Devil's Bellows
Below Penally Point, the headland which forms the right wall of the natural harbour of Boscastle, is a natural blowhole. Around an hour each side of low tide, when a swell is running (which is most of the time in North Cornwall), the blow hole shoots a horizontal jet of water across Boscastle harbour and emits a thundering sound, hence it is also known as the Devil's Bellows. There is a cave all the way through Penally Point from the blowhole, following a fault in the rock. Inside is a large cavern and when the water rushes through from the outside, it compresses the air in the cavern which vents through the blowhole. Eventually the sea will erode away all the rock along this fault, forming a new island at the mouth of the harbour.
On walks
- Boscastle Headlands (3.3 mile walk)
- Boscastle to Buckator (5.4 mile walk)
- Boscastle to Rocky Valley (6.2 mile walk)
- Boscastle to Tintagel (via bus) (5.5 mile walk)
- Crackington Haven to Boscastle (via bus) (7 mile walk)
Also mentioned in walks
- Boscastle to Minster Church (2.6 mile walk)