Discover Brighton: Historic Roads and Moors

Brighton combines historic transport routes with concrete opportunities for planning an active day. Anyone wishing to combine a trip with culture, cycling and landscapes will find various points of interest here: Gate House, the former section of the turnpike road between Truro and Bodmin (B3275), and milestones tell of earlier connections, while the cycling course provides another focus and the moors in the wider surrounding region offer different attractions.

Access and historic transport routes

Bus route 274 is an important reference point for orientation. It runs from Bodmin to Truro College via Bodmin, Summercourt and Brighton Cross. At the Brighton Cross Roundabout on the A3058, there is also a bus stop served by eastbound services.

The history of the roads can be seen in several details in Brighton. Gate House may originally have been a tollhouse and is a Grade II listed building. The B3275 was also formerly part of the turnpike road between Truro and Bodmin. For visitors interested in architectural history and historic infrastructure, this connection offers a distinctive perspective on the development of transport routes.

Milestones and memories of the road to Newquay

The route to Newquay via Brighton Cross was one of three routes on which the Newquay Highway Board erected milestones. The milestones associated with Brighton Cross were probably installed between the founding of the Newquay Highway Board in 1835 and the construction of an adjacent line of milestones in the parish of Colan in 1852.

One individual object makes this history particularly vivid: the milestone at SW 897549 is a painted granite monolith from the 19th century, approximately one metre high and with a triangular top. These features identify the milestone and place it within the history of the transport routes.

Cycling and landscapes in the wider surrounding area

There is also a clearly described reference point for a cycling trip. The S6/Hillclimb cycling course reaches the Brighton Cross Roundabout at 5.1 miles. At the roundabout, the course takes the third exit towards St Austell. This route information helps you coordinate your personal cycling plans with the choice of a holiday apartment in Brighton and determine the focus of your trip.

In the wider regional surroundings of Brighton lies Goss Moor, a 480-hectare National Nature Reserve owned and managed by Natural England. Also in the wider regional surroundings, Goss and Tregoss Moors have a 7-mile surfaced multi-use trail that is mostly flat. This means that, alongside the historic themes, landscapes and exercise are available as independent ideas for a day out. The trail is particularly interesting for travellers who would like to include a surfaced, predominantly flat route in their plans.

Which accommodation suits your travel plans?

When looking for accommodation in Brighton, you can first decide what you want your trip to focus on. A holiday apartment suits plans for a stay centred on historic buildings, milestones and transport routes. If, on the other hand, you would prefer to spend more time cycling, the S6/Hillclimb cycling course and the information about the Brighton Cross Roundabout become more prominent. For a day focused on landscapes, Goss Moor and Goss and Tregoss Moors can be considered as themes in the wider surrounding area.

This creates not one single defined Brighton experience, but a choice of different interests: cultural history, transport history, cycling and moorland landscapes. When choosing your holiday apartment, consider which of these interests you would most often like to pursue during your stay. If you would also like to compare other places, you can include Camborne, Lanivet, Launceston, Illogan, Stratton, St Kew, St Keverne and Tregony in your further research.

For the overarching travel overview: Cornwall.