Saint Cleer brings together a holy well and medieval crosses with footpaths through a granite landscape. In the parish, rugged granite outcrops and bodies of water such as Siblyback Lake and Golitha Falls on the River Fowey shape the scenery. Further stone monuments and paths can be found nearby. This gives you a choice of different ways to shape your stay: around history and inscriptions, a walk, or the waterside landscape.
Well, Cross and Inscription
St Cleer's Well is a holy well dating from the late 15th century and was restored in 1864. The well and its associated wayside cross probably date from the 15th century; they were likely created at the same time. The churchyard cross at St Cleer is a medieval wheel-headed cross with four openings. Its elaborately carved head probably dates from the 10th century. A fragment of this cross-head was discovered in 1904 during restoration work on the church and was re-erected on a modern shaft in 1934. These dates therefore tell the story of several stages: the cross-head's presumed date, its rediscovery and its later re-erection.
King Doniert's Stone also invites you to consider its form and history together. The two fragments associated with the stone are the only surviving examples of 9th-century stone crosses in Cornwall. The stone bears interlace decoration and the inscription “Doniert Rogavit pro anima”. It can be viewed from a roadside lay-by; parking is available immediately beside the site. A visit here therefore focuses on the fragments and their design, while the well and crosses at Saint Cleer offer other points of interest in local history.
Footpaths and Waterside Landscapes
There are 32 footpaths in and around Saint Cleer. Three of the marked routes can be distinguished by their endpoints: FP17 connects Higher Tremar Coombe with St Cleer Well Lane, FP20 runs between Tremar Coombe and Trethevy Quoit, and FP14 connects King Doniert's Stone with Saint Cleer. This information helps you navigate between the places mentioned, without specifying a walking time or distance for the routes.
Nearby, Siblyback Lake offers a different way to plan a walk: there is a 5-kilometre circular route suitable for pushchairs, wheelchairs and bicycles. A café, car park, toilets, showers and a children's playground are also located near the lake. If you'd like to combine the walk with a visit to the lake, you can find information both about the route and the facilities available.
The parish landscape includes bodies of water and granite outcrops. At Golitha Falls, nearby, the River Fowey tumbles down from the moorland over a series of steps. The river offers a different focal point from the stone monuments: here the course of the river shapes the landscape, while the crosses and monuments draw attention above all to their carving, inscriptions and dates.
More Historic Places Nearby
The Hurlers consist of three stone circles arranged in a row, dating from the late Neolithic or early Bronze Age. This grouping is unique in England. Minions has rows of former miners' cottages and chapels dating from the Caradon mining boom. Together, the two sites represent different chapters in history: prehistoric stone circles on the one hand, and traces of the former mining industry on the other.
From Minions, The Cheesewring can be reached by well-trodden paths heading north. This offers another way to combine places in the area with a walk. Treverbyn Bridge, meanwhile, draws attention to historic structures and transport routes: the three-arched bridge dates from the early Middle Ages and was extensively rebuilt around 1412. It forms part of a historic route between the historic towns of Bodmin and Liskeard.
Discover more destinations: Trelash, Porthallow, Penzance, Pentewan, Saint Neot, Saint Merryn, Colan, Praze-an-Beeble
For the wider travel guide: Cornwall.
