Sweat and Heritage: Interval Training on The Great Flat Lode

Not one to shy away from a challening training session, I chose to take on The Great Flat Lode for an intense run.

About The Great Flat Lode

The Great Flat Lode is in Redruth, in the heart of Cornwall’s tin mining community. It includes Carn Brea, a rocky, hilly neolithic stone structure, or settlement, and offers views of rural Cornish countryside and inland towns, Redruth and Camborne.

The strange name comes from its connection with Cornish mining and how minerals, in this case tin, was found in lodes. Apparently, the tin discovered here was flat and stretched longer than 2 miles. That discovery must’ve been an excellent day at the office!

The mines here were successful but closed in the 1920s. The Great Flat Lode encompasses some of the Basset Mine Tramway and the old smelters yard can still be seen in neighbouring Carnkie. I passed on my way to the car park and I quite liked that it remains in situ.

The circular trail itself is 7.5 miles and is mostly trail with some short road sections. It’s one of those places that I’ve wanted to cover for a while, knowing it would be a good location for a testing run. During my visit, it’s clear that The Great Flat Lode is popular with dog walkers, runners and cyclists.

Essential information

I parked at Wheal Frances car park which is easy to find on satnav. Parking is free. Alternatively, parking is also available at the King Edward Tin Mine museum. I would highly recommend visiting The Croust Hut on this site – the food is excellent.

The Great Flat Lode is well marked. That said, I missed a turning at one point and ended up on someone’s property! 😂

Whether you’re walking or running The Great Flat Lode, you’ll need outdoorsy footwear. My run happened on a mizzly weekend after considerable rain. It was really muddy in places with patches of ankle deep water. Adds to the fun though, doesn’t it?

Interval session plan

I no longer have a GPS watch so for running so I use The Guardian Guide to Running Podcast. I’ve been using it on and off for years and it’s really good for threshold and interval sessions. The podcast tells me when to run and when to go faster, all accompanied by pumping music. I know I’ve gone off on a tangent, but I’d highly recommend it.

For the sake of this interval run, I completed a session of 6 mins at 10k then 6 mins at marathon pace for over an hour. I thought I’d run out of trail but it proved to be just right.

The Great Flat Lode Route

At Wheal Frances car park there’s no map of The Great Flat Lode route – it looks like there might have been once upon a time. I went shockingly unplanned and on this occasion I had to follow my nose. I took the path to the right of the car park and started my inaugural run on this trail imbued with Cornish history.

It wasn’t long before I came across the first engine houses, some in better condition than others. I assume one must be Wheal Frances. I’ve checked online and I am not sure of their names only to say thee is a Wheal Basset. It’s a shame it was a grey mizzly day because in the sun and spring flowers blooming, it would’ve looked more appealing. Much like the Bissoe Trail, The Great Flat Lode is a bit desolate.

It’s interesting to run around though. Lots of different things to see. There are short sections of road (some quite busy) and quite a few engine houses and ruins. Some parts are very quiet with a few hills and inclines to tolerate.

Once past the half way point, the views overlooking the countryside are fabulous. I could also see Carn Brea, the old settlement and fortress, believed to be inhabited 6000 years ago. I stayed on the main signposted trail but there are other paths that lead to Carn Brea. Yes, you can make your way to the top.

Towards the end I was feeling it in my legs – this was a long training session but well worth it. I embarked on The Great Flat Lode in a clockwise direction. Unknowingly, I think I picked the right option as there is a very long steep climb that meets the road.

I’d recommend The Great Flat Lode for a decent countryside romp – there’s plenty of Cornish heritage to enjoy.

If you like trail running, I’ve lots of routes here on The Great Cornish Outdoors. Many are coastal but there’s a summary of some flat trails in Cornwall (believe me, they’re in short supply) as well as longer posts on favourites like the Pentewan Valley Trail.

Perhaps tin mines and checking Conrihs heritage is more your thing. If so, you will love Botallack on the Tin Coast (it’s stunning), and of course there is Rinsey Head.