On the 21st June 2022 I took the most lovely boat trip with Wavedancer St Ives.
Wavedancer is run by Mel and John who simply ooze love and passion for St Ives and Cornwall. John has lived here in St Ives all of his life and knows everything there is to know about the town and the sea. Mel is so friendly and engaging, and knows so much about the Cornish wildlife. Plus she is an excellent boat driver!
The boat trip, depending on weather and tides, takes you round the harbour, along past Porthminster Beach, Carbis Bay and towards the stunning Porthkidney Sands and Hayle Estuary. I think this is the only boat trip that takes you this way as most of the other trips take you either down to Seal Island, or across to Godrevy Lighthouse.
John talks about the wildlife, lots of history, and shows hidden coves and caves. There are stories about smugglers, mining and shipwrecks. If you love St Ives you will find this fascinating!
We also saw some amazing houses perched on the cliffs between St Ives and Carbis Bay. How the other half live!
The boat then turns back and takes you to The Island for a good look.
It then makes it's way back towards the harbour, past Porthgwidden, Bamaluz Beach and Smeaton's Pier.
Seeing Smeaton's Pier so close up from behind is really fascinating, especially seeing the difference between the old and new parts of the pier.
Wildlife On Wavedancer
On the trip we saw lots of moon jellyfish, sand eels and mackerel.
There was an amazing cormorant drying it's wings and lots of seabirds.
And right at the end we saw the shadow of a seal when we returned back to harbour. There are usually more seals about, but there had been high NE winds at the weekend which had driven the seals out to deeper water.
You can watch the video of my trip here...
How To Book A Trip On Wavedancer
The boat trip is about an hour long and leaves from various places around the harbour, depending on the tide. I picked up the boat from the steps at the very end of Smeaton's pier. The boat carries up to 8 passengers and well behaved dogs are allowed on board.
At the time of writing and recording this, adults cost £20 and children under 12 cost £15.
If you would like to book at trip on the Wavedancer, contact Mel or John on 07967902916 or WhatsApp 07772127128 or email them at wavedancerstives@gmail.com. They are also on Facebook and Instagram.
Have you read 101 Brilliant Things To Do In St Ives Cornwall?
It will give you so many ideas of things you can do on your next visit to our lovely town!
Have You Discovered Our St Ives Game?
If you like St Ives you will love playing it!
