About Islandeering
Hi and welcome to Islandeering Islandeering is for people who want adventure in Britain’s wild blue spaces – our rivers, coast, lakes, canals and islands. You will find amazing walks, paddles and swims in the UK’s most special places, those recognised for outstanding natural beauty, incredible geology or special and abundant wildlife.
More About UsWe continuously find new islands, rivers, lochs, canals and coast to walk, SUP and swim in and meet plenty of great folks along the way. Join our community to get new routes and adventures, latest blogs and news by using the email box below. Tune in also to our Facebook and Instagram pages to see where we are going next.
Key Facts
- Location: Marazion, south Cornwall
- Size:
- High point: 62m
- Map: OS Explorer 102 Land’s End
A tiny tidal island in Mount’s Bay, accessed from Marazion Beach, topped with a medieval chapel and turreted castle that are the heart of many local myths and legends. The island, named after the patron saint of high places, is a civil parish with 30 or so islanders and is joined to Marazion by a granite causeway that is walkable at mid- to low-water. This Cornish counterpart of Mont Saint-Michel in Normandy, it is owned by the National Trust and is the family home of its previous owners, the St Aubyn’s. The island marks the end of St Michaels Way, a 20km walking route from Lelant near St Ives. It is the only footpath in Britain that is part of a designated European Cultural Route and is part of a network of pilgrim routes that lead to Santiago de Compostela in Northern Spain.
Look out for
- Amazing views of Mount’s Bay
- Great swim or paddle board around St Michael’s Mount
- Finding the giant’s heart
- Hire a paddle board or take a SUP lesson at Marazion Beach
Best things to do in Marazon and St Michael’s Mount
There are plenty of things do in Marazion and St Michael’s Mount , here are some of our favourites:
Visiting the Abbey A spectacular sight perched on a rocky hill surrounded by blue water, it is well worth the climb to see the incredible views of the whole of Mount’s Bay and explore the buildings here. The battlemented Chapel remains a peaceful place of pilgrimage with beautiful panels and a fifteenth-century rose window. The 1,300-book Library is replete with red velvet chairs, an Italian gaming table and a large fireplace and the Chevy Chase Room, perhaps the most impressive, contains a plaster frieze of hunting scenes that runs around the entire room with stained glass windows made from fragments of Dutch and Flemish painted glass. The Blue Drawing Room displays portraits and landscape paintings by Cornish painter John Opie, while the Map Room is home to a model of St Michael’s Mount made from champagne corks by Henry Lee, one of the castle’s butlers. There is an eclectic display of weaponry including muskets, musket balls, Cromwellian armour, and a Samurai suit of armour in the the Garrison Room.
Viewing the amazing gardens The southern end of the island is a unique cliff-side garden where the effects of the Gulf Stream and the radiator effect of the granite rock in the sun allows plants such as agave, aloe, agapanthus, gazania and strelitzia to grow between the bedrock and the steep stone terraces. This spectacular garden has been designed to be viewed from above but there is a garden trail that can be followed. The sides of this garden are so steep that, to keep the granite free of invasive weeds, the gardeners need to abseil fifty metres down the castle walls.
Stepping on a giant’s heart. As you climb the pathway to the castle, look out for the heart-shaped stone amongst the cobbles. Legend has it that it belonged to the giant Cormoran who, myth has it, built the impressive castle atop St Michael’s Mount but he made a nuisance of himself by wading ashore every night to take children and cattle for his supper. Jack, a local boy, crept over to the island and dug a large ‘giant-catching pit’ which Cormoran fell into and disappeared with only his stone heart left. Legend has it that, if you are quiet, you can still hear the beat of the giant’s unhappy heart.
Paddle boarding at Marazion Beach Check out our paddle boarding around St Michael’s Mount blog.
Swimming around St Michael’s Mount See the Islandeering route tab above
Paddle boarding around St Michael’s Mount and Marazion Bay
See the blog
Getting to Marazion and St Michael’s Mount
Getting to St Michael’s Mount: ½ mile south of A394 at Marazion, ample parking in Marazion opposite St Michael’s Mount. When the tide is in, you can take a trip on the St Michael’s Mount amphibious vehicle, which leaves from the Slipway car-park in Marazion. For details of boats, call 01736 710507 or visit www.stmichaelsmount.co.uk . Alternatively, on lower tides, you can walk across the cobbled St Michael’s Mount causeway (can be slippery). Always check St Michael’s Mount causeway opening times first https://stmichaelsmount.co.uk/getting-here/walking/
Marazion car park
The closest car park to Marazion Beach is Folleyfield long stay car park – charges (Post code TR17 0ET; Grid ref. SW 514 309; What3Words crawler.recorder.presenter). The causeway to St Michael’s Mount is a short walk along the beach front.
What to do on St Michaels Mount
St Michael’s Mount Islandeering route
About Islandeering
Hi and welcome to Islandeering Islandeering is for people who want adventure in Britain’s wild blue spaces – our rivers, coast, lakes, canals and islands. You will find amazing walks, paddles and swims in the UK’s most special places, those recognised for outstanding natural beauty, incredible geology or special and abundant wildlife.
More About UsWe continuously find new islands, rivers, lochs, canals and coast to walk, SUP and swim in and meet plenty of great folks along the way. Join our community to get new routes and adventures, latest blogs and news by using the email box below. Tune in also to our Facebook and Instagram pages to see where we are going next.
Key Facts
- Location: Near Marazion, Cornwall
- Terrain: Coastal waters of Mounts Bay
- Access: Any state of tide
- Map: OS Explorer 102 Land’s End
- Starting point: Marazion Beach, Grid ref. SW 515 307
St Michaels Mount is a small tidal island in the sheltered Mounts Bay linked to the town of Marazion by a man-made causeway of granite stones, passable to the walker between mid-tide and low water. Swimming around St Michael’s Mount offers a completely unique perspective of the island. You’ll swim around the outside of the harbour wall to the steep and craggy west and south coasts, where you’ll be able to see the famed gardens on the precipitous cliffs topped by the castle itself. During this stretch of the swim you will have the ultimate in peace and freedom – right next to one of the honey spots of Cornwall.
Look out for:
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- Great views of the castle and gardens
- Swimming over the causeway
- Warming up with a coffee on Marazion’s beach front
Description of Swim around St Michaels Mount
The highlight of the swim is the views of the sub-tropical gardens on the southern and eastern sides of the island. The starting point for the swim is generally Marazion beach at any state of the tide, although try to avoid the larger Spring tides. At mid to high tide it is possible to start from the causeway. The lower the tide, the shorter the swim.
Safety notes: you are out of sight from the beach when you swim around the southern end of the island; if swimming at higher tides avoid the boat route that ferries visitors to the island, also don’t swim close to the island’s harbour entrance as boats exiting the harbour won’t have time to see you; always wear a tow float/let someone know about your swim and expected time of return/take a phone/swim with a buddy. Always check the conditions before you start and predict any changing conditions during the duration of your swim.
A number of good safety considerations for the St Michael’s Mount swim are offered by Sea Swim Cornwall who also provide excellent guided swims around the island. A charity swim for prostate cancer also runs annually, for more information check (Book early) Chestnut Appeal
Getting there:
Getting to St Michael’s Mount: ½ mile south of A394 at Marazion, ample parking in Marazion opposite St Michael’s Mount. When the tide is in, you can take a trip on the St Michael’s Mount amphibious vehicle, which leaves from the Slipway car-park in Marazion. For details of boats, call 01736 710507 or visit www.stmichaelsmount.co.uk
