Cornwall

 

A break from tradition. After many years at Port Quin on the north Cornwall coast, we went for another National Trust cottage called Trescore, this time on the other side of Padstow overlooking the sea at Porth Mear and Parkhead. 

That meant a longer drive, on the Friday it was six hours including a stop at Exeter services on the M5 We normally break our journey at Taunton Dene services but the car park was incredibly full. Exeter was not much better and inside there were so many people that we just grabbed a sandwich and eat it in the car. But what was even more amazing was the amount of traffic coming back from the south west, the motorway was so busy there were queues in many places.

However, we arrived at the cottage at just after 4 pm to find it superbly appointed, more room than Port Quin's Lacombe and beautifully decorated.

Saturday started sunny and we walked from the cottage to Porth Mear Beach for a coastal walk.

Then along to Parkhead which some reviews say has some of the best views along this coast.

Well it is a wonderful grassy headland that does overlook Bedruthan Steps.

We knew that Bedruthan Steps are now closed, with no access to the beach after a rock fall So it was on to Mawgan Porth and that lovely beach.

We found some rocks at the edge of the beach to sit and have our lunch Alison went and found some coffee (actually tasted the best for a long time) and cake to go with our rolls. We carried on the path on the other side of Mawgan Porth with great views back to the beach from Beryll's Point.

After views of Watergate Bay in the distance, it was soon time to head back. This time taking the path from Bedruthan marked to Pentire Head, only seven minutes walk back to the cottage from the coast.

On Sunday we drove to Padstow, Alison to go running down the coast and me running the Camel Trail. Another really sunny day, so not the best for a run with very little shade. As we have done before many times, we took our lunch to the benches overlooking Rock and the Camel Estuary.

Whilst the benches were virtually deserted, Padstow itself was very crowded so we were glad to leave. We called in at Tesco for some provisions and were back in time to catch some cricket (the second ODI against Australia), the Grand Prix and some Premier League. Unlike Port Quin, the cottage did have (intermittent) WiFi but the Sky channels could not give us proper definition. Another sunny day with the temperature reaching 22C.

Monday started sunny and still and we headed for Porth Mear to walk along the coast the other way to that we took on Saturday. I started in just a short sleeve shirt, unprecedented for Cornwall in mid September. Our route took in some more lovely views.

We arrived at even better views to  Porthcothan.

We stopped here to walk along the sand before proceeding along the coast overlooking numerous coves: Fox Cove, Warren Cove and Pepper Cove.

Back to the beach for a late lunch, finding a shady spot under the cliffs, the sun had become quite hot. We made our way back, Alison going on to Parkhead, me back to the cottage in mid afternoon. We had been out for five hours.

Tuesday was planned for a visit to St Ives to meet Alison's sister. Chas picked us up from the Park and Ride at St Erth (only £2,30 to park all day) and took us back to the apartment where they were staying with great views  across to St Ives. Although the town was hardly visible because of the mist that stayed all day. We had tea on the balcony and the mist cleared for a moment, sort of. 

Nevertheless, we had a good walk around St Ives, taking in all the beaches. 

From Porthminster Beach to Harbour Beach, to Porthgwidden Beach (where we stopped for lunch) and Porthmeor Beach. We came back along the back streets of St Ives which were extremely crowded so we were glad to get back to the apartment at 4.30 pm. An hour or so later we were on our way back. The mist never really cleared all day, but it was still warm,

I was ready for a rest on Wednesday. The mist was still with us and I had time to catch up with afew things while Alison went for a run and walk along the coast. There was the third ODI and my book club novel to start. We called in at Mawgan Porth to collect some lunch and then a restful afternoon.

The sun was back on Thursday, our last full day. Wadebridge for a run down the Camel Trail, although again it was too warm in the sun, and there was less shade than I remembered running towards Bodmin. But an enjoyable four miles. Ten to our favourite cafe, The Granary, still open despite the spaced out tables. A fabulous bacon roll and pot of tea. Back to the cottage for a walk again to Porthcothan, our new favourite beach. Alison even tried out sea swimming whilst I sat in the shade with my book.

It was 415pm before we left Porthcothan and the sun was getting lower as we approached Porth Mear.

Another warm and sunny day at 22C.  Back at Trescore at 5 pm it was time to start the packing for journey home tomorrow. And to take some photos of the cottage.

Another beautiful day with clear blue skies, in fact not a drop of rain fell for the whole holiday. 

We normally go somewhere for the morning of the day we leave. But I felt tired with all that sun, and worried about the traffic. As it turned out, leaving at 8.30 am and our six hours travel time plus stop at Leigh Delamere services was nothing compared to the long queues on the M5 later in the day. So we felt quite smug arriving home just after 3pm. The journey had not spoilt what was a wonderful holiday, especially in these weird times.