Hensbarrow is a

natural region A natural region (landscape unit) is a basic geographic unit. Usually, it is a region which is distinguished by its common natural features of geography, geology, and climate. From the ecological point of view, the naturally occurring flora and ...

in the county of

Cornwall Cornwall (; or ) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South West England. It is also one of the Celtic nations and the homeland of the Cornish people. The county is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, ...

, England, UK, that has been recognized as

National Character Area A National Character Area (NCA) is a natural subdivision of England based on a combination of landscape, biodiversity, geodiversity and economic activity. There are 159 National Character Areas and they follow natural, rather than administrative, b ...

154 by

Natural England Natural England is a non-departmental public body in the United Kingdom sponsored by the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs. It is responsible for ensuring that England's natural environment, including its land, flora and fauna, ...

. Hensbarrow is an upland region covering an area of just under 12,000

hectare The hectare (; SI symbol: ha) is a non-SI metric unit of area equal to a square with 100-metre sides (1 hm2), that is, square metres (), and is primarily used in the measurement of land. There are 100 hectares in one square kilometre. ...

s immediately north of

St Austell Saint Austell (, ; ) is a town in Cornwall, England, United Kingdom, south of Bodmin and west of the border with Devon. At the 2021 Census in the United Kingdom, census it had a population of 20,900. History St Austell was a village centred ...

. It is bounded in the north by the

A30 road The A30 is a major road in England, running WSW from London to Land's End. The road has been a principal axis in Britain from the 17th century to early 19th century, as a major coaching route and post road. It used to provide the fastest r ...

and runs from

Retew Retew was a village near St Austell in Cornwall, England, that was mostly demolished in the early 1960s when the nearby Wheal Remfrey china clay quarry and waste heaps were expanded. The village was small, containing 24 houses and a factory, ...

and

Treviscoe Treviscoe () is a village south of St Dennis in Cornwall, England, United Kingdom. There are large Imerys china clay Kaolinite ( ; also called kaolin) is a clay mineral, with the chemical composition aluminium, Al2Silicon, Si2Oxygen, O5(hydr ...

in the west to Redmoor and

Penpillick Penpillick is a hamlet in Cornwall, England, UK. It is about two miles north of St Blazey St Blazey () is a small town in Cornwall, England, United Kingdom. St Blaise is the civil parishes in England, civil parish in which St Blazey is situa ...

in the east. It is the remnant of a much larger exposed and windswept heather moorland. Its lower, more sheltered areas are covered by irregular livestock fields enclosed by Cornish hedges of stone walls, with scattered hamlets and farmsteads.

China clay Kaolinite ( ; also called kaolin) is a clay mineral, with the chemical composition aluminium, Al2Silicon, Si2Oxygen, O5(hydroxide, OH)4. It is a layered silicate mineral, with one tetrahedron, tetrahedral sheet of silica () linked through oxygen ...

pits, sand tips and mica dams occupy much of the central area. Its highest point is

Hensbarrow Beacon Hensbarrow Beacon is a hill in Cornwall, England, United Kingdom. It is situated a mile north-west of Stenalees village at . It is the highest natural point of the Hensbarrow uplands, a natural region and national character area. The natural ...

(1025 ft).''NCA 154: Hensbarrow. Key Facts & Data.''
at www.naturalengland.gov.uk. Accessed on 2 Sep 2013

References

Further reading