Kennall Vale’s exploding mills among Cornwall’s most popular walks

Five gunpowder mills went up one after another in a wooded Cornish valley, in a chain reaction so violent that the roof of one was found a mile away. The river that powered them still tumbles through the same trees, and the route past it is one of the five most popular walks in Cornwall this week.

iWalk Cornwall has shared its most-walked routes for the week. The list takes in the Luxulyan Valley, the creeks between Feock and Devoran, the woods of the Lappa Valley at St Newlyn East, the River Kennall below Stithians and the cliffs at St Agnes. All five are graded easy-moderate, and four of the five are built around Cornwall’s mining and industrial past.

Every route comes from the iWalk Cornwall app, which we rate highly. This is not a paid partnership. We like it because the directions are written by hand, the GPS keeps you on the route and each walk comes with its own local history. Distances and grades are a guide rather than a promise, and the practical notes below come from iWalk Cornwall’s own route pages. You can find more walks in Cornwall in our Discover Cornwall section.

1. Luxulyan Valley circular

📷Luxulyan Valley circular

• Location: Luxulyan Valley, Mid Cornwall
• Dog-Friendly: Yes. There are no stiles on this walk and no fields with livestock on the route.
• iWalk Cornwall Route: Luxulyan Valley circular
• Distance: 3.4 miles / 5.5 km
• Difficulty: Easy-moderate
• Highlights: Lush broadleaf woodland, the Treffry Viaduct, leats and horse-drawn tramways, Fowey Consols Mine, Trevanny Dry, dragonflies and damselflies by the river

Walk Description: A circular route that follows leats and old horse-drawn tramways through the Luxulyan Valley World Heritage site. It reaches the massive Treffry Viaduct, which once carried tramways towards Newquay and delivered water to power the trams by way of a large waterwheel. Early 20th-century guidebooks called it “one of the most glorious walks in all Cornwall”. Walking shoes are enough for this one, and with no stiles and no livestock it is the easiest of the five to do with a dog.

2. Feock to Devoran

📷Feock to Devoran

• Location: Feock and Devoran, on Restronguet Creek
• Dog-Friendly: Yes, with care at the stiles. One stile has a gap that medium dogs are likely to fit through, but very large dogs might need lifting over. Less athletic dogs may need help over another.
• Pub: The Old Quay Inn is on or near the route
• iWalk Cornwall Route: Feock to Devoran
• Distance: 6.1 miles / 9.8 km
• Difficulty: Easy-moderate
• Highlights: St Feock Church and its holy well, Feock Celtic Cross, the mining port of Devoran, the ore bins on Narabo Quay, Point Quay, Restronguet Point, John Taylor’s Tramway, bird life along the creeks

Walk Description: The longest walk on the list heads from Feock to Devoran, a Victorian-engineered town that was once the largest mining port in Cornwall. It then runs along Restronguet Creek on the line of the railway that led from the ore bins and smelting houses to the mines of Redruth. iWalk Cornwall recommends waterproof boots.

3. St Newlyn East and Lappa Valley

📷St Newlyn East and Lappa Valley

• Location: St Newlyn East and the Lappa Valley
• Dog-Friendly: Reports are mixed on the stiles. One walker with a Great Dane had no problems, another had trouble with a couple of them. The route includes two streams, and you should be mindful of possible trains near the railway crossing.
• Pub: The Pheasant Inn is on or near the route
• iWalk Cornwall Route: St Newlyn East and Lappa Valley
• Distance: 3.6 miles / 5.8 km
• Difficulty: Easy-moderate
• Highlights: Broadleaf woodland with bluebells in spring, St Newlyn East Church, industrial remains recolonised by nature

Walk Description: A circular walk from St Newlyn East through the woods of the Lappa Valley, where the steam railway now takes in what was one of the most famous mines in Cornwall in Victorian times. Towards the end there is a drainage ditch that needs reasonable athleticism to jump. If you are wearing wellies you can walk straight through it. iWalk Cornwall suggests waterproof boots all year round, and wellies after prolonged wet weather.

4. Stithians to Kennall Vale

📷Stithians to Kennall Vale

• Location: Stithians and the valley of the River Kennall
• Dog-Friendly: Yes, but dogs are likely to need help over some of the stiles. Some, but not all, can be bypassed using adjacent gates.
• Pub: The Seven Stars Inn and The Stag Hunt Inn are on the route
• iWalk Cornwall Route: Stithians to Kennall Vale
• Distance: 6 miles / 9.6 km
• Difficulty: Easy-moderate
• Highlights: The gunpowder mills of Kennall Vale, Stithians Church, Tremenhere Longstone, broadleaf woodland with autumn colours and fungi, woodland and river wildlife

Walk Description: This is the one with the explosion. In Victorian times the cascading River Kennall was used to power gunpowder mills, and five of them blew up in a chain reaction that threw the roof of one a mile. The circular walk from Stithians explores the valley where it happened. Autumn colours and fungi are among the highlights iWalk Cornwall lists for the woodland, so October suits it. Walking boots are recommended, or wellies after prolonged wet weather.

5. St Agnes Beacon and Wheal Coates

📷St Agnes Beacon and Wheal Coates

• Location: St Agnes Head and St Agnes Beacon, North Coast
• Dog-Friendly: Yes. There is only one stile and it is beside a gate. One field on the route is used for cattle, and some paths run close to unfenced cliff edges.
• Café: A café is available on the route
• iWalk Cornwall Route: St Agnes Beacon and Wheal Coates
• Distance: 3.0 miles / 4.9 km
• Difficulty: Easy-moderate
• Highlights: The engine houses and mining relics of Wheal Coates, Towanroath Engine House, St Agnes Beacon, the St Agnes Head Coastguard lookout, Vugga Cave, views along the coast to Porthtowan and Portreath

Walk Description: The shortest walk of the five is a circuit between St Agnes Head and the engine houses of Wheal Coates by way of St Agnes Beacon, where the view runs through a full 360 degrees. The route page also points to the village’s art scene and its traditions, which include Bolster Day and the World Bellyboarding Championship. Walking boots are advised, or trainers in summer.

Plan your walk

Each route in the iWalk Cornwall app comes with hand-written directions and GPS guidance that warns you if you stray off the route. It works offline with no signal, which matters at the bottom of a wooded valley.

Again, this is not a paid partnership. The app is free to download from the App Store and Google Play, and you buy the individual walks you want. The Stithians to Kennall Vale route is listed at £3.49 in the app. The full set runs to more than 300 routes across the county.