Just south of Penzance, on the western shore of Mount's Bay, lie two very different harbours. Newlyn is one of the largest fishing ports in England, a working town with a proud artistic history. A mile or two further along the coast, Mousehole is a picture-postcard village of granite cottages around a tiny harbour. They make a perfect pairing for a day out, linked by a flat coastal walk.
Getting there and parking
Newlyn is on the edge of Penzance, and Mousehole is about three miles south, along a narrow coast road. Mousehole's lanes are very narrow and not suited to cars. There is a car park at the entrance to the village, which fills quickly in summer. Buses run regularly from Penzance through Newlyn to Mousehole, and are often the easiest option.
Newlyn
Newlyn is all about the sea. Its large harbour is home to a big fleet of fishing boats, and the fish market on the quay is one of the busiest in the country, landing a wide variety of species. Early morning is when the action happens, though the market itself is a working trading floor and not generally open to the public. Around the harbour you will find fishmongers, cafés and places to buy the local catch.
Newlyn also has an important place in art history. From the 1880s, painters including Stanhope Forbes settled here and formed the Newlyn School, painting the everyday lives of local people, often outdoors. Newlyn Art Gallery, opened in 1895, still shows contemporary art today. In Penzance, the Penlee House Gallery and Museum has an important collection of Newlyn School paintings.
The walk between them
A flat path and pavement runs along the shore from Newlyn to Mousehole, past the harbour at Penlee Point. It takes around 45 minutes to an hour. Along the way you pass the old Penlee lifeboat station, where a memorial garden remembers the eight volunteer crew of the Solomon Browne, lost with all on board during a rescue attempt in December 1981. The new lifeboat station is in Newlyn harbour.
Mousehole
Mousehole (pronounced "Mowzel") is a tangle of granite cottages, narrow lanes and tiny courtyards wrapped around a small harbour. At low tide the harbour floor is a sandy beach, popular with families. The village has galleries, gift shops, cafés and pubs to explore. Look out for the plaque on the house of Dolly Pentreath, said to be one of the last native speakers of the Cornish language, who died in 1777.
In 1595, Mousehole was attacked and burned by Spanish raiders. One house, now known as the Keigwin, is said to have survived. Offshore, St Clement's Isle is a small rocky island that is often home to seals and seabirds.
Christmas in Mousehole
Mousehole is famous for its Christmas lights, which have decorated the harbour since the 1960s and draw visitors from far and wide. Lights are traditionally dimmed for an hour on 19 December in memory of the Solomon Browne crew. On 23 December, Tom Bawcock's Eve remembers a local fisherman who, legend says, saved the village from famine by braving a storm to bring in a catch. It is celebrated with a lantern procession and Stargazy pie, a pie with fish heads poking through the crust. Check the village's website for the current year's arrangements.
Good to know
- Leave the car in Penzance and catch the bus, especially in summer and during the Christmas lights.
- Mousehole's harbour beach is best at low tide.
- Penzance, with its Jubilee Pool sea-water lido, galleries and shops, is just along the coast.
- Wear comfortable shoes. The lanes in Mousehole are steep and cobbled in places.
Photos: Mousehole harbour by Wittylama, CC BY-SA 4.0; Newlyn harbour by Tom Corser, CC BY-SA 3.0; via Wikimedia Commons.
