A hard hike from Mevagissey to Charlestown

Elsevier's Dean Eastbury always stays on after MEI Conferences in Falmouth to join me on a hard hike on the Cornish coastal path.

Last Tuesday we walked the seven and a half miles between the two lovely harbour towns of Mevagissey and Charlestown, graded 'strenuous' and probably the most demanding hike on Cornwall's south coast.

This is not my favourite Cornish walk, but is a must for keen hikers staying in the vicinity of these two small towns and wishing to test themselves on this roller-coaster ride, with a total vertical ascent of just over 1600 feet.

Fishing was a once major industry in Megavissey, but this has been replaced by tourism as the dominant industry in recent years. The tiny port of Charlestown still exports small amounts of china clay from the nearby St. Austell kaolin mines, and the picturesque harbour draws tourists from all over the world to see the collection of old ships which are used in film projects around the world. Recently the village was the setting for old Truro in the BBC 'Poldark' series.

Low tide at Mevagissey

Looking back to Mevagissey

Charlestown harbour

Welcome drinks in Charlestown

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