A wonderful north facing beach that epitomizes the magic of St.Ives with the distinctive headland known as ‘The Island’ on one side, the cliffs out to Clodgy Point on the other, and, the backdrop of the town and the enigmatic Tate Gallery perched right above the beach. Unusually for Cornwall there are residential properties and holiday apartments right next to the beach which give it its distinctive character.
TR26 1JZ - Access and parking details are shown in the overview for St.Ives. There are a number of steps down to the beach from Back Road West (or the bottom of Porthmeor Hill) which runs directly above the centre of the beach. There is also a ramp in the vicinity of all the immediate facilities which lie between the road and the beach. It is less than 220m from the centre of the town if the narrow road called The Digey is taken from Fore Street. Porthgwidden Beach is close by the eastern end of the beach and Clodgy Beach is 500m along the Coast Path to the west past Carrick Du.
At high water there is over 500m of glorious shell based white sand that is different from all the other beaches in St.Ives as it is much courser. When the tide is out the expanse of sand is legendary. With large areas of rocks at either end of the beach there is more variety than immediately meets the eye. Facing north it is the most exposed beach in the Town. It had a Blue Flag award in 2010.
There is safety equipment above the beach. RNLI Lifeguards are on duty from May until the end of September but also during the Easter Holiday and autumn half term week. There is a designated bathing area and segregated surfing area. It is not recommended that bathing is undertaken when the lifeguards are not on duty.
Details are shown in the overview for St.Ives.
Dogs are permitted from October until Easter Day and all year from 19.00 to 8.00 hrs all year. There are toilets at the centre of the beach, at the Barnoon Car Park on the westerly end of the beach, and at The Island Car Park at the easterly end. There is a beach shop, cafe and restaurant at the centre of the beach with a range of other facilities in the town a short distance away.
The ramp from the road down to the beach is not really a slipway for craft. Water quality is excellent and the beach is cleaned regularly.
It is a wondeful beach that is in a great setting and even though it can get crowded in the height of summer there is room for everyone.
FOR MORE INFORMATION ON ALL CORNWALLS BEACHES PLEASE CLICK HERE
