Sunday 3 May 2026

Day 13 of walking

Crackington Haven to Tintagel
Distance: 18.89km
Total distance: 261.24km
Climbig: 1,065m
Total climb: 8,766m

Last night the forecast did not look good with light rain forecast for a lot of today. Not a good thought to go to sleep on. This morning the forecast had improved to light rain from noon. Breakfast today didn’t start until 8.30. We prefer a 7.30 breakfast and get an extra hour of walking in the morning, especially with the rain coming in the afternoon.This morning’s section was one of high cliffs, the highest cliffs in Cornwall. The highest is imaginatively called High Cliff (223m). It is also the highest sea cliff in England. This was an isolated section and the massive, bulky cliffs make it feel quite lonely. There were few beaches, only one at The Strangles that is accessible down a very steep path. We saw some feral goats and from one high headland could look down to a bay with about 50 basking seals. From the top of the first headland out of Crackington Haven we could see the outline of Camelot Castle Hotel on the headland at Tintagel 20 kms away.

The highlight of the day was Beautiful Boscastle a small village tucked into a deep green valley that ends in a naturally sheltered harbour. There was a 12^th century castle here but little trace of it can be seen today. Boscastle made headlines in 2004 when a flash flood swept down the valley carrying away houses and vehicles and causing chaos. Miraculously no one died. Within a year most of the buildings had been faithfully restored or rebuilt. You can tell the restored and rebuilt buildings because they are straight and square with new slate roofs. The buildings that survived the flood undamaged are still a bit wonky with sagging roofs and uneven floors. We spent a bit of time there and bought some delicious date and pecan oaty slice, solid and very filling. This is a very busy tourist village as coaches going on to Tintagel call in here and disgorge 60 people at a time. There is also the popular Museum of Witchcraft and Magic.

It was 11km to Boscastle and then 8 km to Tintagel. The latter section combined pretty much all we have seen on the Coast Path so far, headlands, sandy beaches, steep valleys, historic features and all on a manageable and not too taxing scale. After Boscastle there were a few spots of rain so the coats went on, but it soon stopped and we were much too hot doing the climbs so they came off again. Then the light rain set in a bit so the coats went on again and stayed on into Tintagel. There was a public footpath leading from the Coast Path into the village of Tintagel before you reach the imposing Camelot Castle Hotel and the Tintagel Castle ruins. We decided to take this and get to our accommodation and out of our wet clothes. We will back track in the morning to go via the hotel and castle.

We are staying at King Arthur’s Arms in the heart of Tintagel. We presume this “Arms” are as in weapons, not arms as in legs, feet etc. It is a very comfortable inn/hotel/B & B/free house. We are in a newish annex to the old hotel. It is by far the largest room we have had so far, has an enormous accessible bathroom you could fit a rugby team in, and best of all is at ground floor with no stairs. A first on this trip. We had a meal there, Homemade beef stew with mash, vegetables and dumplings. The meal size was enormous and neither of us could empty our plates. After going to Sainsburys in Bude the other day to get an eye mask, would you believe it, in our room were complimentary eye masks and ear plugs. Also a vanity kit, shoe shine sponge and comb. What we really wanted was a little sewing kit so we can do running repairs as we go. When we checked in they told us a live band was booked from 8 o’clock. Maybe that’s why the ear plugs.

Tintagel seems to be a town surviving solely on the legend of King Arthur. As well as our pub, his name is used for pasties, pizzas and much else, And if not his name then Camelot, Guinevere, Merlin, etc. You can probably bring home a suit of armour from here. There has been settlement here from the Iron Age and a castle, now a total ruin, built on the rocky promontory in 1236, a stronghold of the Dukes of Cornwall. Back in the 6^th century a real king called Arthur did exist but all the stories about knights, round tables, Merlin the Wizard, swords in stones, and King Arthur being born here is fiction. It is all good fun. Everyone loves a story of romance, chivalry, bravery, tragedy and magic spells

A significant milestone today. We have now walked just over 250km, so a quarter of the journey completed. Tomorrow we will have climbed one Mt Everest (8,846.48m from sea level).

Saturday 2 May 2026

Day 12 of walking
Bude to Crackington Haven
Distance: 18.95km
Total distance: 242.35km
Climbing: 760m
Total climb: 7,701m

First stop this morning was to Sainsburys to buy Barbara an eye mask. She likes a room to be very dark when she sleeps. Unfortunately many of the rooms we sleep in have thin or poorly fitting curtains and blinds and often there are street lights outside. She has been using an old airline “freebie” but the elastic has perished so it was off to buy a new eye mask. She now has a Sleepyzzz’s, 100% light blocking, adjustable headband, washable, with fleecy lining eye mask. Should do the trick.

