Cot Valley is reached from St Just town centre by taking the road towards Cape Cornwall but after 100m turning left by the junior school and following the road around to the right and down the valley. The road down is narrow but really interesting and very popular with bird watchers, especially those looking for sheltering migrants in the autumn and spring. A river runs down beside the road and there are cascades and flowers to provide compositions-there is a parking area halfway down the valley and another at the bottom. As the valley opens up you get views out to the Brisons and as you reach the parking area the famous egg shaped boulder beach comes into view. Porth Nanven (the beach) is very popular with photographers and you often see professional photographers leading workshops here.
A bit of a scramble over the boulders takes you on to sand at low tide where there are endless compositions using the stream and lovely rock shapes. You can climb around on the rocks to the left and right of the beach if you are agile but be careful it gets slippery when damp and also be very mindful of rockfalls from the cliffs at the back of the beach. Sunsets can be spectacular.
A bit of a scramble over the boulders takes you on to sand at low tide where there are endless compositions using the stream and lovely rock shapes. You can climb around on the rocks to the left and right of the beach if you are agile but be careful it gets slippery when damp and also be very mindful of rockfalls from the cliffs at the back of the beach. Sunsets can be spectacular.
April 2024- Looking for different perspectives