments. After that, you’ll need to wait until you get to Portscatho: as well as the two pubs I mentioned earlier, there’s a coffee shop, a couple of restaurants, a bar, and an all-important ice cream shop.

Accommodation

Because this is a shorter section with a large town in the middle, campsites near the trail are in very short supply. There’s nothing in or near Falmouth: in reality, you’re likely to end up wild camping if you don’t stay where I did (Treloan Camping Holidays just outside Portscatho).

If you’re not planning to sleep in a tent, you’ve got a bit more choice. Many people walking shorter sections of the Coast Path base themselves in Falmouth for a night or two; if that’s you, then good places close to the path include the Membly Hall Hotel and the Falmouth Hotel, a room above the Star and Garter, and this apartment. A little further from the trail, this studio is a good, cheaper option.

My pick in St Mawes would be The Rising Sun, a great little pub with cozy rooms and an included breakfast. Failing that, I’d go for a studio room at The Rosevine at Porthcurnick Beach, just past Portscatho.