Daily Blog
Day 12 Wednesday 12th May 2010
Miles walked 23, miles to go 375, Accent 52,433
St Ives to Sennen Cove, this is going to be hard !
We started at 6.30am with my bags packed with extra food, drinks and everything else possibly needed
(now a bit on the heavy side). The first part of this section was to Pendeen Watch which is the longest and
the most deserted place on the coastpath. It also has a grading of 'severe'.
The path was often rough and very rocky, in places surprisingly boggy with plenty of ups and downs.
My first break was at Zennor Point from where I could see as far back as Trevose Head (Last Sunday's walk).From here the path got even tougher and rougher and I resorted to my Ipod for some company after
a few miles in.
As my friends and family will agree, I'm quite a quick walker, so it was much to my surprise when a teenager pushed past me, followed by another 16! I muttered to myself, something along the lines of.... Gosh how rude!! only to find out that they were German. Never mind, they were probably only trying to get to the sunbeds first! Pendeen Watch was reached by about 1.30 where I had lunch.
The final stretch was to Sennen Cove. This was much better but still hard going on the feet, I then saw my
first seal of the trip just before getting to Cape Cornwall.
I finally finished at 5.30pm meeting Chris ,with a beer in hand for me, at the end of Sennen Cove !! How did
he know !!
SPOT THE FOOT PATH !!
We then went back to the campsite for the evening extremely worn out and tired. Before supper I went for
a shower, which can best be descibed as something out of The Flintstone's. For the first time on this trip I
had to queue, only to find the same Germans I met earlier in the day taking all the hot water!!
Beer of the Day - Cornish Blonde 7/10 Light and refreshing after a long day.
Colin
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Daily Blog Wheal Rodney Holiday Park DONATED £15.00
A Family Run Holiday Park
Day 13 - Thursday 13th May 2010 www.WhealRodney.co.uk
Miles walked 22, Miles to go 352, Ascent 56,104
Thursday morning broke cold with a frost on the ground, Chris B did not look too pleased as he joined
me in the quite warm, cosy van but after a few coffees inside him he was ready to drop me back off at
Sennen Cove by 7.30am. The walk to Lands End was great walking once my feet were warmed up, it now takes about half an hour for them to stop complaining leaving me with a dull ache. Lands End Coastal scenery was good but the place itself is a total waste of time, but I had turned the corner and was travelling towards Poole (not half way yet but still a good feeling that I'm now going in the right direction !!)
After seeing lots of signs saying "beware of adders" I saw my first and second of them sunning themselves,
after the cold night before, on the path between Lands End and Porthcurno. By midday it became quite
warm and even my feet felt good.
I therefore stopped at Lamorna Cove for lunch and then onto Marazion via Mousehole (lovely sights) Newlyn (a very nice interesting fishing port) and Penzance (forgettable). After only seeing one seal on the north coast I then saw herds of them between Mousehole and Penzance ( as anyone that knows me can confirm, 2 of anything get called herds!! For ease!! ) I finished with a pint at the Gig bar in Marazion, tasted good.
Beer of the Day - Cornish Tinners 7/10 Good after a long walk.
Colin
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Daily Blog
Day 14 - Friday 14th May 2010: Marazion to The Lizard.
Miles walked 24, Miles to go 329, Ascent 60,281
Heavy rain in the night and into the morning as I set off for the days walk. Bad weather translated into
a bad mood as I set off, and was only made worse early on when I slipped on wet rocks just
outside Marazion, landing on my hip. Not a good start to the day.
Eventually the rain stopped, although it remained dull and misty throughout the day. Aside from the
weather, my aching feet and legs, as well as my damaged hip from my earlier acrobatics, were making
this the worse day of the journey so far. Prussia Cove came and went, Praa Sands was shut, and Dullion Cliff was boring, although by then it would have taken something epic to cheer me up.
Porthleven, while perhaps not epic, did go some way to raise my spirits. I like fishing ports with a little
history so I stopped for lunch. Easily the highlight of my day.
After lunch, onwards on the path to Mullion Cove, which again was uninspiring. At long last the sun came out and the walk to the Lizard was ok.....until I got lost (twice), ending up in Lizard Town rather than the lighthouse.
Change of crew again, with Chris B being replaced by Chris L who tried his best to look enthusiastic despite knowing that he was about to spend three nights in a cramped tent, which has proven to be as water proof as a tea bag. Not the best day then, but its done, and we go on...
