Portloe
OS Grid ref:- SW937395
The small and unspoilt Cornish coastal village of Portloe, located around twelve miles from Truro is considered by many to be one of the most attractive villages on the Roseland peninsula.
The village, described by the Poet Laureate Sir John Betjeman as "One of the least spoiled and most impressive of Cornish fishing villages", lies in a superb location at the foot of a steep valley leading into beautiful Veryan Bay. It is the very essence of a Cornish fishing village, with a small fishing fleet hauled up onto the pebble beach by the harbour, while lobster pots and nets crowd its busy quayside.
Surrounded by spectacular scenery, the village retains much of its characterful old world charm, with several chocolate box Cornish Granite Cottages. It's steep sided valleys have resulted in its escaping development over the years and many buildings differ little from when they were built. It acquires its name from the Cornish Porth Logh meaning "cove pool" and grew up in the seventeenth and eighteenth centures due to pilchard fishing. The village once supported a small fleet and fishing boats still operate from Portloe today, catching lobster and crab potting.
In the village above the harbour a winding narrow street climbs up the hillside past the quaint stone cottages up to the inn. Dating from the seventeenth century,
the Portloe Lugger's Inn, at the top of the harbour slipway, was once reputed to be the haunt of Cornish smugglers and dates back to the seventeenth century. Smuggling, as elsewhere in Cornwall, has played its part in Portloe's history.
French brandy was a favoured item of the smugglers and was brought ashore and hidden in cellars. In 1824 the problem was considered so bad that the Customs ordered the erection of a watch, boathouse and slip in a vain attempt to deter the illict trade. A former landlord of the Lugger's Inn, known as Black Dunstan, was hanged for smuggling in the 1890's.
The Ship Inn is crammed with nautical bric-a-brac, and began life as a fisherman's cottage. The tiny All Saint's church occupies the site of a former lifeboat house.
Portloe was the location for the BBC comedy series Wild West, which starred Dawn French and Catherine Tate and the film "Forever England" which starred John Millls.
Caerhays Castle and the Cove of Portholland lie just to the east of Portloe.
A walk from Portloe to Porthluney Cove
Distance - around 2 miles
*Commencing at the car park above Portloe, bear left at a signpost and continue down the path marked West Portholland. Ascend the steps passing the now disused coastguard lookout.
*Continue along the path to the tongue of rock known as Caragloose Point.
*Continuing on the coastal path, descend into a ravine to the east of Treganna. Ascend again and walk round the cove ahead. The path turns abruptly left away from the coast. The right of way turns right to run down this ridge into West Portholland.
*Proceed along the short stretch of road leading into East Portholland, follow the coast path near the shop to climb to the headland beyond the village.
* The path then tends inland, towards a gate at the corner of an enclosure. Pass through the gate and follow a fieldside path to join the road into Porthluney Cove.