St Ives Harbour - Cornwall, UK

Low tide in St Ives harbour reveals the full arc of golden sand that sits at the heart of one of Cornwall's most visited fishing towns. Boats rest on the harbour floor at low water, the cobbled slipway leads down from the quayside, and the whitewashed and slate-roofed town climbs the hillside behind in every direction.

St Ives harbour has been a working fishing port since medieval times and still operates as one today, though tourism now defines much of its economy. The town is also known for its art scene, home to the Tate St Ives gallery and a concentration of independent studios and galleries that has made it one of the most significant artistic communities in Britain since the mid-twentieth century.

The tidal range here is dramatic, and the harbour looks completely different depending on when you tune in. At high water the boats float and the sand disappears; at low tide the full beach is exposed and dog walkers and paddlers spread across it.

Did You Know? St Ives was home to one of the most significant art colonies in twentieth century Britain, attracting sculptors, painters, and potters from the 1920s onwards including Barbara Hepworth, Ben Nicholson, and Naum Gabo. Hepworth's studio in the town has been preserved exactly as she left it and remains one of the most visited artist studios in the country.

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