Hello all :)

So we ended up staying outside Ilfracombe for 4 nights, all bar the last night we had the campsite to ourselves (and our newly borrowed cat!)

We both really loved Ilfracombe, a very pretty seaside spot with great art galleries and independent shops to browse - although parts of it are definitely still living in the 70's! We did a boat trip along the coast which was ok, could have had better commentary - the skipper just pointed out all the excellent places to park at each beach, not quite the tour we were expecting!

The campsite said there was a 30 minute woodland walk to a local beach and pub, so we thought we'd walk there one night….. well it was definitely more of a hike than a walk - it was all downhill through a wet, woodland (very pretty) but we knew it was going be uphill all the way back! It took about 45 minutes (liars!) And we came out a tiny bay which was very cute - then we hiked up to the headland to see the sunset before finding the pub (up another massive hill) and then walking back in the dark - it was good fun but we've never been anywhere so hilly, and you'll see this is a recurring theme!! The campsite had bikes to hire so we decided to rent them and cycle to Ilfracombe on a 'flat cycle route' (said the campsite…) You can't kid a Coates twice so we opted for the electric bikes. My god, we needed them! And they are great fun with 4 levels of power, the 4th being like a Mario super boost, such fun - it was a lovely flat cycle ride in. Then we changed the route to get back - well you still have to put a lot of effort in to uphill cycling, we were cycling up through a housing estate and were passed by a white van man - James pointed out how he was laughing at us and when we got to the top of the estate, he got out his van and said it was a dead end and we had missed the path we needed!! No wonder he was having a chuckle, so it was a nice ride back down, found the correct path only to find it was even steeper than before - and that was the route home. Somehow we had found the off road coastal path, so we were cycling uphill over fields full of cows - great views over the cliffs, but man it was such a workout - my bottom is now between my shoulder blades!!

After Ilfracombe, we moved to a rural farm campsite Bakesdown Farm outside Bude. It was a wonderful site, a field all to ourselves with stunning countryside views and a great sunset with a campfire. Unfortunately, it was very rainy the next day so it was a wet walk into Bude along the canal path and a quick look around Bude Castle (not a castle, a very small house) and the shops before a walk back.

We only stayed 2 nights before moving to Newquay with a 'city' campsite which is a holiday park, full of mobile homes but thankfully with a launderette.

Last night we walked into Newquay for fish and chips (tasty) but Newquay itself was very disappointing - it's really dated and quite ugly so we are moving on tomorrow. Today we took the 75 minute scenic bus (very pretty views) across to Padstow, which was quite charming although packed with people and clearly taken over by Rick Stein. He's got a seafood restaurant, fish and chip takeaway, delicatessen, bakery, shop ….. hope he gets a discount on the business rates. There were plenty of other shops all quite touristy but it was nice to have a look around and the sun was shining.

We're intending to head to Helston tomorrow and explore all of the tip of Cornwall from there - hopefully the site will be nice enough to stay a while.