Cornwall

This was a day full of fabulous visits, starting with the very pretty fishing port of Boscastle on the north coast of Cornwall. It took some very very teeny tiny roads to get to it, but Samuel managed it, very quickly in fact!

It is a very small village, but judging from the size of the car park, high season must be a horrific time to visit. 

Sadly, the tide was out, but it was nevertheless extremely picturesque. The narrow entrance to the harbour must have been quite tricky in anything but the smallest of boats. It had been a smugglers' cove, but they would have certainly had to be skilful sailors.

Having tried the left side of the river and finding myself on very uneven slopes, I turned and headed on to the other side, which quickly afforded me some magnificent views of the headland, and a path all to myself. Perfect! I loved this pretty cottage with its unique seat. 

The next stop, only some minutes down the road was Tintagel Castle, Kastel Dintagel. This truly dramatic site dates back to the early Middle Ages. It. was suggested way back in the 12th century that the legendary King Arthur had been conceived here, so a castle was built there in 1230s. I visited there with Jim in the 70s I think. I have very vague memories of free camping close by and being able to view the area free of charge. However, I am not sure how we would have got across to the castle on its own little island.

There is now a new bridge linking the island to the mainland. Not having a good head for heights, I struggled a little, particularly in the centre. Looking down prior to crossing, and seeing the unbelievably never- ending, steep steps, made me feel somewhat anxious. But, I made it over the bridge with its narrow gap in the centre, and boy, was it worth it.
. Needless to say, I  did not take one of the many staircases down to the beach below, I happily stayed at the top! Seeing the bridge with only one person on it is apparently extremely rare,  as there are up to  3000-4000visitors a day here in summer. Aargh!

I always find myself picturing the people who lived in these ancient places. What grand feasts they must have had in this castle, 800 or so years ago. The castle entrance is still magnificent, even in ruins. They were such clever people to build such edifices then.

And the view was totally breathtaking over the rugged and exceptionally beautiful Cornish coastline. The colours of the water far below were gorgeous.

As we left, the wonderful smells of food, cooked in the medieval way, wafted towards us. What a pity they had not quite finished the preparation of what looked like a very tasty and healthy feast.

For me, the highlight of the day, if not the trip, was visiting Port Isaac, or commonly known as Portwen thanks to the only series I have ever really loved, Doc Martin! As I wandered around this picturesque little village, I could picture him striding around, generally being rather impatient and rude to others in the village. It was such a fabulous view over the cove to his home and surgery. The poor village, which was unknown before Doc Martin started filming there, is now overrun with visitors, although I am sure they are happy about the money they spend there.

Actually, it, like Boscastle, should have been a much- loved tourist spot in its own right. It is a fantastic little village, with steep, tiny, winding streets, and colourful and sometimes quite wonky houses!

The countryside around the village is lush and beautiful, with rolling hills, farms, and dramatic cliffs. What a fabulous view across the bay to Doc's house, which is up for sale. It is a fairly uninteresting-looking place, but I am sure it must be worth a fortune!
The house also has the most amazing view over the bay, beach and rest of Portwen. It is stunningly beautiful. What an idyllic location apart from its very steep access.

The Portwen chemist is, in fact, a sweetie shop. It is really small so gets crowded very quickly. No social distancing possible in most of Portwen. I hope they have a good GP!

It was a long day, so it was great to get back to our rather plush accommodation overlooking the well-frequented beach. There were always plenty of hardy swimmers in the sea during the day, and when I opened the curtains, there were several swimmers already way out to sea. I guess perfect weather conditions contributed much to this.

One of the wonderful things about Rabbies is that tours often visit tourist spots off the beaten track. Today's visit was exactly that, with a visit to the spectacular Minack Theatre. I wouldn't have missed it for anything. It has so much to offer. Luckily for us, on the day we visited, Billy Rawlings, the original owner's gardener, was giving the most in- depth details as to how this fabulous theatre was created by Rowena Cade. Incredibly, she had purchased the land for only 100 pounds in the 1920s. After she was approached by a theatre group to put on Shakespeare's A Midsummer Night's dream, which was a massive success, she realised the potential of her property and its location. Working mostly with hand tools and the occasional stick of dynamite, she and some local workers built the terraces over her lifetime. What hard work that was working on such steep terrain, but she achieved a remarkable setting for plays of all kinds. 

Thousands of amateur actors star in the hundreds of plays each year, presented in this unique setting, whatever the weather. In fact, we visited in perfect weather but unfortunately, the first rain I have seen for months, fell in the evening, just as the first night of a new play started. What a shame!

It must be very hard as a spectator to keep your mind on the play with such sensational scenery all around you, whatever the weather.

Cornwall's Land's End is no more special than any other Cornish clifftop area, apart from the fact that England does actually end here! Rather sadly, the area was purchased by the same man who built the amusement area at the Needles on the Isle of Wight, and thus it has a rather tacky group of amusement activities, probably very much loved by children, but not really in keeping with the spectacular natural beauty of the region.

It is another place I remember from earlier travels in our campervan. It was, and still is, a phenomenal place to visit, to walk, to view the sea birds and to listen to the pounding of the sea on the crumbling cliffs. I am pleased to say that this aspect of Land's End is unlikely to change in the foreseeable future. 

Land's End was in no way the end of our second day in Cornwall. There is so much to see. We were fortunate enough to be treated to an extra to the tour, a visit to Botallack Mine , in the midst of some truly dramatic landscape, typical of Cornwall. Tin mining played a very important role in Cornwall in the nineteenth century and Botallack is one of the most famous ruins now open to visitors.

It still has a number of the chimneys intact and many of the ruins of the miners' homes, engine houses, tunnels, etc, can be explored. 

Apart from the historical value of this site, the landscape is spectacular, reminding me very much of parts of Ireland. 

I guess that a tour of Cornwall can not really omit a visit to St Ives, one of the biggest tourist- income earners in the country. With the thousands of visitors thronging the narrow streets, out of season, on a weekday, it did not take long to realise why so much is spent there. Shops, cafes and bars were heaving with people of all ages and nationalities. 

The beach area with its many fish and chip shops, cafes, and arcades was packed. It did not, strangely enough, detract from the lovely setting, the golden sands and tranquil fishing harbour.

Whilst thousands shuffled along the crowded streets, there were an unbelievable number of 4- legged visitors. I have never in my life seen so many dogs, even though we have seen more than average throughout our travels. Nearly every shop, bar or cafe has a bowl outside for dogs and probably 1 in 4 people has at least one dog, sometimes even three or four. It was amazing.  No wonder there are special shops for dogs here!

Big dogs, little dogs, fat and thin dogs, all colours imaginable, an example of virtually every breed, walked past us as we tucked in to our fish and chips by the harbour.

They don't all walk! Many are carried in arms or backpacks, or have their own pushchairs specially designed for pooches either too old or too stubhorn to walk. Or, there are of course bikes with cages on the front or trailers on the back for our canine friends- man's best friends. 

Only two days in Cornwall, and yet we have seen an incredible number of exceptionally beautiful and fascinating places.