Cot Valley is located half-a-mile south of St Just in west

Cornwall Cornwall (; kw, Kernow ) is a historic county and ceremonial county in South West England. It is recognised as one of the Celtic nations, and is the homeland of the Cornish people. Cornwall is bordered to the north and west by the Atlantic ...

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotland, Wales and North ...

. It has a very mild microclimate.Clegg, David (2005) ''Cornwall & the Isles of Scilly: the complete guide''. Leicester: Matador; p. 121 The stream which runs down the valley discharges into the

Atlantic Ocean The Atlantic Ocean is the second-largest of the world's five oceans, with an area of about . It covers approximately 20% of Earth's surface and about 29% of its water surface area. It is known to separate the " Old World" of Africa, Europe ...

Nanven Porth Nanven (; most well known as Cot Valley and occasionally known as Penanwell) is a beach in the far west of Cornwall, England, United Kingdom. It is located half-a-mile west of the town of St Just in Penwith, St Just. The beach is at the ...

. This area of Cornwall was once mined for tin (see

Mining in Cornwall Mining in Cornwall and Devon, in the southwest of England, began in the early Bronze Age, around 2150 BC. Tin, and later copper, were the most commonly extracted metals. Some tin mining continued long after the mining of other metals had beco ...

for details) as evidenced today by the ruins along the stream. There is a settlement in Cot Valley and a

Youth Hostel A hostel is a form of low-cost, short-term shared sociable lodging where guests can rent a bed, usually a bunk bed in a dormitory, with shared use of a lounge and sometimes a kitchen. Rooms can be mixed or single-sex and have private or shared ba ...

. The valley is secluded and is home to a variety of wildlife. Birdwatchers visit in autumn to see rare vagrants and migratory birds. More recently

Cornish chough The red-billed chough, Cornish chough or simply chough ( ; ''Pyrrhocorax pyrrhocorax''), is a bird in the crow family, one of only two species in the genus '' Pyrrhocorax''. Its eight subspecies breed on mountains and coastal cliffs from the w ...

s have been seen in the valley; other birds regularly seen include buzzards, tawny owls, and stonechats. From the mouth of the valley at

Porth Nanven Porth Nanven (; most well known as Cot Valley and occasionally known as Penanwell) is a beach in the far west of Cornwall, England, United Kingdom. It is located half-a-mile west of the town of St Just. The beach is at the seaward end of the ...

, seals are frequently seen and occasionally dolphins and basking sharks.

References

. Environment of Cornwall Valleys of Cornwall Tourist attractions in Cornwall {{Penwith-geo-stub