Beer of the Day: Thirsty Ferret 8/10, very nice.
Colin
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Daily Blog
Day 15 - Saturday 15th May: Lizard to Helford.
Miles Walked 21, Miles to go 305, Ascent 64,602ft
Despite the trials of the previous day, a good nights sleep meant that I awoke feeling strong
and raring to go. Setting off at 07:30am I was joined by Lorraine whilst my son battled through the
effects of sleep deprivation. Walking down a river valley to the coastal path, Lorraine stayed with
me for about 3/4 mile then headed off back to the campsite for some breakfast.
Beautiful weather this morning, blue sky and warm sunshine, what a difference a day makes.
The walk to Coverack was very pleasant, and Coverack itself is a little gem (another fishing port).
On this stretch I met another walker by the name of Pete Metcalfe. Pete was doing the same walk but
had started from Poole and was making his way to Minehead. Its fair to say that Pete's itinerary was
slighly different than mine. Pete plans to finish at the Lizard today then fly off to Estonia for some
Morris Dancing. On his return he will carry on where he left off. His ultimate plan is to take a year and
a half off and walk around the entire British Coastline, writing a book about his encounters with the
people and places of Britain. A man after my own heart, except perhaps for the morris dancing.
A landmark day today, between Coverack and Helford is Porthallow, which is officially the halfway
point of the walk, 315 miles down, 315 miles to go!
The plan had been for Lorraine and Chris L to meet me so that I could get a picture of myself stood at the halfway point marker. However my wife and son were on their own adventure...
Casting doubt on the saying "two heads are better than one", my wife and son toured the deepest darkest
parts of Cornwall, totally lost, through endless unnamed country lanes. The people of this area, perhaps
still fearful of invasion, thought it was better that they don't put up any signposts to direct people. Despite
this every time they stopped for directions the "local" would speak in a cockney accent, very strange.
Eventually however we were all reunited at Helford for a drink in the pub by the river, however the pub
was shut so I clambered into the tent sized Toyota and drove in search of refreshement. After five minutes
we were lost. Again.
Finally we stumbled upon Falmouth (the real Falmouth, ask Lorraine), and enjoyed a couple of pints.
Then back to the camp site for Bangers, Cornish new potatoes and beans, with strawberries for afters!
A good day, eventful for all of us!
Beer of the day: Heligan Honey - 710
Colin
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Daily Blog
Day 16 - Sunday 16th May: Helford to Portscatho
Miles Walked 17, Miles to go 289, Ascent 6696ft
Awoke to a dull but dry Sunday morning, the walk to Falmouth was easy and therefore was not particularly challenging. The radio weather report had warned of rain mainly on higher ground. Predictably a mile from
Falmouth I was cowering under a hedge with heavy rain lashing down and the rumble of thunder getting ever closer.
Thankfully this weather front soon passed and I made my way into Falmouth Harbour to catch
my ferry. Along the way several kind people added to my charity pot. At St Mawes, Chris "the roadie"
dropped Lorraine at the Harbour to join me for the final part of todays walk. Chris kindly declined
to join us, cheerfully stating "I've sacrificed enough, sleeping in that bloody tent" then added
"Camping must only be for short people", then speeding off before Lorraine had a chance to
change her mind as the heavens opened once again. A second trip on a ferry was needed for us to continue on our journey, unfortunately our enthusiasm to progress had to take second place to the ferry masters thirst. Our man moored up and before we could ask "how much" announced to the public that he was going to the pub for an hour. This left us standing in the rain and not getting anywhere.
A quick call to Chris L and he returned to pick us up and drove us the long way round to the next part of the walk. The weather eventually took a turn for the better, and we arrived in Portscatho by 4:30pm.
The three of us ended the day in St Mawes with a nice evening meal in a pub beside the harbour.
P.S- A little tip for anyone looking for a campsite on a budget during low/mid season. You will find
that the price difference between the lower end sites and the top notch ones can be a matter of a few
pounds. This was proved today, upon arriving at a frankly shoddy campsite with pretty abysmal toilets
etc, Chris L and Lorraine located nearby a 5 STAR award winning campsite with really good facilites
for four quid more!
Beer of the day: Cornish Wrecker - 410, didn't know if was a beer or a lager.
Colin
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