Our Favourite Spring Walks in Cornwall

The clocks have sprung forwards. Clifftops are bursting with sunshine-yellow gorse. Bluebells and the first shoots of pungent wild garlic carpet the woodlands. Spring is well and truly in the air in Cornwall. Which means one thing: catch it while you can. Get out there and walk every mile of empty beach and coast path, and breathe in the crisp sea air and the promise of summer ahead.

This is our favourite season to don walking boots, set out with backpacks stuffed with swimmers and supplies, and reap the magic of Cornwall before summer is upon us.

Walk this way, and we’ll show you some of our favourite spring walks in Padstow and North Cornwall…

Padstow to Polzeath via the Black Tor Ferry

This walk comes up trumps in any season, but there’s no better time to kick off your shoes and make those first barefoot prints along the miles of sand stretching from Rock to Daymer Bay, than on a low spring tide.

Time the start of your trip with the ebbing tide and hop on the Black Tor ferry from Padstow to Rock (which leaves every 20 minutes). Then all you have to do is follow the vast expanse of pillowy sands all the way to Daymer Bay, before rejoining the coast path. Detour off the path again at the next hidden gem of Greenaway Beach, for a spot of rockpooling, a snack, and a cheeky dip if you dare, then onto the wave-lashed Polzeath for food and drink with a view at The Atlantic or Surfside.

On the way back, stay on the South West Coast Path, except for a scenic detour up the grassy knoll of Brea Hill – where you can savour a gull’s eye view of Padstow and the surrounding coastline, and glimpse the tip of the wonky-steepled St Enodoc Church where poet John Betjeman is buried. By the time you’re back on the ferry bound for Padstow, you’ll have earned a hunk of cake at the Cherry Trees tea rooms.

Padstow to Trevone

Gorse and sea pinks hem the dramatic coastal scenery from Padstow to Trevone in spring. What better time then to step out around the sea-lashed promontory of Stepper Point, to an idyllic beach where you can dip in the sea pool, sip a tipple by the sea, or sizzle in the shoreside sauna?

Sound like your kind of spring walk? Strike out from Padstow harbour to Hawker’s Cove (cue a cream tea by the powder-white sands if you’ve already got a hunger on), and onwards to the daymark tower at Stepper Point. Don’t forget to gaze back over the Doom Bar and the Camel Estuary before pushing on west past collapsed sea caves and cliffs scattered with wildflowers, that beckon you to the sheltered sandy bay at Trevone.

Refresh in the tidal pool, play in the waves, paddle in rock pools or sizzle in the sauna – it’s up to you. You’ve most certainly earned a tipple and a tasty snack at Trevone Bay café, before hopping on the No.56 bus back to your starting point.

The Menalhyl Valley and Carnanton Woods, St Mawgan

Swap beaches and coast path for wild garlic-lined woodland, that whisks you away to an enchanting Cornish village with a burbling stream, a medieval church, and a traditional tea room.

We love Mawgan Porth for its wild, wave-lashed beach, where dog walkers bask in spring’s rays and surfers ride the swells. But if you turn your back on the beach and follow the stream inland, you’ll fast find yourself amidst the magical woodland of the Menalhyl valley, where the trail is lined with pungent wild garlic in springtime.

Follow the way-marked trail past grazing ponies and peaceful little campsites (that will be bursting in the summer months), listening for woodpeckers in sun-dappled canopies and pausing to race poo-sticks from the bridge over the stream. Once you reach the postcard-pretty village of St Mawgan, it’s up to you whether you choose the tea room or the village pub, before strolling back to the beach via the meadows of Polgreen.

Port Isaac to Port Quin

The rugged, clifftop walk from Port Isaac to Port Quin brims with springtime energy – and now is the time to tackle it before its upcoming appearance in The Salt Path film.

No stranger to the limelight, Port Isaac has already hit the screen in Doc Martin and Fishermen’s Friends, and lures foodies to Nathan Outlaw’s Michelin-starred restaurants. However, we’d suggest leaving its narrow winding lanes and picture-pretty harbour behind for a springtime ramble with sweeping views of North Cornwall’s coastline. Follow wildflower-strewn meadows where thrift and sea campion bloom against a backdrop of rolling Atlantic swells, and trace dramatic headlands spotting seals bobbing far below.

Steep terrain is well rewarded with eye-popping views, as you tick off Lobber Point, Varley Head and Pine Haven, before descending into the craggy little cove of Port Quin. More than just a pretty inlet for a pause and a picnic, it’s the perfect spot for a cooling sea dip followed by a shoreside sauna, or you can book in for a kayaking or coasteering trip if you’re up for more of an adventure.

Lanhydrock, nr Bodmin

Bluebells are abundant in Cornwall’s woodland in springtime, but nowhere displays iridescent swathes of these purple beauties like Lanhydrock.

Just half-an-hour’s drive inland from Padstow, here you can wander through vast mauve carpets of bluebells – one of the most iconic signs of spring. There’s a labyrinth of footpaths to follow through ancient woodland and shady valleys, where the sea of violet-blue thrives under the dappled canopies of this 900-acre estate.

Take in the view from the beneath the sky-scraping treetops of Beech Avenue, wander along riverside paths, or get on your mountain bike and freewheel along family-friendly trails. If you’re an anthophile (someone who loves flowers), the rhododendrons and magnolias will be coming into flower in the landscaped gardens, too.

Book a holiday cottage and step into spring in Padstow

With so many stunning spring walks on the doorstep, a holiday cottage in Padstow is the perfect place to soak up the magic of spring in Cornwall.