Visit - A6 Gwennap Mining District with Devoran, Perran & Kennall Vale
A6 Gwennap Mining District with Devoran, Perran & Kennall Vale - Lannwenep, Glynn Kenyel ha Teudhla Peran
Great cycle trails through the copper kingdom
For a period in the 19th century Gwennap was described as the “richest square mile in the Old World”. Once the richest of all Cornwall’s mining districts, its fine houses, well-preserved industrial remains and dramatic, alien-looking mining landscapes combine to tell a compelling and colourful story of Cornish mining’s heyday. It is a large and varied Area of fertile countryside, historic mining villages, pretty woods, tranquil river creeks and some of the most impressive industrial landscapes to be found anywhere in the Site. Gwennap is full of contrasts.
‘Tramways thread through this Area, linking its mines with the well-preserved ports at Devoran and Portreath’
Places to visit
An historic preaching pit where John Wesley preached on 18 occasions from 1762 to 1789. Remodelled from a simple depression in the ground into today's terraced 'amphitheatre' in memory of Wesley, in 1806.
The adjoining Busveal Chapel (1836) has pictures, exhibition panels and a visitor centre.
Coast-To-Coast Trail
Redruth & Chasewater Railway Trail
The Gwennap Mining District is Area A6 of the World Heritage Site and there are lots of places to explore. Take the train to Redruth and then hop on the 40 bus just outside the station, you just need to decide where to hop off to start your adventure!
Here are some ideas:
Head to the Mining Village Regeneration Group’s Mining Village Trails website at https://cornwalltrails.net/ where there are plenty of walks to choose from around St Day, Carharrack and Chasewater. All of these villages are on the number 40 bus route linking Redruth and Truro railway stations.
Looking for a linear walk? Pick up the Redruth and Chacewater Railway Trail where it links with the Great Flat Lode Trail in Area A5 near Redruth. The trackbed of the former railway passes through the heart of Area A6 to Twelveheads where you can join the Coast to Coast trail and head down to Devoran. From here you can hop on the 36/36A bus back to Truro railway station. Check out the Mineral Tramways website for more information - https://www.cornwall.gov.uk/environment/countryside/cycle-routes-and-trails/the-mineral-tramways/
For a gentle riverside walk, the village of Devoran is a great place to explore. Take a stroll along the track of the former Redruth and Chacewater Railway to its terminus at Point Quay, once home to a smelting works and the site of an important tin and copper port. The 36/36A bus takes you to the heart of Devoran village directly from Truro railway station.
For train times - https://www.gwr.com/
For bus times - https://www.transportforcornwall.co.uk/
