You’ve heard of campsites with a football pitch on offer, but how about the other way round? Tucked in the far southwestern corner of Cornwall, Mousehole Camping offers exactly that – a great non-league football club that has a handy campsite adjacent to their top quality pitch.
Trungle Parc is home to Mousehole AFC of the Western Premier League. The essential facilities have long been in place - hot showers, toilets and sinks inside the main changing rooms with a well drained flat field providing the ideal conditions for camping. They have 34 good sized pitches, some hardstanding with electric, some grass with electric, some just grass. If you’re a fan of that slightly makeshift, pop-up campsite feel then you can’t go far wrong here.
The main camping season runs from mid-April to mid-September but self-contained campervans and smaller motorhomes (max 7m) can book a hardstanding pitch all year round. And there might even be a free game to watch - the season generally begins in mid-July and ends in early May.
The campsite is well laid out and the facilities are very well maintained but a real benefit of the campsite is it’s wonderful location near Mousehole Harbour and just 10 miles from Land’s End.
A stroll away from the campsite entrance, the tiny village of Paul has all the endearing characteristics you’d expect of a village with the same name as your mate from down the road. Paul’s local, the Kings Arms, is a cosy, old stone haunt, with a couple of picnic benches outside, looking across to the parish church opposite. The centre of the village’s history, this towered old building is said to have been founded in the year 409 by the Welsh saint, Paul Aurelian... though a further two Saint Paul’s are also disputably it’s rightful honouree. Today’s structure actually dates to the year 1600, after the invitingly isolated Penwith Peninsula was sacked and burned by marauding Spaniards five years earlier.
The campsite or, more accurately, the football club, takes its name from the next village over, a tiny cluster of houses encircling a beautiful old harbour. It was here that the Spanish first landed, with a plaque outside the only surviving building that reads "Squire Jenkyn Keigwin was killed here 23 July 1595 defending this house against the Spaniards". Today the picture-perfect spot, speckled with colourful dinghies, boasts a sandy crescent beach when the tide is out and excellent crabbing opportunities from the far harbour walls. It’s your first discovery of many along this stretch of heritage coastline; a peninsula on the very edge of the country with all the drama, history and intrigue that you could ask for.
Walk the 15 minutes to picture perfect Mousehole, an attractive fishing village centred around its beautiful old harbour. Wander the cobbled streets visiting the art galleries and independent shops or catch a bus from there to Penzance, the most well known spot on the Penwith Peninsula and just 3 miles from the campsite. St Michael's Mount (01736 710265) is then just a 20-minute walk along the seafront and across the beach – you can walk the causeway at low tide or take the boat when it's high. Elsewhere, you can't come this far and not go all the way out to Land's End, the UK's most south westerly point. Just a couple of miles to its east Porthcurno Beach is extremely popular, though its surprising treat is actually the overlooking Telegraph Museum (01736 810966), marking what was once the world’s biggest submarine telegraph station. Step inside to find family quiz trails, secret WWII tunnels and interactive exhibits. The adjacent Minack Theatre (01736 810181) is also a must-see. Take a blanket and picnic and watch a play at the ocean’s edge.
Just 500 metres away, the tiny village of Paul has a great local, The Kings Arms (01736 731224), serving hearty pub meals and a wide range of beers. We are a short downhill stroll to the village of Mousehole with it's amazing harbour and more options when it comes to pubs and restaurants.
The main town of Penzance is less than 10 minutes drive away with more wide-spread amenities, such as major supermarkets (Tesco, Lidl, Sainsburys and Morrisons), fast food outlets and a great range of take aways and restaurants.
Other useful amenities in Penzance include a 24hr urgent care Hospital, numerous doctors and chemists, a main line train station, regular buses and taxis, a leisure centre, a cinema and a unique ferry service which will take you to the beautiful Isles of Scilly.
