Portwrinkle to Downderry

In the past we have walked around Whitsand Bay to Portwrinkle and also from Seaton to Downderry.  We wanted to 'join the dots' and walk from Downderry to Portwrinkle.  We had started to do this once before but realised it was a strenuous walk and we did not fancy having to do it and then walk back.  So today we checked the bus timetable and planned to get the bus from Portwrinkle to Downderry and then walk back.


As we waited for the bus the sun was shining and it was lovely sitting looking out to sea.  The bus ride took just 10 minutes and then the walk back started.  We knew there was was a steep climb to begin with because the cliffs to the east of Downderry are the highest point on the South Cornwall coast.  We had to walk up the road to start with but then took a zig zag footpath.  The path was quite good but there were hedges either side stopping us having a view to stop and admire.  Also there was a lot of ivy which was in flower and attracting wasps.  So we did not fancy stopping too long.  Once we had walked practically to the top of hte cliffs we could look back over Dowderry, but by this time it was cloudy and a mist was coming in from the sea.

Once we had reached the top of the cliffs the path levelled off although there were still some valleys to go down  and up before we finally walked down the hill to Downderry.  It was only as we were on this final stage that we came to a seat.  It would have been good to have somewhere to sit and rest part way!  At one point the path was very near the cliff edge and with the steep drop down this is not a walk to do when the weather is bad

Whitsand Bay Part 2

In the past we have walked around Whitsand Bay from Rame Head to the Cliff Top cafe  and from Tregantle Fort to Portwrinkle.   So we can say we have done all the South West Coast Path we decided to walk from Tregantle Fort to the Cliff Top cafe.

The walk from Tregantle Fort was easier than walking from the other end of  Whitsand Bay.  There were no steep ups and downs just gentle slopes.  However, after a time we had to walk along the road, which was not too busy, but nevertheless not as good as being off road.

Godrevy Head to Hell's Mouth

Our holiday finished today, but we determined to make the best of the time left.  We started by driving to Godrevy Head.  This is a special place.  To one side there is the wide sweep of sand of St Ives Bay, with the surfers at Gwithian.  Out to sea there is Godrevy Island with the lighthouse standing bright and proud.

As we walked around the other side of the headland we saw a seal bobbing up and down in the sea.  We looked down at the next cove and there were a number of seas on the stones.  They were well camaflouged against the grey stones but you cold see them moving towards the sea.  At one point I counted a group of about a dozen going into the water.

We continued walking around the coastal path admiring the views until we reached Hell's Mouth, which we had walked to on Friday.  This was not so spectacular today as it was low tide.  We stopped for a coffee at the cafe there - very good before walking back to Godrevy and seeing more seals.

West Cornwall Holiday

We started today by driving to Long Rock, between Penzance and Marazion, to the free car park we found the last time we were in the area.  From there we walked along the edge of the beach towards St Michael's Mount.  The tide was out so we were able to walk across to the Mount.  However it was too early to go into the castle and gardens.

As we walked back to the car I decided to stay by the waters edge.  The tide was coming in and already the water was coming into the harbour on St Michael's Mount.

There were quite a few birds feeding at the edge of the sea.  This one group seemed to be a young family.  They were like little children running in and out of the waves.

From Penzance we drove to Sennen Cove.  We parked at the beach car park and walked towards the harbour.  We should have parked at the harbour car park as it was cheaper!  From the harbour we climbed steps up to the cliff and then walked towards Lands End.

After walking round Lands End and photographing the iconic signpost we headed back to Sennen Cove.

 After watching the surfers at Sennen beach we drove to Porthcurno.  The beach there had beautiful fine sand and the light yellow contrasted with the blue of the sea.

We walked across the beach and up steps to the Minack Theatre.  We saw that there was a steep flight of steps but thought we would manage that.  however when we reached the top there was more!  The steps were uneven, with no handrail and carved in the side of the cliff.  It was very scary!  There was no way we were going to go down so we had to keep going up.  However, when we looked along the coast the view was lovely.  Eventually, with signs of relief, with reached the top.  However, because there was a performance going on we were not able to go into the Minack Theatre.  Instead we walked down the road back to the car park.  The road was narrow and bendy, but not as bad as the steps!

St Ives

While staying at Hayle we drove to Carbis Bay to catch the train to St Ives  The station is right on the coast by Porthminster Beach

The train that took us to St Ives

We walked around the coast from Porthminster Beach past the harbour and across the Island to Porthmeor Beach.  This was an evening walk, but unfortunately there was no spectacular sunset although the light was still good.

