Wednesday 21 July This is our last day of walking. Port Gaverne to Rock (over the estuary from Padstow). It is 12 ½ miles. I persuade Chris that most of the walking will be easy and she agrees to give it a go. Debbie says the temperature reached 30 degrees yesterday, and it will be hotter today. We park up in Rock and Debbie takes us to Port Isaac. It’s much easier to access and saves us a short walk. Every little is going to count today. To start with, it’s the usual up and down, and Chris looks sceptical. It is extremely hot. Looking down, the sea is a mill pond and crystal clear. We could be at Loutro. The first little place to reach is Port Quin. There is nothing there except a water tap, which we use. There is a surfing base with a passive aggressive sign saying they are not a tourist information point and if you want a coffee, go back to Port Isaac. We trundle on...
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Tuesday 20 th July Even hotter today, and we drive to Port Gaverne. We try hard to park but it is impossible, so we end up in the Port Isaac car park. There is a friendly shop/café where we get coffee, and sit outside eating our packed breakfast. Port Gaverne Then it’s down the hill to wait for Debbie. Standing in the shade I get talking to a man who is about to join a ‘coasteering’ expedition. This is a sport where you scramble along the rocks on the bottom of the cliffs, wearing wet suit, buoyancy aid and helmet, preferably with an experienced guide. It sounds mad, but apparently, it’s a recognised and fast-growing sport with a very low cas...
Monday 19 th July Weather is still very hot. 26 degrees. Today it’s Boscastle to Tintagel. Quite short only four and a half miles. At this rate we probably won’t make it all the way to Padstow. The plan today is to park the car in Tintagel using the magic app, then take the bus back to Boscastle. No taxis! Once again, we slip out of the hotel early, but this time we have ordered a packed breakfast from the hotel. Tintagel is that bit further to drive, but we get there in good time for the bus, and we are back in Boscastle by soon after 09.00. We get coffee at the baker’s, and find a shady spot to eat our breakfast. Then it’s over the river and up the first cliff. We go past an area called ‘The Stiches’ an interesting survival of mediaeval strip farming. At our midday stop, we realise we are going to be at Tintagel by lunch time, and decide that we might as well soldier on to Trebarwith. I...
Maggie (L) and Chris (R) at Bistro Pierre in Royal William Yard, Plymouth Sunday 18 th July Coffee on the balcony with a friend of Derek and Maggie called Trevor. He is local in the Cotswolds but also has a place here. There’s gentle pressure from D & M for us to follow suit. We pop over to Royal William Yard. It is a magnificent collection of neoclassical buildings which were the victualling hub for the Royal Navy in its pomp. D & M nearly bought here. It’s now being converted into flats and restaurants. All most agreeable, but a lot more expensive than where they are. We have a long lunch in the open air at Bistro Pierre. Excellent. I had roast chicken. Then it’s back to the Soap St flat in time to see the Brittany ferry to Santander leaving. We say our goodbyes and drive back to Bude, crossing the Tamar Bridg...
Saturday 17 th July It’s another scorcher. We set out for a stroll up to the Hoe. It’s busy with SailGP. This is a sailing event involving large ultra-fast catamarans. They rise out of the water on fins and go up to 60 mph. There is a large fan zone enclosure for people to watch, and loud-speaker commentary. Thousands are also just sitting on the grass. I am interested in the various war-memorials and monuments. Back at the flat, we overlook the harbour where the yachts have their base. We get a ring-side view of the yachts being craned into the water, and their crews going aboard. They have a crew of five, including a helmsman and a grinder. I think he is the guy who winches in the huge mainsail as they go about. The other three are mainly there to skip from side to side and balance the boat. At least that’s what I think. We don’t get much of a view of the races themselves, eve...
Friday 16 th July That’s it for this week. Today we are driving to Plymouth for a weekend of R & R with Derek and Maggie. They have sold up in Spain and bought a holiday flat in the Ocean City. We laze. Earned it, haven’t we. We go for a proper swim in the Bude sea water pool. It is huge, run by a charity and free. What’s not to like? Later we drive to Plymouth. We avoid the Tamar Bridge because of warnings about heavy holiday traffic and our satnav takes us on a convoluted route to enter the city from the east. The weather is still hot and sunny and we have supper on Derek and Maggie’s balcony overlooking the harbour.
