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Kynance Cove
Kynance Cove lies about two miles along the South West Coast Path from Lizard Point. The cove is well known for its remarkable rock formations Specially Serpentinite, which creates dramatic and visually striking coastal cliffs.
The Rocks are mainly serpentinite, found alongside dark grey igneous rocks such as gabbro and banded metamorphic rocks known as amphibolite along the coast of the Lizard Peninsula, extending from Mullion to Porthallow. Together, these distinctive formations are referred to as the Lizard Complex, a geological assemblage that has fascinated scientists for centuries and provides important evidence of an ancient oceanic environment.
In most parts of Cornwall, the geology is dominated by dark, folded slates and light-grey granites. The cliffs at Kynance Cove, however, are quite unusual. They are composed of distinctive dark-green and reddish rocks that have been smoothed and polished by thousands of years of powerful wave action, giving them a glossy surface that resembles snakeskin.
Kynance Cove and the surrounding coastline are owned and managed by the National Trust. The area forms part of the West Lizard Site of Special Scientific Interest and lies within the Cornwall Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty.
Geology
Around 375 million years ago, molten rock that would eventually form the peninsula lay nearly 10 km beneath the Earth’s surface. When two plates collide, and one plate gets subducted, it is subjected to intense heat and pressure. One of these rocks, peridotite, which is rich in magnesium and iron, was transformed into serpentinite as it rose upward from the Mohorovičić Discontinuity (Moho)—the boundary between the Earth’s crust and mantle.
Eventually, this rock reached the Earth’s crust at a location about 30° south of the equator, forming part of a mid-ocean ridge within the Rheic Ocean. Over the following 80 million years, the Rheic Ocean gradually closed, and the rock mass slowly moved northward. It crossed the equator roughly 250 million years ago, passed the Tropic of Cancer less than 100 million years ago, and finally arrived at about 50° north latitude around the beginning of the last Ice Age.
At Kynance Cove, there are two main varieties of serpentine rock: bastite and tremolite. The rocks found around the car park, the southern cliffs, and the path leading to the cove consist mainly of bastite serpentine, the most common type on the Lizard. This rock is coarse-grained and contains large, shiny bastite crystals that give it a distinctive speckled appearance. In contrast, the small islands, rock stacks within the cove, and the valley are composed of tremolite serpentine, which is finer-grained and shows clear banding. Tremolite differs from bastite because it forms under higher pressures within the Earth’s crust.
Also read- Geotourism And Modern Geotechniques
Kynance Cove is considered an important geological site because it exposes these two types of ophiolitic serpentinite, along with pods of granite and gneiss embedded within the serpentine rocks. Owing to its geological significance, the area has been designated as a **Geological Conservation Review site.
How To Reach Kynance Cove
Kynance Cove on the Lizard Peninsula is most easily reached by car via the A3083 road. Follow the signs toward Lizard and then Kynance Cove until you reach the National Trust car park near the cliffs. From there, visitors must take a steep footpath that descends to the beach, which typically takes about 10–15 minutes. The car park often fills up quickly during summer, so arriving before 10 AM is recommended.
