Section 2 - Charlestown to Fowey

Distance 10 miles - Grade 4 miles easy and 6 miles Moderate - What these grades mean

Heading towards Fowey you round the huge China Clay works, skirting the wide and spacious Par Sands, before entering wild and remote Gribbin Head with its memorable red and white striped Daymark Tower.

Situated in a commanding spot, the tower does the location justice, standing 84 feet above the cliffs and built in 1832 to enable mariners to recognise and avoid this wild and entrancing headland from the sea.

On your way up to the Gribbin enjoy the chance to stop in the beautiful pilchard fishing cove of Polkerris, with its well preserved little quay and pilchard cellars tucked into a wooded valley above a fine beach with sands, cliffs and rockpools a favourite for scrambling and exploring. The Rasheligh Inn serves good food and is a great spot to stop for a drink.

You are now entering the breathtaking Daphne Du Maurier coastline. The setting for so many of her novels, the landscape proved of great inspiration to the writer and indeed to all who pass through its wild beauty. ‘Rebecca’, ‘The Birds’, ‘The Kings’ and ‘The House on the Strand’ were all faithfully based on this landscape.

At Polridmouth, an enchanting hidden beach opens up to reveal the Boathouse from Rebecca, Manderlay, the infamous house which was once the writers home, lies hidden inland in the wooded coombes.

The route onto Fowey is now a joy with a series of smuggling coves, infamous for landing brandy to be whisked away to the remote farms, that can be spotted inland as the path rises and falls from shingle beach to low clifftop.

Just before entering Fowey a final delight is King Henry Eights clifftop castle at St Catherine's, accessible from the coast path, free to wander its compact ramparts for the most stunning introduction and panorama's to tonight’s stay in Fowey, without doubt the most stunning location on this section of coast. Make the most of its restaurants, bars and panoramic natural harbour, recently voted the most desirable place to live in the UK.

Overnight stays in the stunning natural harbour town of Fowey on the South West Coast Path