Walks to Talland Bay Beach From Looe And Other Places Nearby

Talland Bay Beach was the closest dog-friendly beach to Tencreek Holiday Park. It was a nice beach, and it was quite busy with families and dog owners.

Hikers can easily switch from the Tencreek Holiday Park route to the route from the bus stop just down the road. You can shop for supplies beforehand at the campsite shop; alternatively, enjoy a coffee or beer before departing. This route is straightforward, but Komoot maps are a good backup. Komoot is my favourite hiking map app here.

Walk From The Holiday Park To Talland Bay Church

At the corner of the holiday park, a marked trail runs along the edge towards the shower blocks. This led into some very nice meadows with views towards the sea and Looe. The meadow was blooming with wildflowers and signs of wildlife. This part was the only climb on the walk to Talland Bay, but the opposite on the way back. This field was a magnificent spot for watching the sunrise early in the morning, away from the campsite.

After heading downhill, the sea comes into view. These are pretty special, particularly the rugged cliffs against the lush green countryside. After navigating a few gates on this easy-to-follow trail, it reaches the shade of a small wood, which then leads to the road. The road is narrow, quiet, and has little traffic; it descends steeply until you reach the small church.

Talland Church, Cornwall

The church was a welcome surprise on the unplanned walk. It is quaint and pretty. The views from the graveyard over the bay were breathtaking – a truly special place to catch my breath and cool down.

Talland Church is a beautiful Grade I listed building on the clifftop. They dedicated the church to St Tallanus. Saint Tallanus is a Cornish saint; he was a religious hermit in the 5th century and lived in the village.

Augustinian monks from Launceston built the church. The church’s current altar is on the site of the original Celtic altar. This altar dates to the time of Tallan. They positioned it at the junction of ley lines. The concept is quite simple. Ley lines are lines that crisscross the globe, dotted with monuments and some natural landforms. Some supernatural believers think ley lines carry rivers of supernatural energy. I’m still on the fence about this.

Talland Church to the Beach

After leaving the churchyard and soaking in enough of the beautiful views, I headed down the steep, narrow, tree-lined lane. This brought us to the quiet rocky beach and car park. The car park had a few campervans parked up here, and there was a bit of life at the beach.

Heading towards the main beach, the road was busy with people looking for parking and tourists walking to and from the beach. The first eatery on the walk was the Smuggler’s Rest. Unfortunately, it was closed by the time we passed.

Next, we passed the useful public toilets. They were well maintained; next stop: the beach.

Talland Bay Beach

The beach was busy the day I visited, mainly with families and dog owners. They advertised it as dog-friendly on a few sites, so we felt confident visiting. The beach is mainly shale and pebbles and rough underfoot; I regretted not packing beach shoes in the daypack.

I enjoyed a paddle with the dog and sat and admired the beach. We didn’t plan to hang around for long, as I planned to reach Looe along the coast. After getting familiar with the area, we explored nearby coves on the South-West Coast Path. My preferred beach nearby is Lekerock Cove. People were paddling, swimming and kayaking in that direction from Talland Bay. So I assume they were heading to this beach, or maybe just enjoying the calm, cooling sea.

Beach Cafe

I needed lunch before departing on the long walk to Looe. So we headed towards the beachside cafe at the top of the beach. The cafe’s inside seating was closed because of social distancing measures. However, plenty of beer garden benches sat outside, along with some beach huts with tables.

To keep the dog cool, I gravitated to the beach huts for some shade for both of us. They nicely decorated the beach huts, and I was impressed. Out popped the solar-powered power bank to charge the phone. I had gone into crazy photo mode at the church and expected to be taking loads while walking.

My standout menu item was the fresh local crab rolls made with 100% white crab meat. This was delicious, and I thoroughly enjoyed the first crab meal of this trip.

The cafe has an alcohol licence, so it has some beer on the menu. As local beer is usually the rule for me, Proper Job was the tipple of the meal. The Proper Job by St Austell’s Brewery was a suitable match for the crab’s delicate flavours.

