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Penhale Sands

Cornish coastDunes of EnglandSites of Special Scientific Interest in CornwallSites of Special Scientific Interest notified in 1953Special Areas of Conservation in Cornwall
View along the coast towards Ligger Point from Penhale Sands geograph.org.uk 780192
View along the coast towards Ligger Point from Penhale Sands geograph.org.uk 780192

Penhale Sands (Cornish: Peran Treth, meaning St Piran's sands), or Penhale Dunes, is a complex of sand dunes and a protected area for its wildlife, on the north Cornwall coast in England, UK. It is the most extensive system of sand dunes in Cornwall and is believed to be the landing site of Saint Piran. Dating from the 6th century, St Piran's Oratory is thought to be one of the oldest Christian sites in Britain. The remains were discovered in the late 18th century, and in 2014 the covering sand was removed to reveal a building more than a thousand years old, in a reasonable state of preservation. A restricted military area dating from 1939, Penhale Camp, is found on the northern part of the dunes. The area has been designated as a Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI) since 1953 and became a Special Area of Conservation (SAC) in 2004. The South West Coast Path runs through the dunes.

Excerpt from the Wikipedia article Penhale Sands (License: CC BY-SA 3.0, Authors, Images).

Geographical coordinates (GPS)

Latitude Longitude
N 50.3728 ° E -5.1353 °
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Address

Perranzabuloe



England, United Kingdom
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View along the coast towards Ligger Point from Penhale Sands geograph.org.uk 780192
View along the coast towards Ligger Point from Penhale Sands geograph.org.uk 780192
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Nearby Places

Cubert
Cubert

Cubert (Cornish: Egloskubert) is a village in Cornwall, England, United Kingdom. It is three miles (5 km) south-southwest of Newquay and is in the civil parish of Cubert (Cornish: Lannowyn).Once known as St Cubert, the village is dominated by the spire of its 14th-century church which was enlarged by the addition of a south aisle a century later. The village is named after the Welsh missionary St Cubert who, as a companion of St Carantoc, brought the Christian faith to this part of Cornwall, and to whom the church is dedicated. Unlike his companion St Carantoc—who travelled on to Brittany—St Cubert returned to Wales becoming abbot of his monastery and, according to the Welsh chronicles, dying in 775. The feast of St Cubert is celebrated on the Sunday following 4 October. Gilbert H. Doble included translations of the "Vita Carantoci" and extracts from the "Léon Breviary" in his account of St Carantoc. After reviewing all the evidence he could find he concluded that Carantoc had been the leader of a band of Welsh missionaries who came to the Crantock district to evangelize it; Cubert was among his followers, and after their work in Cornwall was done they went on to Brittany where a district around Léon has place-names and dedications related to these missionary saints. St Cubert's holy well is in a cave accessible only at low tide towards the north end of Holywell Bay.The hamlets of Tresean, Treveal, Trevemper, Treworgans and Ellenglaze are in the parish.