St Ives Harbour

The Island, St Ives

Newquay and North Cliffs

On Friday 23 September for the first time we visited Newquay.  We stopped on the road just by the Western Beach and had our coffee on the cliff top watching people learn to surf.  We then walked through this end of the town seeing what shops were there before our hour had run out and we had to move the car.  We then drove on to the other end of the town and after parking near Towan Beach we walked along the coast past the harbour around the headland to Fistral Beach.

We then walked back and ate our lunch in the gardens overlooking the island.

We then moved on towards Hayle.  We stopped again just past Portreath at North Cliffs and walked along the coast to Hells Mouth.  This is a very easy part of the south west coast path, a good path and no steep slopes.  Reskajeage Downs was covered in heather, but unfortunately most of it had finished flowering.  It must have looked spectacular a week or two ago.  However, the sea views were lovely.

Hell's Mouth

Warren Point to Stoke Beach

Yesterday the sun was shining so we decided to join up two walks we had done previously.  We drove to the National Trust car park just outside Noss Mayo (Should have turned right just at the Noss Mayo sign).  Probably won't use that car park again - very narrow road to reach it - the next car park along at Stoke Point is easier to access.

There was a steep walk down the side of the field to the coast path, but the coast path was a broad firm path and it was easy walking.  There were no steep sections in this walk.  The sea was dark blue and the foam on the top of the waves contrasted sharply to it as they hit the black rocks.

When we left this broad path to walk through woodland near Stoke Beach the path was muddier, and as we have found in the past there were lots of butterflies around, particularly red admirals.

The leaves had not started to change colour yet, but there were signs of autumn around, such as the chestnuts that were beginning to fall.

Bigbury to Westcombe Beach

When we walked from Wonwell in an eastward direction we went as far as Westcombe Beach.  Previously we had walked from Bolbery Down to Hope Cove and  Hope Cover to Bantham which is just across from Bigbury, so we wanted to 'join the dots' and link these walks.

We parked at Bigbury and walked to Chalaborough.

Chalaborough 

There was then a gentle hill up to the top of the cliffs.  From there there were wonderful views back to Bigbury and Burgh Island.

As we approached Ayrmer Cove there was a steep path downhill and an even steeper hill out.  Then we came to Westcombe Beach with an even steeper path downhill!  Although the walk was not that long (less than 2 miles out) it had taken us longer than anticipated because of hilly nature of the walk.  So we turned back.  This is not a walk I would want to repeat.

The path down to Westcombe Beach

Portwrinkle

We parked the car in a residential road parallel to the coast road.  We started walking eastward.  After a short portion up the road we turned into a muddy path that climbed up to the golf course. After walking through a couple of golf holes we came out to a cliff top walk with views across to Whitsand Bay.

We walked on to the edge of the firing range at Tregantle Fort.  The red flag was flying so we could not go across the range.  We had already walked this way when we walked from Whitsand Bay so we turned back and retraced our steps to Portwrinkle.

After lunch we walked in the opposite direction.  To begin with we came to the harbour, but it was low tide so there was no water in it.  We then climbed up to the cliffs to walk towards Downderry.  There was a lot of   hills in this walk and we were walking into the wind and it was very windy so we turned back after walking abut 30 minutes.

Perranporth

The sun was shining when we left Plymouth, but the forecast was for showers.  When we arrived it was sunny but windy.  We drank our coffee sat in the car looking out on to the beach.  It was high tide and the surf was up, but the waves were not  as large as had been forecast.

We started to walk westward towards St Agnes.  From the cliff top we had a great view across the bay.

The waves were crashing against the rocks further along the cliff.

The heather was just beginning to come out which made the scenery even more beautiful.

It was so windy we did not fancy walking on the cliff edge so we headed inland on a path, this lead to a disused mining work and the path disappeared.  After sheltering while a shower went through we walked back to the coast and followed the coast path back to Perranporth.

After lunch we walked along the beach.  The tide was still in so we could not walk around the rocks but had to climb up the sand dunes.  We continued through the dunes until we came to Perran Sands where there was a concrete path down to the beach.

We walked all the way along the sand to the end (Ligger Point).  We then turned around and came back.  Because the tide had gone out we were able to stay on the beach all the way back to our car.

Wonwell to Westcombe beach

Having parked our car at the pretty village of Kingston we set off up a quiet road towards Wonwell.  Soon we turned off the road and walked across a couple of fields.  There was magnificent views across south Devon to Dartmoor beyond from these fields.  We then entered Furzdown Woods and went down the narrow path to Wonwell beach.  The tide was quite low so people were walking across the River Erme at this point.

Wonwell Beach

Looking up the River Erme

We then walked along the South West Coast path, which went up and down as it came to various coves.  Before long we could see across to Burgh Island and Bigbury.  And the views were beautiful.