We had a walk around the canal this morning. It is a popular fishing spot and there were a few anglers already set up. The canal runs right to the sea and there is a sea lock-gate holding the water in the canal at low tide. An easy grassy climb takes you up to the Storm Tower at Compass Point. It was originally built as an architectural enhancement to the coastline and was based on the “Temple of the Winds” in Athens. It is an octagonal shape with the eight principal points of the compass engraved on the appropriate face. It was gifted to the Coastguard and became a landmark for guiding ships. It is locally called “The Pepperpot”.

The walking continued to be easy on grassy low cliffs above surfing beaches to Widemouth (pronounced Widmouth) Bay. Once past Widemouth the hard work really began. The beaches gave way to an ever higher and more rugged coastline cut by deep and steep valleys. Four of these, and they had interminable switch backs or straight sets of hundreds of steps. There was some relief in woodland at the bottom of valleys and rolling meadow at the top of headlands. We stopped for lunch at Chipman Point on a bench that we discovered had “Poole 500 m” carved into it. We try hard to  think only one or two days ahead. 500 miles is just too daunting to comprehend.

It was a murky morning, no wind and not cold but a bit dreary. The forecast was for light rain from 2pm and we were hoping to get to Crackington Haven before then. We made good time for the first half of the day but when we hit the big valleys we slowed down a lot. We climb up really well but going down steep paths of loose rubble has to be taken slowly and carefully. Sure enough at 2pm the drizzle started, on went the rain coats and we had a wet last 20 minutes or so to the Coombe Barton Inn at Crackington Haven. This the first rain since leaving home 17 days ago so we cannot complain.

We had a number of stiles to climb today. In Ireland we had to climb hundreds of them but they are relatively rare on the SWCP. Today we climbed four. Usually at a fence or hedge you get a kissing gate which we find much easier to pass through than our inflexible old bodies trying to get over a stile.  I think those with a big pack on their back prefer stiles, or jst a standard hinged gate with latch, as the kissing gates are often a tight squeeze and difficult for them to manoeuvre through.

Crackington Haven is in a small cove with a lovely beach that is popular with families. There is the Coombe Barton Inn, a small shop, cabin café, large car park and about a dozen houses. The Inn is pulsating, the music going, and it is Bingo night. It is also Saturday night of a Bank Holiday Weekend so a bit busier than usual. We of course are tired and just want to get to sleep but that might not be possible for a while yet.

Friday 1 May 2026

Day 11 of walking
Morwenstow to Bude
Distance: 14.94km
Total distance: 223.40km
Climbing; 634m
Total climb: 6941m

Today we awoke to Mowenstow shrouded in mist but by the time we had finished breakfast it had all disappeared. The Bush Inn is 1km inland off the path so we had to retrace our steps of yesterday back to the coast. First highlight was Hawker’s Hut. This is a tiny hut on a steep cliff built by the Rev Robert Stephen Hawker as a lookout to warn ships of the dangers of navigation. It is built entirely of timber salvaged from ship wrecked boats. He also entertained literary friends in the hut and wrote essays and no doubt sermons. Hawker became vicar of St Morewenna and John the Baptist in 1834 and was something of an eccentric. He wore colourful clothes, sometimes dressed as a mermaid and excommunicated his cat for mousing on a Sunday. He was also extremely compassionate and introduced the practice of giving the bodies of shipwrecked sailors a Christian burial. Previously they had been allowed to bob around in the ocean for days and couldn’t be buried in the church cemetery because it was not known if they were Christians. Along this coast over 150 ships have been wrecked between Morwenstow and Bude. At his funeral mourners wore purple instead of black.

Visible just about all day was the enormous site of GCHQ Bude. GCHQ stands for Government Communications Head Quarters. This is a UK Government high security satellite ground station and “eavesdropping” centre monitoring global communications. This site focuses on collecting data from satellites and intercepting data and voice traffic from communication networks. It was secure behind security cameras, two layers of high fence with razor wire. It definitely gave the impression you were being watched and listened to. The large dishes were visible as we left Morwenstow and we can still see them from outside our guest house window in Bude.

Today was a relaxed day. The wind had blown itself out and it was a nice calm day. Cloudy and cool at first but sunny and hot by the time we reached Bude. There were another 5 valleys to descend and ascend and the first three were just as steep as yesterday but they tapered off a bit as we approached Bude. The last two valleys also had vehicle access and toilets. The first, Duckpool, had a seasonal café in a caravan (The Hedgerow) and the second at Sandymouth had a substantial permanent café. We did all the difficult walking comfortably and the last few kilometres were easy over gently undulating grassy meadows. The high cliffs and jagged rocks stretching out to sea have now given way to vast golden sandy beaches and surfers.

