Devon Holiday on North West Coast

 

Day 1 Arriving at Morwenstow

Having travelled some of the way in pouring rain, it had stopped by 10.00am and it was then a bright, windy day. We had a spacious bungalow with lovely views.

Once we had unpacked and had a coffee we drove to Bude, which was only a few miles away to pick up a few groceries, then went down to the beach. There was a junior surfing competition going on. We watched for a while before walking along the beach. There were some very interesting rock formations.

 

Further along the beach there was an open air swimming pool which had been carved in amongst the rocks.

We walked along part of the coastal path then descended onto Middle beach where the rock formations were more prominent. 

We headed back the way we had come from and stopped at the 'Life's a Beach' for lunch. We spent the rest of the day back at our holiday bungalow.

Day 2 Marsland Cliffs

No rush today. We are going to walk to Marsland Bay having decided it was too far to walk to Welcome Bay. It was a warm day although quite breezy. We had worked out the walk was roughly a mile away. We walked from the house, passed the Smithy pub and on until we joined a track. From here it was all down hill, gradually getting steeper and steeper. 

We passed the entrance to the nature reserve which we might visit later in the week. As we continued down the hill the view was amazing. Nestled in amongst the cliffs was a house, white showing up against the grey granite cliffs.

Having walked a little further, and seeing how much further there was to go and it was still getting steeper it was decided we should about turn. Although I find it easier to walk up hill rather than down I was grateful we hadn't gone any further. On reaching the top we decided to see if we could book in at the 'Smithy' for Sunday lunch. Booking made we walked back to the house so I could change then went back to the 'Smithy' for a lovely Sunday roast. We spent the rest of the day reading, watching the women's tennis final at Queens and athletics from Oslo.

Day 3 Boscastle

The clouds cleared and by 10.00am we were on our way to Boscastle. It is a beautiful little fishing village with a river running down to the harbour which is shielded by Wlliapark cliff on one side and a Penally cliff on the other.

Slate was still being mined up to the early 20th century. We walked a fair way up the granite cliff before returning to have our lunch overlooking the harbour.

On reaching the bottom we stopped at the National Trust shop before returning to the car to leave our jackets and bags before walking up the cliff on the other side. We went far enough to be able to sit on the cliff and over look the second harbour (or harbour entrance) out to sea.

We watched a group of young lads jumping and diving off the cliff edge into the sea.

     

We returned to ground level and on the way back to the car bought Cornish pasties for our tea. Another great day. I'm now sitting on the sofa with the doors open, listening to the birds singing.

Day 4 Welcome Bay 

We spent this morning at Welcome Bay. It was worth the hair-raising drive to get there. I'm glad we didn't meet any other traffic. The tide was on its way out though still high on the beach. 

We walked across the stepping stones onto the grassy cliff and took photos of the waterfall from above and also of the wider scene.

Once we had exhausted this area we made our way back across the stepping stones and descended the steep, rocky path to the pebbled beach. By now the tide had gone out far enough to be able to take photos of the rocky outcrops that jutted out into the sea.

Next it was round to the waterfall.

We sat on the beach for a while and just watched and listened. It was very peaceful and refreshing. A few more shots of the cliffs at ground level and it was time to wind our way back starting with the steep climb up to the car park. 

We kept our fingers crossed that we wouldn't meet any other traffic as we drove back up the very narrow, steep single track unmade road. Unfortunately Laurence had to reverse back twice to allow traffic through, and that was before we even ventured out of the entrance to the car park. Apart from that we made our way back to the house in time for lunch. 

In the afternoon we went to Morewenstow where we visited a little church with a lot of history.

'Morwenstow is the one-time home of the eccentric vicar and poet Robert Stephen Hawker (1803–1875), the writer of Cornwall's anthem Trelawny. Hawker is also credited with reviving the custom of Harvest Festival'.

We then walked across the fields, (having first managed to get one leg stuck going over a very awkward stone stile). Laurence nudged the other leg over for me. On reaching the edge of the cliffs we were able to look down on Hawkers Hut which was a look out post for ships travelling the very dangerous waters on this part of the coast. We then headed back to the Old Rectory tea rooms for refreshments. During this walk I managed to get a great shot of a bee on a purple thistle head. The bee was saturated in pollen and at one point appeared to be doing a dance to rid the pollen from its face.   

        

A very enjoyable day.

Day 5 Hartland Quay

Today we drove to Hartland Quay. Rather than drive all the way down we parked part way and walked on the coastal path. It was a gravel path with some steps. The view from here was stunning and we could see Lundy Island in the distance. Unfortunately after we had gone about half way I was getting so much pain from my ankle I was unable to continue. I made my way back to the top and Laurence carried on. I was able to sit on a seat and admire the view until Laurence returned. 

From here we went onto Hartland Abbey. It has had much restoration work done on it and now looks more like a stately home sitting in 50 acres of ground.

There were various gardens like the walled garden, the kitchen garden, the bog garden and the shrubbery. It was interesting to walk around but were disappointed that there was not more to see. Returning home we had a late lunch and watch Jack Draper win his tennis match at Queens. We went to the Old Smithy for dinner and strolled back in the warm evening sunshine.

Day 6 Local Nature Reserve.

Today we headed out for the local nature reserve. We could walk to it from the house or so we thought. Once we had walked through the farm yard and down the first bit of track it was all down hill and very rough, rocky ground. Unless I could get my foot on firm ground I was finding pain just shot through my ankles. As we were only half way down with the steepest bit to come I had to call it a day. We walked back home and spent the rest of the morning relaxing. I cooked dinner at lunch time and we watched the tennis at Queens in the afternoon, between packing and tidying round the house. Tomorrow we are going to stop off at Westward Ho before continuing to our over night stop on the M4.