Thursday 15 th July In our convoluted logistics, there’s another variation, and this time, let’s hope it works. We learn our lesson from yesterday and realise that the hotel 08.30 breakfast is too late for us, so we creep out early and drive to our next destination – Boscastle. We park up and wait for the 95 bus. Worth mentioning at this stage that I have downloaded the brilliant Cornwall CC parking app. Amazing – it’s totally user friendly. No more fumbling for coins or trying to phone the dreaded Ringo. You just enter the code for the car park you are going to and click the time you need to be there and ping. That’s it. As you can guess, we are not total fans of the Cornwall offer to tourists, but this wins a triple gold star. And the bus is on time and wafts us quickly back to Crackington where we have a nice breakfast in the café. But what’s this? Our three Yorkshire friends are emerging from the pub. ...
Wednesday 14 th July So today, we can start from the hotel front door. Crackington Haven is the destination and there is a bus. But – last bus 16.30. We keep bumping into three intrepid women from Yorkshire whom we first encountered just before Morwenstowe. Finally, we introduce ourselves. They are Belinda, Chris and Wendy. When we say we need to be at Crackington by four thirty, they look pained. “You will have to get a move on. We are not rushing because we are booked into the pub there for the night. We stop for coffee at Widemouth Bay, a rather scruffy surfing place. Lunch is on the beach at Millook. A word about lunches. Nothing is open in the mornings before we set off, apart from one deli, where it’s too early for sandwiches or rolls. In the evening, we would have to rush to Sainsbury’s before it closes at seven. So, lunches are an odd collection of bits from the deli. It’s all a bit ...
Tuesday 13 th Breakfast is scrambled eggs and lots of coffee. Good. And a much less aggressive waitress. It’s taxi time again, but only to Morwenstow £20, and our driver is Joe. He is a Stokey. Came to Cornwall for the lifestyle and is happy with it. Lives with his wife in a village nearby. We have cunningly avoided the deep Morwenstow valley and walk at height back to the path, where we soon come across Hawker’s Hut. It’s a tiny wooden structure with a turf roof, in the care of the National Trust. Free entry, no dainty teas and no frilly jam pots for sale. Parson Hawker hung out here to smoke the odd opium pipe and write stuff, including this: And shall Trelawny live? Or shall Trelawny die? Here's twenty thousand Cornish men Will know the reason why! This is ‘The Song of the Western Men’, and has become a Cornish national anthem. Now I have definite Cornish ancestry. 1...
Monday 12 th July Nice breakfast, although the waitress was somewhat ‘in your face’. “You wait your turn” she barks., “There’s others before you”. Breakfast is all we ever see of the Deck restaurant. It is fully booked out for the entire fortnight. As we soon discover, that’s true of everything in Bude/Cornwall in this strange Covid summer. Our first objective is to do Harland Quay to Morwenstow – the section we should have done last October. We set off in convoy behind Tim in a taxi. Chris is in the taxi, I drive behind. I listen to Five Live and it’s shocking. The three penalty takers who missed are being showered with abuse on social media. They are all black and it’s horrible racist stuff. A Rashford mural in Manchester has been defaced. England – heroes for reaching the Euros final? England a racist cesspit? You choose. [it later turns out that the majority of the...
Sunday 11 th July We are off again. This time it’s a two-week stint. We aim to do the entire stretch from Hartland Quay to Padstow. This is ambitious because we don’t really have two weeks. Chris has to leave early to attend James’ graduation. He’s got a first! We leave Hampton Hill at 09.00, and we are at Becky’s for lunch at 12.50. It’s just Becks and John. The boys are both out. Will is working at an ice-cream stall in Sidmouth, and Luke is doing whatever 19-year-old lads get up to. We go for a walk after lunch. It is raining. Not a good omen – but not an accurate one as it turns out. Rosie the sheep dog puppy comes with us. She is still bionic, but less bouncy than in April. Becky believes in training by administering treats. John by discipline, so Rosie is a tad confused. We drive to Bude, 15.00 to 17.30. The plan is to base at the Edge...
OK, well spotted. It's not SWCP, it's Hadrian's Wall. In May, as soon as accommodation opened, I went walking the Wall with George. We stayed at The Grey Bull in Haltwhistle and had two great days walking. And two days when it basically pissed with rain. Good fun, though. But now - real SWCP again. On Sunday we drive to Bude where we are booked into the Edgecumbe Hotel, hoping to walk to Padstow. Cornwall, finally yay! Small problem though. Dinner on Sunday is at 20.00. Kick off for a rather significant game of football.