Lizard Boats

Old Polpeor Lifeboat Station, Britain’s most Southerly point

I’ve visited this desolate (and derelict looking) place since I was a kid. My parents loved the Lizard peninsula and we would often go there at weekends. This is the Polpeor lifeboat station, built in 1914 and finally closed in 1961 so I’ve never been fortunate enough to have witnessed it being used to house an actual lifeboat.

What I have witnessed over the last 4 decades is it’s use by local fishermen to house their kit but I noticed this last visit a few weeks ago that the ramp has now completely broken up and it’s really only the shed itself that remains standing.

The curved boat ramp in the foreground is still used regularly by small local fishing boats as it keeps them free of the worst of the heavy seas and weather.

Nevertheless you can’t visit this place without becoming vividly aware of it’s important maritime history and the treacherous coastline in which it nestles. Even on the bleakest days I am drawn to this location and it transfers me instantly back to my Cornish childhood.

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Contained in galleries: Cornwall

Old Polpeor Lifeboat Station, Britain’s most Southerly point<br />
<br />
I’ve visited this desolate (and derelict looking) place since I was a kid. My parents loved the Lizard peninsula and we would often go there at weekends. This is the Polpeor lifeboat station, built in 1914 and finally closed in 1961 so I’ve never been fortunate enough to have witnessed it being used to house an actual lifeboat.<br />
<br />
What I have witnessed over the last 4 decades is it’s use by local fishermen to house their kit but I noticed this last visit a few weeks ago that the ramp has now completely broken up and it’s really only the shed itself that remains standing.<br />
<br />
The curved boat ramp in the foreground is still used regularly by small local fishing boats as it keeps them free of the worst of the heavy seas and weather.<br />
<br />
Nevertheless you can’t visit this place without becoming vividly aware of it’s important maritime history and the treacherous coastline in which it nestles. Even on the bleakest days I am drawn to this location and it transfers me instantly back to my Cornish childhood.