THE wildlife watchpoint and wireless station at the Lizard Point are marking a special anniversary year as they prepare to welcome visitors for the 2024 season.  

Two teams of spirited National Trust volunteers are preparing to reopen for the 2024 season at the wildlife watchpoint at Lizard Point and nearby wireless station at Bass Point.

The watchpoint sits at the tip of Britain’s most southerly point where visitors can enjoy undisturbed views along the rugged coastline and out to sea and borrow binoculars and scopes from the volunteer team to discover what wildlife can be spotted. Common sightings include the popular Cornish Chough with its distinctive red bill and legs, grey seals, dolphins and basking sharks in summer.

Lydia Allt, volunteering and community officer for Lizard and Penrose, said: “We want people to feel connected to this special place, whether they live locally or are visiting on holiday, and the volunteers at the wildlife watchpoint truly bring people closer to nature. The Lizard is rich in its diversity of wildlife and many people who chat to the team see wildlife they have never seen before. We love seeing visitors spotting different species through a pair of binoculars and recording sightings of what they’ve seen.”

The watchpoint is open daily from Thursday, March 28, to Friday, November 1, from 11am to 3pm.

Volunteers show visitors the local wildlife from the watchpoint at Lizard Point, Cornwall. Lizard Point is one of the best places to see seabirds in UK with exciting species such as: gannets, puffins, terns, guillemots, razorbills, various skuas and shearwaters travelling through the English Channel.
Volunteers show visitors the local wildlife from the watchpoint at Lizard Point, Cornwall. (Picture: National Trust Images/Chris Lacey) (National Trust Images/Chris Lac)

A mile east along the coast path is the Lizard wireless station, a volunteer-led experience where visitors of all ages can find out about Marconi’s technological advancements and get hands on with discovering how to send and receive messages in Morse code. This April marks the anniversary of Marconi’s 150th birthday and it’s a celebration not to be missed.

Cat Lee, volunteering and community manager for Lizard & Penrose, said: “Stepping inside the wireless station feels like stepping back in time to 1901 when Marconi received the first over-the-horizon wireless radio transmission, a truly monumental technological advancement at the time. The volunteer team will be marking the occasion of Marconi’s 150th birthday and we’d love for people to celebrate with us either over the radio for all the enthusiasts out there, or in person.”

The Lizard Wireless Station at Bass Point, Cornwall. The timber structure was built by Marconi in 1900 for his wireless telegraphy experiments.
Volunteers show visitors the local wildlife from the watchpoint at Lizard Point. (Picture: National Trust Images/Chris Lacey) (NTPL/David Sellman)

Visitors are welcome to join the one-off celebrations at the Wireless Station on Saturday, April 27, where the team will spend the morning connecting with other amateur radio enthusiasts around the world with an on-air celebration using call sign GB4LD (Golf Bravo 4 LizarD - LD being the original callsign when the station first opened). This will be followed by an afternoon birthday party, 2pm to 4pm onsite at the wireless station with demonstrations, kids’ activities, tea and cake, all free of charge.

The station is open Monday to Thursday, April 1 to September 30, from noon to 3pm.