At high tide the beach at Port Gaverne is a shingle which is mostly flint - unusual in North Cornwall where most beaches are a golden sand composed of slate and fragments of shell. The reason is that the flint was used as ballast for incoming ships collecting Delabole slate which was brought to the coast by horse and cart.
The road to Port Gaverne was quarried out in the early 1800s by the Delabole Slate company and known as "The Great Slate Road". Around 100 ships a year came to Port Gaverne to collect slate, each capable of carrying 50-80 tonnes. It would take thirty wagons, pulled by over a hundred horses to load a sixty ton ship. The slates were loaded by women who then packed them in straw to protect them on the voyage. The incoming ships also brought coal from Wales and limestone for the local limekiln which was used to whitewash the cottages.
Once the tide goes out there is a sandy beach. Being very sheltered, Port Gaverne is good at all states of the tide for swimming and launching kayaks, though watch you don't stray across the path of any boats launching off the beach (or coming back in).
The headland on the right of the beach is an excellent spot for fishing for mackerel and occasional pollack. Seals can often be seen out from the headland. The footpath to the headland is accessible from the beach when the tide is out, otherwise you can walk up the hill to the right of the beach along road and join the footpath from there.
Behind the beach is a pub - The Port Gaverne Hotel - which was originally the old Union Inn frequented by crews of the slate vessels. It serves real ales brewed locally at Rock and also serves great food. On the walls they have lots of photos and paintings of Port Gaverne and Port Isaac from the 1800s and early 1900s.
There were 4 large pilchard cellars built at the start of the 1800s which can still be seen at the bottom of the hill leading up to Port Isaac. In their heydey in the early 1800s it is suggested they could have processed 1000 tons of pilchards in a week.
There is very limited parking close to Port Gaverne beach (absolute maximum of 15 cars). However there is quite a big car park at top of hill on left towards Port Isaac and this is free of charge in the evenings.
Directions
Take the B3314 through Delabole and past the turning to St Teath. Carry on along the B3314 past a few farm tracks on the right until you reach a slanted crossroads. Turn right here and the lane takes you to Port Gaverne.
Walks to Port Gaverne
Port Gaverne to Port Isaac (2 miles)
The walk starts at Port Gaverne beach passing the Port Gaverne Hotel where there are a number of old pictures of Port Gaverne and Port Isaac a century ago. The walk follows the valley into woodland and climbs out through farmland to the top of the hill where there are excellent views over the valley. The route then descends into the neighbouring valley and follows it down to Port Isaac leading to the Harbour and back through the village to the cliffs overlooking Port Gaverne before descending back to the beach.
