Around the western shore of
Lizard Point lie the sands of Kynance, and the the
high cliffs which form the outer horn of Mount's Bay.
Exposed and precipitous, they lack shelter, and run
from ***ll Head to Gunwalloe where they give way to
Loe Bar, the sands at Loe Pool which dams the estuary
of the Cober River and creates the fresh water lake
separate from the sea.
To ships coming
down the Channel before a south-westerly gale, this
six mile stretch of coast offered a dead lee shore
for which there was no escape for anyone who failed
to weather the Lizard or miscalculated a landfall in
fog.
Mullion Cove,
halfway along, was the only haven but had grave
shortcomings. There was no pier in the little harbor
until the 1870s and then it was inaccessible in bad
weather. Half a mile offshore was another hazard,
Mullion Island, which stands in the way of any ship
trying to wear off the coast and make for the cove.
Other equally dangerous rocks fringe the cliffs. To
go south east are the menacing Lizard reefs; north
west the dangers of Gunwalloe and Loe Bar. For a
sailing ship trapped under these cliffs meant certain
destruction.
(Larn and
Carter, Cornish Shipwrecks)