We stopped a couple of kilometres short of Bude at Crooklets Beach to have lunch at Rosie’s Kitchen. It was 1pm and we had time to fill in before we could check in at 3pm. We also stopped here 8 years ago for lunch. For those who want to know Barbara had Moroccan Mezze Salad with falafel, chef’s spiced hummus, toasted ciabatta, pickled pink cabbage, house salad, spiced toasted chick peas and chicken  and I had Taco Salad with crispy cos lettuce, avocado, beef tomatoes, grilled corn, jalapenos, tortilla nacho croutons, paprika ranch dressing and chicken. Delicious and very filling. We will just have some scratch food in our room from the supermarket for dinner. After going to the supermarket we had a couple of items to buy. Barbara wanted some lip balm as walking in the wind is not good on the lips, and the other day I stepped on my sunglasses and broke them. They sort of worked when patched up with dressing tape from the first aid kit but they could no longer be folded flat. Sunglasses vary in price from several hundred pound in upmarket shops, cycle shops etc., down to about 6 pounds in shops that sell all that sea side tat. I bought the latter as chances are I will stand on them as well.

Bude is a compact little seaside town with plenty of charm and character and a wonderful beach – Summerleaze. As well as the beach it has a large sea pool built in 1930, a man-made tidal saltwater swimming pool. It provides a safe place for people to go sea swimming as we have seen a few signs on the beach warning of rips. Bude has a small castle built in 1830 and surrounded by water from the canal.

Bude canal was dug to transport mainly sand inland to be spread on the land to improve the poor soil in North Cornwall. The original scheme was for a 90 mile canal connecting the Bristol Channel with the English Channel. 35 miles of canal were in operation by 1823 but with the coming of the railway, canal use gradually declined. There is a short section that has been prepared and is quite pretty. We will have a close look at it on our way out of Bude tomorrow morning.

Thursday 30 April 2026

Day 10 of walking
Hartland Quay to Morwenstow
Distance: 14.45km
Total distance: 208.46km
Climbing: 635m
Total climb: 6307m

Today was one of the remotest and most beautiful stretches of coastline the SWCP has to offer. There are no villages or refreshments between Hartland Quay and Morwenstow. Despite a steep scramble up out of Hartland Quay the first part of the walk is gentle, passing two waterfalls, a small one at Wargery Water and a much more impressive one at Speke’s Mill Mouth. After an easy walk up a valley to Swansford Hill you are straight into five incredibly steep descents and ascents scrambling over valley after valley. It is an awe-inspiring and dramatic coastline with jagged edges of rock stretching out into the ocean, headlands with high steep cliffs and tiny inaccessible beaches.

There were strong winds today, gusting up to 65km/hour. It was a cross wind for us and it was a bit unnerving at times on the high cliffs with a side wind blowing you toward the edge. There are also lots of signs warning of steep cliffs which are often undercut and can drop into the sea or rocks below at any time. We handled the walking very well today but feel a bit beaten up due to battling the wind all day.

We crossed the border from North Devon into Kernow (Cornwall), and there was a sign to let us know. Unfortunately the photo I took there is horribly out of focus, I think I slipped on the little bridge just before the sign. I will get a better photo next time we pass this way. Ha ha! There is also a sign saying 300 miles (480kms) to Plymouth. Plymouth is the end of the Cornwall coast and where you cross into South Devon. Now we are in Cornwall we can have genuine Cornish Pasties and Cornish Cream Teas.

On one of the descents we came across a lovely little stone hut. Ronald Duncan’s hut. Author, poet, playwright and pacifist. He built the hut so he could have views of the sea while he was writing. We made an entry in the visitors’ book and you could read some of his poetry and other work. It was another poem by John Moat called Welcome Beach that took my fancy:
“The pebbles are out of order. Some man’s
Been down to meddle with the stones again
………..”

Shortly after our fifth steep climb and descent we were able to get off the roller coaster and go inland to the hamlet of Morwenstow. This is an ancient tiny settlement with just church and church yard, tea rooms, an inn/pub and a B & B. Someone had recommended to us the multi award winning Rectory Farm Tearoom for its cakes so we called in to sample Cornish sticky cake, a chocolate fudge cake and a hand made lemonade. It was charming and the cake was nice but Barbara thought it a bit snobby and $35 for two bits of cake and a fizzy drink is a bit up there. It was nice and warm and a relief to be out of the wind.

We then had a look in the church, dedicated to St Morwenna and St John the Baptist. The earliest part of the church is from Norman times but it is a bit strange in that the columns down one side of the nave are Romanesque and down the other side gothic. It is one of those lovely churches you find standing in the English countryside with an enormous bell tower. It has a large graveyard overgrown with masses of pink wild flowers. One of the vicars was the Rev Hawker, of Hawker’s Hut fame. More on him tomorrow.

We are staying in Morwenstow tonight in the 13^th century Bush Inn. Another lovely old country inn and again we are upstairs in an attic bedroom. We stayed here eight years ago in the very same room. Downstairs in the bar we had a delicious meal. For those who only read the blog and look at the photos for the food we had: Beef and ale stew with mash, carrots, onions, broccoli and parsnip (Barbara) and I had Cornish sausages with gravy, onions, mash, and the same vegetables. Large meals but after a day out climbing and fighting the wind we downed the lot.

Despite all the steep climbs and the wind we feel good tonight. We are not fast walkers. Not Ferraris, more like old Massy Ferguson tractors, put us in low gear and we can chug along forever.