The rapids after rain
In autumn and winter the Fowey swells and the gentle chain of cascades turns into a roaring torrent between the granite boulders.
Director General of the Ordnance Survey, UK — Public domain · Director General of the Ordnance Survey, UK — Public domain · BenHawkinsPhotography — CC BY-SA 4.0 · Nilfanion — CC BY-SA 3.0
Do not arrive at Golitha picturing a curtain of water plunging from a height; there is none. What you get is the River Fowey losing around ninety metres of altitude down a narrow gorge on the southern edge of Bodmin Moor, in a chain of small cascades tumbling between moss-furred granite boulders under the ancient oak and ash of Draynes Wood. The National Nature Reserve is tiny, about eighteen hectares, but it is one of the richest valleys in Cornwall for bryophytes, with more than 120 species of moss and liverwort recorded and 48 lichens alongside them; otters are often seen at the falls themselves and three species of bat have been logged in the wood. The mood is enchanted forest rather than mighty waterfall, which is both the charm and the letdown, depending on what you came for. Entry is free, the site never closes and nothing needs booking. From the Draynes Bridge car park, looked after by Inkie's Smokehouse, the barbecue place beside the entrance, and asking only for a voluntary contribution through the RingGo app or a cash box, a flat, well-surfaced path follows the river for roughly 600 metres to the viewing area at the main cascades, about a mile there and back, with benches along the way. This stretch works for pushchairs and older relatives. Beyond it the trails turn rocky and rough, threaded with tree roots and slippery stones, and suit only the sure-footed; children love them but need watching, since the current is quick and the pools are too shallow to swim in. The falls are at their best after heavy rain, which means autumn and winter, when the Fowey swells and the rapids genuinely roar; in a dry summer the water can look thin between the rocks, and the walk becomes a shaded stroll rather than a spectacle. Natural England asks visitors to take extra care after heavy rainfall and in winter storms, when the river is high. In April and May bluebells carpet the woodland floor, which is a lovely season in its own right. On summer weekend afternoons the small car park fills, so come in the morning, and bring footwear that can take mud at any time of year. There are toilets at the car park, and phone signal is patchy in the valley. This is a short outing rather than a day out, an hour or two at most, and it is not worth a detour on its own. It sits around fifteen minutes' drive north-west of Liskeard along narrow country lanes off the A38, about twenty-five minutes from Bodmin and forty-five from Plymouth. The smart plan is to pair it with the Hurlers stone circles and the Cheesewring rock stack near Minions village up on the moor, ten minutes away by car, for a rounded half day of woodland and open moorland. Buses reach only St Cleer, a couple of miles short of the valley, so a car is the sensible way in.
In autumn and winter the Fowey swells and the gentle chain of cascades turns into a roaring torrent between the granite boulders.
More than 120 mosses and liverworts and 48 lichens coat the rocks and oak trunks, so the valley stays green even in deep winter.
Six hundred metres of surfaced riverside path with benches, fine for pushchairs; the rough going starts only beyond the viewing area.
Draynes Bridge, near St Cleer, Liskeard PL14 6RY
The photos oversell it a little; these are pretty cascades in a wood, not a big waterfall, and in a dry summer they can disappoint anyone who came for the water. Go after rain, or fold it into a half day with the Hurlers and the Cheesewring at Minions ten minutes away, rather than as a destination on its own.
Yes, as far as the main viewing area: the path from the car park is flat and surfaced for about 600 metres. Beyond that the trails turn rocky and slippery, so stop at the viewing area or turn back there.