Trebarwith Strand
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Trebarwith Strand (locally sometimes shortened to The Strand), is located on the north coast of Cornwall, 2½ miles south of Tintagel and is one of the most beautiful stretches of coastline in South West England.
The only vehicle access to the beach is via a dead-end lane running down a narrow valley from the B3263 Tintagel to Camelford road, and parking is extremely limited, particularly in high season. Drivers from Tintagel can take a shortcut through the village of Treknow, but this involves a breathtaking descent to the stream at the south end of the village, and an equally hair-raising climb up from the other side of the stream. This route is certainly not worth the short cut, which saves only a little distance, for any vehicle larger than an ordinary family car.
A far more pleasant way of reaching Trebarwith from Tintagel is to walk along the South West Coast Path which offers stunning coastal views and in addition passes some interesting boreholes and other remnants of the cliff quarry workings which were in operation in this area right up to the beginning of World War II.
Frequent strong winds off the Atlantic Ocean make for excellent surfing and the sands are ideal for children, but the state of the tide has a major impact on the beach. As the tide comes in, the sands are swiftly submerged by the incoming seas until all that is left of the beach is the rocks at the base of the cliffs. Unwary visitors can easily be cut off by the rising waters.
When the tide is at its lowest the sea recedes 300 yards and an expanse of sand in excess of ½ mile wide is uncovered, offering excellent opportunities for walking and littoral discoveries. The rockpools at the base of the cliffs create a perfect places for small fish and crabs to hide until the tide turns, and there is an abundance of small crustaceans such as periwinkles, limpets and mussels clinging in clusters to the rocks. The best way to see the various small sea creatures is to break open a periwinkle with a stone and throw it into one of the larger rock pools.
Rugged Gull Rock, about 600 yards offshore greatly enhances the picturesque setting of the beach, which as a result is frequently used as a filming location. In recent years “Saving Grace" (2000), and “Oscar and Lucinda” (1997) both had scenes filmed here. Most famously Trebarwith stood in for Shakespeare’s coast of Illyria in the 1996 production of "Twelfth Night".
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