Walks & trails around St Austell
The Pentewan Valley Trail, the Clay Trails and the coast path — distance, surface and parking for each, in plain terms.
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The Pentewan Valley Trail, the Clay Trails and the coast path — distance, surface and parking for each, in plain terms.
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St Austell's everyday walking and riding happens on the trails around the town — the river valley down to Pentewan, the Clay Trails over the old mining country, and the coast path along the bay. Here's each one in plain terms: how far, what's underfoot, where to park.
Arrive at Eden by bike or on foot and entry is discounted
The default family ride: a flat, mostly traffic-free path along the St Austell River from the edge of town to the beach at Pentewan, on the line of the old Pentewan railway.
Carrying on to Mevagissey leaves the flat valley — the continuation is partly on lanes with a long climb, and a steep drop into the village.
The link between town and the Clay Trails: a gentle climb from Tremena Gardens up to Wheal Martyn, past abandoned clay driers and their tall brick chimneys.
The big one — surfaced trails through the heart of the clay country, with views over working pits, mica dams and St Austell Bay. The history of the industry is laid out under your feet.
From the old mining village of Bugle across the heathland of Treskilling Downs, past the woods and lakes of the restored clay landscape, ending at Eden.
A short, flat trail from the beach through the marshes of the old river estuary — Par shipped china clay around the world from the 1830s — and the St Andrew's Park nature reserve.
The continuation from St Blazey to Eden is a walking-only footpath — cyclists use nearby Cornhill Lane, which is quiet but hilly.
An easy clifftop stretch of the South West Coast Path linking the Georgian harbour at Charlestown to the swimming beach at Porthpean, passing the 1793 Crinnis Cliff Battery.
The wilder stretch: the coast path climbs around Black Head — a windswept headland with an Iron Age cliff castle and views over the whole bay — then drops towards Pentewan, with Mevagissey a further stretch on.
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