Eventually we approached Westcombe Beach.  First we had to negotiate the zig zag path down to the beach, that was very steep and long.  We were glad to stop at the beach and eat our lunch, sheltered from the wind, with the sun beating down on us.

We were pleased that we did not have to climb up the path on the other side of the beach, which looked just as tough as the path downwards.  Instead we walked by the side of the river up the valley.  It was a muddy bridle path which led gradually upwards to Kingston and back to our car.

Tregantle Fort

Another showery day, so we decided not to go too far in case it rained and we were not able to walk.  As it was still August we were able to walk across the firing range in front of Tregantle Fort instead of taking the other path along the road.  As the weather was not that good we were able to park by the gate to the firing range.

Initially we walked down to the beach.  It was nearing high tide so we could not walk far along the beach and it was too windy to sit and watch those brave enough to go in the sea. Kite surfers were doing the best in the conditions.

We then climbed back to the top and followed the path through the firing range in front of the fort.  Once we came to the other path we continue to walk in a westerly direction for a while.  The views in both directions were wonderful, although the would have been even better if it had been a sunny day.  Dark clouds were gathering so we decided we had chanced the weather long enough so we turned back.

The view westward

The view eastward

Whitsand Bay

A pleasant, easy walk.  It would probably have been even more spectacular at low tide when you could see more of the beaches at Whitsand Bay.

Little Dartmouth to Dartmouth

The weather forecast was for showers, becoming heavier, but the sky was blue so we decided to take a chance on going for a walk.  We drove towards Dartmouth from Totnes, but turned on to the A379 just before getting into the town and looked for signs to Little Dartmouth where we knew there was a NT car park.  Initially we could not find it and when we approached Stoke Fleming we knew we had missed it so we turned around and took the turning to Dartmouth Castle and then followed the direction we thought it should be in (ie right at next junction) and soon came to the car park.  We drank our coffee in the car looking down the coast with a beautiful view of Blackpool Sands and Slapton Sands.

We then headed out down a path marked to the coastal path.  To begin with there was a steepish slope down a field but and the coastal path path went up and down a lot, but the views were magnificent.

Eventually, after 2.5 miles, we came to Dartmouth Castle where we stopped for lunch.  Revived we decided to walk a further mile into Dartmouth.  It was regatta week and we anticipated there would be a lot of activity on the water, but there was just the usual sort of traffic.

After browsing round a couple of bookshops we headed back.  Just after the Castle we took the bridle path rather than the coastal path.  Initially there was a long hill upwards, but once at the top is was fairly flat all the way back to the car.  The car to Dartmouth Castle along the coastal path was 2.5 miles while the return journey was 1 mile.  However, the return journey was mainly on paths between hedges so not so pretty, but not so tiring.

It had been a lovely walk and we had only had one shower and that one only lasted a few minutes and we hardly got wet at all.

Stoke Point

Having parked the car at the National Trust car park inland from Stoke Point we walked down to the coastal path.  This was a very steep path and we determined to find another way back to the car!  We headed eastward and there were beautiful views out to sea and along the coast to Bigbury and beyond.

The path was wide and good and after a while went through woods with plenty of butterflies around.  The path was fairly flat and we slowly went down to the edge of Stoke Beach and then gradually walked up towards Beacon Hill.  We then came to a steep path downwards.  There a path inland that looked as if would skirt this steep hill, but we did not have a map with us so we decided to turn round at this point.

When we came to the pathway back to the carpark we chose to walk on further to the next point and then cut up the hill gradually back to the car park.  A much better way than the downward path.

Whitsand Bay Part 1

We only had the afternoon to walk, but the weather was too good to miss the opportunity to get out in the fresh air.  With only a short amount of time we chose to walk near to Plymouth and drove to the far end of Whitsand Bay.  We parked in the small car park near Wiggle and took the SW Coast Path westward.  We were linking up with the walk we had done a couple of weeks ago around Rame Head.

The path gradually went down the cliffs and then up.  Then it was down then up again and again.  Not an easy walk although the paths were not too bad.  At no time did we go all the way down to the beach but the climb up seemed long.  The view was excellent, but did not change significantly as we walked along.

We eventually came up to the road by the Cliff Top View cafe and we were glad to stop there for a cup of tea.  Although we had only done a small portion of the path around Whitsand Bay we decided to finish there.  We walked back along the road rather than the up and down coastal path and it only took us 20 minutes to return to our car, whereas we had taken 40 minutes on the outward journey!

Not a walk that we would repeat.

Rame Head

This morning we drove to the car park on Rame Head next to the coastguard station.  From here you could see both up and down the coast and visibility was so good the Eddystone Lighthouse looked quite close!  We followed the coastal path towards Whitsand Bay and the views were spectacular.  Near Polhawn Fort there was a hedge full of wild flowers, making the view down the coast even more attractive.

