Earth and Environment Atlas

How The Planet Works
Sign In
Text size
100%
Theme
Geological Formation

The Towans

Sand Dunes and Dune Fields

The Towans are a three mile stretch of coastal sand dunes on the north coast of Cornwall, England, running northeast from the Hayle estuary to Gwithian beach. Their name comes from the Cornish word tewyn, meaning sand dune. Much of the dune system rises more than 50 meters above sea level, reaching 72 meters at Phillack Towans, and the South West Coast Path runs along it. This description is adapted from Wikipedia contributors under CC BY-SA 4.0; changes were made. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/

Facts
Classification
Protected Status
Locally or Regionally Protected 1
Connections

Caused By

Erosion, Processes

Wikidata P31 formation-type mapped to formative process Erosion via reviewed judgment map (earth atlas); source citation is this entity's own cited Wikidata item.

Source Wikidata: The Towans

In Discipline

Wikidata P31 formation-type mapped to discipline Geomorphology via reviewed judgment map (earth atlas); source citation is this entity's own cited Wikidata item.

Source Wikidata: The Towans
In the Other Atlases

Found In

Also in Geography Atlas: where this subject is found.

Source Wikidata: The Towans
Sources
1. The Towans (Wikipedia)
  • Lead section
    Towan (from Cornish: Tewyn, meaning "sand dune") is found in many placenames in Cornwall (Porthtowan for example).
  • Article text
    Much of the area falls within the Gwithian to Mexico Towans SSSI (Site of Special Scientific Interest), noted for both its geological and biological interest.
  • In Group: Coastal Dunes, Lead sentence
    However, The Towans usually refers to the three-mile (5 km) stretch of coastal dunes which extends north-east from the estuary of the River Hayle
View the Source
Wikidata: The Towans
Wikidata Q7769721, class allow-list match (w-wdresolver-0926)View the Source
Comments (0)
No comments yet. Be the first to share a thought.
Reader Challenges (0)
No disputes yet. Spotted an error or a better source? Open the first one.