Photos

Padstow was once an important trading port on this part of the coast. At one time the trade was chiefly with Canada for timber, and later it became a fishing port. Today tourism has, like in so many places, supplanted the local trades, though Padstow still retains a fishing fleet.
The River Camel forms a natural harbour which is unique on the north coast, providing a `safe' anchorage for shipping. However, at the mouth of the estuary is The Doom Bar--a sand bank--on which at least 300 ships are known to have foundered in the 150 years leading to 1900! A total of three lifeboats have been lost on the Bar.