When we reached the coast road we left the coastal path intending to cut across country to Kingsand to do a circular walk around Rame Head.  The walk instructions told us to continue down a road and then take a path to the left.  We walked quite along way until we came to a left turn and when we walked up there we realised we had come to far and were going in the wrong direction.  We retraced our steps, went across a couple of fields and came back onto our original path where we followed our instincts and went down a footpath on the right.  This turned out to be correct and we were soon walking down to Kingsand, with a view of Plymouth Sound and breakwater.

After stopping in Cawsand for lunch, watching sailors and children enjoying the sea, we climbed up the coastal path along Rame Head.  The view out to sea was obscured by trees most of the time, but we had tantalisingly beautiful glimpses at time with yahts with white sails contrasting with the sparkling blue sea.  I would like to repeat this walk when the trees were not in leaf as I am sure it would be glorious.

At one point we heard rustling in the trees beside us and just caught sight of a fawn running through the woodland.

When we arrived back at the tip of Rame Head we  went out to the derelict chapel on the edge of  headland, from where you could see in all directions.

Looe to Polperro

It was a beautiful sunny summers day.  It felt like it might be too hot to walk, but we decided that if we walked along the coast we would feel the sea breeze and so keep cool.

We drove to Hannafore and parked just before the road ran out.  The first part of the walk was a gentle uphill slope, but then we noticed a steep flight of steps.  As we went up we counted them 76 in total!  But the views over the sea to St Georges Island with all the little boats to and fro-ing from Looe made the climb worth it. Initially you could only see down the coast to Rame Head, but then the visibility improved and we could see a headland even further away.

St Goeges Island

Looking back to Hannafore

Before long we were heading downwards towards Talland Bay.  We stopped at the beach there to eat our lunch as we watched children playing in the sea and rock pooling.

From Talland Bay to Polperro it is only 1.5 miles but the hill out of Talland Bay was very steep.  Once we were over the top of that it seemed a short stroll into the busy village of Polperro.  There are sewerage works being done there that spoilt the seascape, but the village was as quaint as ever.  We walked through the village to the bus stop at the top and then caught the bus back to Hannafore.  As we came through Looe we noticed how crowded it was, particularly the beach.

Looe Beach

Before heading home we stopped for tea and cake at the Island View Cafe.  There was a wonderful view of all the boats going to the island and taking tourists  out for boat rides from Looe.

Torquay to Brixham

We caught the train to Torquay and it was just a stone's throw from the station to Torquay beach.  This is where we stopped walking earlier in the year when we walked from Torquay to Meadfoot Beach. We followed the road  towards Paignton and for a short while had to walk on the pavement by the main road. Although it is not pleasant to have cars rushing past you, before long we had views over the sea, and this made up for it.  Soon able to turn off to go through a park at Hollicombe, and from then on we were off-road the whole of the way.

We did not see the sign for the SW coast path and continued walking down to Hollicombe beach.  It was low tide and we saw that other people were walking across the rocks to the beach beyond, so we decided to follow them.  To begin with it was easy as the rocks were flat and encrusted with barnicles so there was plenty of grip.  However, near Preston Sands there was no alternative but to walk across seaweed covered rocks and through shallow pools, but we made it to the other side.   With the tide out we were then able to walk all the way to the end of Paignton Sands without having to go up to the road.

We walked around the harbour and then through the park down to Goodrington.  The views on this walk were spectacular with long views around the bay and beautiful beaches and covers.  Photos cannot capture this.

Goodrington

Up to this point the walk had been easy but from now on there were many ups and downs, with rough steps, but the views were worth it.  Broad Sands was a lovely beach that I had never been to before.  After Elberry Cove we walked through woodland that was pleasantly cool, although the path had roots and stones sticking out of it which meant you had to watch your feet.  We could see the blue of the sea through the trees but there was no view of the bay with all the leaves on the trees.

As we walked down to Churston Cove we were struck by how lovely it looked with all the boats and Brixham in the distance, although the beach itself was not very attractive as stony.

After climbing up from this cove it was just a short walk on to Brixham.  We could look back and see Torquay with its balloon and realise how far we had walked (about 6 1/2 miles).  We were glad that there was a frequent bus service from Brixham to Torquay so we did not have to walk back!

Wembury to River Yealm

We parked at the National Trust car park above the beach at Wembury and walked towards the River Yealm.  It was a climb up the hill to begin with, but the view back to Wembury and then up the River Yealm were worth the effort.

We walked  to the ferry crossing to Noss Mayo before we turned back and headed for an icecream which we ate while we watching surfers at Wembury beach.