Walk to Looe on The South-West Coast Path

There is lots of nice scenery on the walk from Talland Bay to Looe in Cornwall. The walk follows the South West Coast Path, a long-distance route that runs along the coastline.

Overall, the hike is very interesting, with some fantastic views and a bit of a challenge for an out-of-shape walker.

The South West Coast Path is England’s longest waymarked long-distance footpath and a national trail. This trail stretches for 630 miles, running from Minehead in Somerset. The walking route follows the coast of Devon and Cornwall, ending at Poole Harbour in Dorset.

A fantastic route that walkers can easily do in small sections or over multiple weeks. The sections of the trail I have explored have all been stunning in their own way. This hike took me a few hours with the dog, while I enjoyed the splendid Cornwall sea views. It was a warm day, so I took it easy to keep the dog cool with shade breaks and also kept him hydrated.

Leaving Talland Bay

Leaving the cafe, I followed the road past the public toilets toward the small car park. They’d clearly marked the path here, so we headed off-road to climb the big hill, passing the church on the left. The views of the bay and distant coastline were fantastic here. The wildflower-rich terrain was pretty special too.

The hike from here was a variety of ascents and descents along the coastal path. This section had minimal shade, but I did come across some shaded areas. The dog’s water bowl comes out to ensure hydration. The views along this section here are pretty, mainly rugged coast with waves crashing against it.

Portnadler Bay

The path turns as you get above Portnadler Bay when you reach some big rocks on a small peninsula. From here, Looe Island becomes visible; you can see the tiny boats heading out for tours. The island was an excellent guide to the eventual destination. As it grew on the horizon, we were getting closer to Looe.

The path took us downhill through a fern-lined track, then up steep ascents with man-made steps to make it easier. Eventually, heading along the top of Portnadler Bay, you could see the pastures in the distance of St Michael’s Chapel of Lammana.

Portnadler Bay below had some bathers visible as you approached the most inland part of the bay. The entrance to this was much further along, but it was nice to see the comings and goings on the more remote beach. The bracken-lined path here continued until it hit a gate leading to a steep climb. This climb was through a farm field that a flock of sheep called home. This meant keeping the dog close so as not to alarm the livestock.

Lammana Priory

The climb turned into a descent into a small valley with a stream and the small narrow path to Portnadler Bay. This section continued until reaching the gate, marking the start of Hannafore.

This Welcome to Hannafore sign included information about St Michael’s Chapel of Lammana and the Medieval Priory. This is home to the ruins of the medieval Lammana Priory. The walking here was much easier and not so steep, a welcome change through some pleasant meadows.

Hannafore

Civilisation was the next port of call, with the island getting bigger and the boats in the sea bigger. Exiting the meadow, the next section is a road walk on Marine Drive towards the HM Coastguard Station and the first touristy refreshment shops. The HM Coastguard Station was a great place for shade, refreshments, and a potty break for all. This overlooked Hannafore Beach and a jetty that went out into the sea. This was popular with paddlers coming to get their feet wet.

The End of the Hike to Looe

The roadside path here was popular with people with camper vans and people with deckchairs enjoying the view. The roadside path eventually reached the Looe Estuary, with fantastic views of Looe.

This section had narrow walkways alongside the slightly busy road. This was not too enjoyable with a dog, to be honest. Overlooking the river were some turrets, which seemed like a great spot for photos and selfies. The path then left the road to become a riverside walk with statues and a seawall.

This walkway led to Looe, right next to the elusive Three Sardines Restaurant and then the passenger ferry across the river. Food was much needed after the adventure, and a beer to wash things down. It was late, so I popped into the local shops and bought barbecue food and caught a taxi up the hill to return to base at Tencreek Holiday Park.

Is Talland Bay Beach Worth Visiting?

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The beach is rather pleasant for a paddle or a swim, and well worth visiting. For us, the chief attraction was that Talland Bay beach was dog friendly, so Henry could have a paddle. The coast walks to and from the bay were sublime, and it’s a wonderful part of Cornwall. I’d imagine the village is a wonderful place for a relaxing or hiking holiday. You can find nearby holiday accommodation on the Booking.com website.