The St Anthony Head Circular Walk, Roseland

If we could only walk one loop in this part of Cornwall, it would be this one. St Anthony Head sits at the very tip of the Roseland, guarding the mouth of the Fal, and a circuit of the headland packs in open sea, a lighthouse, quiet coves, a river creek and a church hidden in the trees. It is under four miles, and some of the best views in south Cornwall come one after another.

It is also properly remote. Even in the middle of summer you will often have the path to yourself.

At a glance

• Distance: 3.75 miles (6 km), circular
• Climbing: about 525 ft in total, in short ups and downs
• Time: 2 hours walking, 2.5 hours with stops
• Start: the National Trust car park at St Anthony Head (pay and display, free for members)
• Direction: anticlockwise, for the best of the views
• Terrain: coast path and field paths, muddy in places after rain; some steps
• From Trewena: about 45 minutes by car

Getting there

By car. St Anthony Head is only just across the Fal from Trewena as the crow flies, but by road it is about 45 minutes: over the King Harry Ferry and all the way down the Roseland to the end of the road. It is worth making a day of it.

By boat, until the end of October. Take the passenger ferry from Falmouth to St Mawes, then the small Place ferry across the Percuil River. It lands at Place, which sits on the loop itself, so you can walk the circuit from there and catch the ferry back. The Place ferry runs from April to October and may run on request in quieter periods, so check before you go.

The walk

Round the headland. From the car park, head for the tip of the headland. The lighthouse sits below you and the view opens straight across the mouth of the Fal to Pendennis and Falmouth. The wartime gun emplacements and lookouts along here are a reminder of how important this entrance to the harbour was.

Along the open coast. Walking anticlockwise, the path turns along the seaward side of the Roseland, with the sea on one side and farmland on the other. Steep paths drop to quiet coves like Porthbeor, one of the least-visited beaches on this coast.

To the Percuil River and the church. At the top of the loop the path turns inland towards Bohortha and down to the river at Place. Tucked into the trees here is St Anthony-in-Roseland, a small, very old church that feels a long way from anywhere.

Back along the Fal. This is the part to save yourself for. Rounding the Percuil River into the Fal, you look across the water to Pendennis Castle, then on towards St Anthony Head and the lighthouse. In our view it is one of the best stretches of coast in Cornwall, and walking anticlockwise means it is the last thing you see.

Why it's worth it in autumn

It is all about the light. In autumn it comes in low and gold across the water, every inch of the headland glows with it, and the summer visitors have long gone. Take a flask: there is no cafe on the loop.

Combine it with

• St Mawes: if you came by boat, lunch in St Mawes before the ferry home. See a day trip to St Mawes.
• The Roseland beaches: Porthcurnick and Portscatho are a short drive back up the peninsula.

Plan your walk

• Autumn walks near Falmouth
• The Trelissick woodland walk, on the way over the King Harry Ferry
• The best South West Coast Path walks in Cornwall
• Cornwall in autumn for couples