Explore the Isles of Scilly with a Cicerone guidebook

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Walk 5

The Gugh

Distance: (4km) 21⁄2 miles
Start: The Quay on St Agnes, 884086

Sometimes you can walk over to The Gugh, more often simply referred to as Gugh, and sometimes you can’t. It all depends on the state of the tides. A high tide covers a sand and shingle bar that links Gugh with St Agnes, and the water in Porth Conger and The Cove merges to become a single channel. Although The Bar is out of water for more time than it spends underwater, that is no consolation if you arrive just as it sinks beneath the waves. Tide tables are available from the Tourist Information Centre in Hugh Town. Gugh is the smallest of the inhabited Isles of Scilly, having only two households. It is a rugged little island, with so few people walking its paths that they are quite narrow in places. A circuit around the island takes only an hour or so, and if The Bar is clear then it is easy to combine a quick spin around Gugh with a walk around the entire coastline of St Agnes.

There are no direct ferry services to The Gugh, so this walk has to start at The Quay on St Agnes. Follow the concrete road inland past a toilet block, then pass the Turk’s Head pub. Watch for a track leading downhill on the left, leading onto the shingle of The Bar and across to Gugh, but also watch the tide and be very wary if it is advancing while you are on the island. The two houses on the island are seen very clearly as they both face The Bar. Note the curious shape of their roofs, which are intended to shed powerful gales in such an exposed location. (From 15 April to 20 August, there is no access to the north-east shore of Gugh to avoid disturbing breeding birds.)

When setting foot on Gugh, turn left to walk clockwise around the island, taking in the northern end first. Either scramble on the rocks at the end of the point, or use a grassy path a short way inland to omit them. Kittern Rock is just offshore and looks impressive, and a quite different view of it is seen from the ferry to and from St Agnes. Follow a path over the heathery crest of the island, called Kittern Hill, 4 where the most extensive views are available from the island. Descend gently to a prominent standing stone known as the Old Man of Gugh. This is a Bronze Age ritual monument with a distinct lean to one side. Away to the west is a burial chamber known as Obadiah’s Barrow, whose excavation yielded a crouching skeleton and a dozen cremation urns.

On reaching the rugged Dropnose Porth there are two options. One is to cut inland across the island and return directly to The Bar. The other is to continue around the coast and pass Dropnose Point. Once past Dropnose Point, follow a path across a grassy, bouldery slope to pass Hoe Point. After turning the point, walk alongside The Cove, with a view back to St Agnes.

Reach The Bar and cross over, then either turn right to return to the Turk’s Head and The Quay, or turn left to explore other parts of St Agnes. To continue walking all the way round the coastline of St Agnes, refer to Walk 6.

Facilities on Gugh

There are no facilities on Gugh – no ferry, no toilets, no accommodation, and no shops, food or drink. Bear this in mind if in danger of being stranded by a rising tide!