For my final weekend of walking, on the Saturday, I would be reaching The Lizard from Porthleven and on Sunday, I would reach it from Coverack in the other direction with friends, Jeff and Marie Weeks for the final leg.
I had caught the Friday evening train down to Penzance from Exeter and bussed it to Porthleven, staying in a small B&B called Seefar overlooking the harbour. The weather was forecast to be a bit dodgy - so I didn't hang about and was back on the path just after 8.30am
True to form, it started drizzling before I had left the village with the path leaving the harbour edge past the Clock tower and alongside the seafront cottages out and up to the low cliffs beyond.
Before long I had reached the edge of the massive length of Porthleven Sands which stretched for 2.5 miles all the way to Gunwalloe Fishing Cove. The path carried on above the beach until it reached Loe Pool and Carminowe creek - Cornwall's largest natural lake which edged up to the back of Porthleven Sands. Crossing the sands, it was then a shortish walk up onto the cliffs again to then reach Gunwalloe and then up to the imposing Halzephron Cliffs. A pair of Peregrine Falcons were searching for food, hovering quite close to the cliff edge.
The next point of interest was Church Cove, with the 15th Century Gunwalloe Church nestled into the cliffs above the cove and constantly at risk from erosion. The path passed alongside a golf course before reaching another pleasant cove at Poldhu. Despite the weather - there were several families enjoying the beach and the RNLI lifeguards were in attendance.Further on, beyond Poldhu Point there was the Marconi Monument, marking the area where the first transatlantic telegraph signals were sent across to America.
The next cove was Polurrian, a small beach resort with cafe and hotel and then at the top of the cliffs beyond an old coastguard Hut, was the large Mullion Cove Hotel looking down onto the small fishing hamlet of Mullion Cove, with Mullion itself, further inland. This small harbour has been battered by the waves over the years, and has belonged to the National Trust since 1945. Its very unspoilt as you would expect and the small cafe looked as if it hadn't changed since the 1940's. Still raining - it was a good time for a pit stop before the last 7 miles to Lizard Point.
Mullion CoveThe coastline was much more rugged now, and would remain so for the rest of the day, it was just a shame that it was so drizzly and misty. There were a series of steep descents and ascents with sheer cliff faces and small caves. At the top of the cliffs was a herd of Long Horn Cattle literally grazing over the cliff edge. Eventually after walking around the Rill Point - the various buldings at the Lizard were clearly visible and in the foreground a series of small islands and rocks which marked the well known Kynance Cove. I could also hear the Lizard - as the Lighthouse was booming out a fog horn at regular intervals. This was my first visit to this area of Cornwall and I was conscious that I wasn't seeing it at it's best. The rocks were the local Serpentine - red and green mottled in appearance interspersed with granite. The cove, also owned by the National Trust sits in a steep valley and is a fantastic setting.
Again, very unspoilt, Kynance Cove consisted of a Cafe, self catering cottages and a toilet complex which was built into the rocks and has a natural roof with flowers. Signs in the toilet, which I graced, described how it was very much a hi-tech Bio-Bubble toilet with all waste being treated and converted into clean water. The roofs of the other buildings had special solar tiles and everything possible had been done to make the whole complex as eco-friendly as possible. I will return on a
better day!
Kynance Cove
The tide was still low, so I was able to take the path at the back of the beach and then climb steeply up to the Kynance Car Park. The views back to the cove and Asparagus Island were superb as I carried on towards the Lizard.
Lizard village itself is a mile or so inland, but the Point was my destination, the most Southerly point of England and the finishing point for my walk. As I approached, it all appeared a bit scruffy. Looking downwards, I could see the remains of an old Lifeboat station and then there was a ramshackle Gift Shop and Cafe which was doing a brisk trade. It was much better inside than out and the home cooked fare looked very tempting. The decision to have a Cream tea took a millisecond and it was superb. I was due to meet my friends Jeff and Marie here - but they were running late - so agreed to catch up with them in the village pub. With some time to kill - I carried on along the path towards the large Lighthouse complex which is also a tourist attraction and then headed inland towards the village. A bit touristy as you might expect, the village was dominated by shops offering Serpentine stone products - mostly in a dark green mottled colour - mostly pretty naff.
I headed for the pub and before long Jeff and Marie turned up, having driven from Exeter. They were keen to join me for my final walk, and it was good to have their company. I had booked a couple of rooms at the Cadgwith Cove Inn which sounded an idyllic location, just a few miles from the Lizard.
Cadgwith was very picturesque and a working fishing village with the boats hauled up the beach by tractor. The Hotel wasn't the best, but it was all about location. Amazingly, Jeff spotted someone he knew walking past the hotel, in this obscure part of Cornwall and they joined us for some drinks.
We then had a great meal - fish was obviously the specialty and it didn't disappoint. Jeff and I were tempted to have a session, but with a 12 mile walk to complete the next day we erred on the cautious side. So, one more day of walking to go - from Coverack back to the Lizard from the other direction - might be tempted to have another Cream tea!
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