Home From Cornwall….For Now
Ten days in Cornwall in April and we didn’t see a drop of rain, now that’s got to be a blessing. COVID restrictions and protocols made it a different kind of visit, with no indoor catering coupled with cold evenings and limited table space making seeking our main meal a bit of a daily challenge but with a bit of flexibility and resourcefulness we avoided going hungry. Our new found virtue of patience, no doubt brought on by the slower pace of retirement, came in handy at times.
And so we have completed the first of three UK trips which we have in the diary to fill in some of the time before we can once again look at international travel. In less than two weeks time we have a 14-day trip back to Cornwall, followed in June by a tour of different areas of England and Wales.
We closed this first Cornwall trip by walking a further section of the coastal path, picking up from where we left off a few days ago at Mother Ivey’s Bay to continue around Trevose Head and pass some more of the area’s splendid beaches. And this selection of beaches really is splendid: Mother Ivey’s is beautiful and houses the cliffside lifeboat station, Booby’s Bay is a geological and rockpool haven, after which the path undulates along the clifftop until the expansive sands of Constantine come into view.
Constantine is a huge, dune backed beach of soft golden sand, but with minimal parking and other facilities it never appears to be overcrowded, or even busy for that matter. Over the next few headlands we reach the narrower yet just as beautiful Treyarnon Bay, with classically superb views of the rolling surf from its southern flank.
Beyond Treyarnon is yet another jaw dropper at Porthcothan, but we stop a little short of there on this occasion, purposefully leaving enough time for a last wander around Padstow harbour, and enough time for a last pasty. And a last pint or two.
It’s been wonderful to spend leisurely time here instead of our more usual flying visits off season to deal with the business side of owning a holiday cottage. The thought of another fortnight here so soon, will keep us smiling through the next couple of weeks. Our love of this area just grows.
27 Comments
normareadtalktalknet
Fantastic ..you’ve given us a real taster.. great pics and description of a very special place .. some of the names are really quaint
Phil & Michaela
Thank you Norma – can’t wait to be back there!
grandmisadventures
Such a beautiful place! Ive so loved following along on your Cornwall visit and Im looking forward to following your next visit 🙂
Phil & Michaela
Thank you so much
Lookoom
Thank you for giving us this holiday by the sea. I find the ramp of the lifeboat unusually long, making it looks like a funfair.
Phil & Michaela
The tidal sweep there is broad, so the lifeboat station needs to be far enough out to ensure that the water is deep enough for launching even at low tide, which in turn means that the ramp looks very long at lower tides. So yes it is unusually long and steep.
leightontravels
More gorgeous photos from this essential part of England. I really should visit someday. frustratingly, my parents lived in Cornwall (Helston) for a few years, but I was based in China at the time and never got to see the place. Have enjoyed this virtual visit.
Phil & Michaela
Well worth giving it a tour next time you’re on these shores
Andrew Petcher
Love that evening shot with the reflections.
It hasn’t rained here for about a month. Garden plants are all thirsty.
Phil & Michaela
Same here in Kent. Came home to a very dry garden!
Jyothi
Wow.. Michaela, awesome pics!!!
Phil & Michaela
Thank you!
Brian Tucker
Hi
Do you mind if I use your evening photo of Padstow as a basis for one of my watercolours please
Enjoying you Cornish blog by the way
Brian
Phil & Michaela
Hi Brian, yes I am happy and flattered for you to use my photo for your watercolours, will be interested to see the finished painting. Could you just put a credit to me and thehungrytravellers.blog when you post it. Glad you are enjoying the Cornish blog, will be posting more when we go back there in 2 weeks. Michaela 😊
Ann Coleman
Cornwall looks beautiful! I’m glad you were able to get your trip in, even with Covid restrictions.
Phil & Michaela
Thank you Ann, it’s been great to get away. Already looking forward to next time and wishing for the resumption of world travel.
carolinehelbig
Incredible photos! I knew Cornwall was beautiful, but you’ve made it even more appealing to me for a future trip. Those beaches look almost tropical (I know it’s deceiving).
Phil & Michaela
Thank you Caroline. Were so lucky to have sunshine every day which really brought the colours to life. The sand is so soft and the the sea tempting but Atlantic is far from tropical, its unbelievably cold, too cold for us😁
WanderingCanadians
How lucky to go on vacation and not have any rain. Cornwall looks like it was the perfect place to explore and enjoy the fresh air. I can easily see why you plan on returning. We’re still in a province-wide shutdown here in Ontario so we’ve just been taking day-trips and visiting our cabin. We have a road trip planned for the end of June, so fingers crossed this pandemic is more under control and we’re able to get away.
Phil & Michaela
Yes indeed. At the minute, our restrictions are easing…we’re still optimistic that we’ll be travelling internationally again by July, but of course there’s no guarantee of anything just now.
Toonsarah
I’ve loved sharing your Cornish holiday with you! That lifeboat station at Mother Ivey’s Bay is particularly photogenic and the evening shots in Padstow make it look very appealing 🙂
Phil & Michaela
Sitting in the quayside pub, The Custom House, watching the lights come on around the harbour and start to cast reflections in the water just as, if you’re lucky, the fishing fleet comes home….is the stuff dreams are made of. No “sitting in the pub” this time of course but there is always something magical about that place…
wetanddustyroads
Sunshine all the way … your luck was in on this great stay! I’m sad it’s over (for now), but happy that you will be back – I’ve enjoyed exploring Cornwall with you.
And that last photo … just wow 😲 … you will put all your followers on the next available plane to Padstow!
Phil & Michaela
Ha ha we should be on the Visit Cornwall payroll! (We’re not, by the way…). Which photo, the harbour one or the one looking up the street?
wetanddustyroads
The one looking up the street … but now that you’ve mentioned it, the harbour one is equally great!
Phil & Michaela
Ha! I asked because I love the street view one, too!
Gilda Baxter
I am so glad you had fantastic dry weather there in April. I just hope we will also be as lucky for our trip in May. Your photos are gorgeous, I can see why you want a return visit.