Gribben Head is a promontory

Promontory

Promontory may refer to:*Promontory, a prominent mass of land which overlooks lower lying land or a body of water*Promontory, Utah, the location where the United States first Transcontinental Railroad was completed...

 on the south coast of Cornwall

Cornwall

Cornwall is a unitary authority and ceremonial county of England, within the United Kingdom. It is bordered to the north and west by the Celtic Sea, to the south by the English Channel, and to the east by the county of Devon, over the River Tamar. Cornwall has a population of , and covers an area of...

, United Kingdom. It separates St Austell Bay

St Austell Bay

St Austell Bay is a bay on Cornwall's south coast which is bounded to the east by Gribbin Head and to the west by Black Head.Since 1 April 2009 it has also been the name of a civil parish, one of four new parishes created on for the St Austell area. It lies southeast of the town of St Austell and...

 from the estuary of the River Fowey

River Fowey

The River Fowey is a river in Cornwall, United Kingdom.It rises about north-west of Brown Willy on Bodmin Moor, passes Lanhydrock House, Restormel Castle and Lostwithiel, then broadens at Milltown before joining the English Channel at Fowey. It is only navigable by larger craft for the last ....

 and is marked by a large tower used to aid navigation of ships approaching the local harbours. The nearest town is Fowey

Fowey

Fowey is a small town, civil parish and cargo port at the mouth of the River Fowey in south Cornwall, United Kingdom. According to the 2001 census it had a population of 2,273.-Early history:...

.

Location

Gribben Head is the most southerly part of the parish of Fowey

Fowey

Fowey is a small town, civil parish and cargo port at the mouth of the River Fowey in south Cornwall, United Kingdom. According to the 2001 census it had a population of 2,273.-Early history:...

. To the north, and facing west across St Austell Bay is the small village of Polkerris

Polkerris

Polkerris is a small village on the south coast of Cornwall, United Kingdom. It forms part of the civil parish of Fowey.The village was formerly part of the Rashleigh estate which is commemorated in the name of the pub, 'Rashleigh Inn'...

, beyond which is the harbour at Par

Par, Cornwall

Par is a town and fishing port with a harbour on the south coast of Cornwall, England, United Kingdom. The town is situated in the civil parish of Tywardreath and Par and is approximately east of St Austell. Par has a population of around 1,400.....

. To the east is Polridmouth cove and the Fowey estuary, where the town of Fowey itself is situated. Inland, to the north, is the Menabilly

Menabilly

Menabilly is an Elizabethan house on the south coast of Cornwall, England, United Kingdom, on the Rashleigh Estate, seat of the Rashleigh family. Menabilly is situated on the Gribben peninsula about west of Fowey...

 estate, built for the Rashleigh family but later home to author Daphne du Maurier

Daphne du Maurier

Dame Daphne du Maurier, Lady Browning DBE was a British author and playwright.Many of her works have been adapted into films, including the novels Rebecca and Jamaica Inn and the short stories "The Birds" and "Don't Look Now". The first three were directed by Alfred Hitchcock.Her elder sister was...

.

The 75 metres (246.1 ft) high promontory forms a part of the South Coast (Eastern) section of the Cornwall Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty

Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty

An Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty is an area of countryside considered to have significant landscape value in England, Wales or Northern Ireland, that has been specially designated by the Countryside Agency on behalf of the United Kingdom government; the Countryside Council for Wales on...

. The South West Coast Path

South West Coast Path

The South West Coast Path is Britain's longest waymarked long-distance footpath and a National Trail. It stretches for , running from Minehead in Somerset, along the coasts of Devon and Cornwall, to Poole Harbour in Dorset. Since it rises and falls with every river mouth, it is also one of the more...

 passes around Gribben Head on its way from Minehead

Minehead

Minehead is a coastal town and civil parish in Somerset, England. It lies on the south bank of the Bristol Channel, north-west of the county town of Taunton, from the border with the county of Devon and in proximity of the Exmoor National Park...

 in Somerset to Poole

Poole

Poole is a large coastal town and seaport in the county of Dorset, on the south coast of England. The town is east of Dorchester, and Bournemouth adjoins Poole to the east. The Borough of Poole was made a unitary authority in 1997, gaining administrative independence from Dorset County Council...

 in Dorset.

Gribben Tower

The 84 feet (25.6 m) high square beacon tower was erected by Trinity House

Trinity House

The Corporation of Trinity House of Deptford Strond is the official General Lighthouse Authority for England, Wales and other British territorial waters...

 in 1832 to distinguish the Gribben from Dodman Point

Dodman Point

Dodman Point is a high headland near Mevagissey, Cornwall. It was once an Iron Age promontory fort. At its seaward end is a large granite cross, erected to help protect shipping from this headland...

 and St Anthony’s Head, and thus make navigation into Fowey and the harbours of St Austell Bay safer. It was never lighted, but is painted in broad red and white bands as a daymark

Daymark

A daymark or a day marker is a structure such as a tower constructed on land as an aid to navigation by sailors. While similar in concept to a lighthouse, a daymark does not have a light and so is usually only visible during daylight hours...

.