Cornwell
Wadebridge, Rock, Padstow
It was quite a long trek from East Sussex to Cornwell ...and once on the road we did not really want to stop. So we admired the amazing Cathedrals and castles on the way and the Isle of Wight, where Cowes week sailing takes place, from a distance.
We had a lovely loft room with ensuite (luckily) - in a terrace house - in a very local street. Parking a real challenge. Our room was at the top of the stairs, without a door. Our room at home is like that - so we are used to it, still a bit strange though. Then ....rest of the house is an absolute shambles !! Our children are serious tidy-freaks in comparison. Kitchen is a seriously scary place !!!! Cannot believe that people are able to live in so much mess and with so much grime and dirt. We were only there for two nights - so no great shakes. It is well located - that is all that matters. The fact that we are paying virtually the same as the absolute 5 star accommodation in East Sussex, just shows how expensive this area is. Breakfast is included in the rate....it is ..."open the cupboards and see what there is ! " Need to write an interesting review ! Our host is pleasant enough, just a totally different level.
Our first priority was to arrange the hire of bicycles for the next day, as the cycle route along the river is touted as one of the best cycles around. The bike hire shop we stopped at was run by South Africans, who have lived in Wadebridge for more than 20 years and knew the Thompson brothers from the de Beers soccer. What a small world ! Well - imagine our surprise when they said that they did not have bicycles for the morning session, but could help us from 15h00. This should have set off the warning lights. They said that this is due to the limited permits they are given, as the route is busy. Again - should have read between the lines ! They then suggested that we take a drive to the small harbour village of Port Isaac, which is famous for the filming of the Doc Martin series. It is a very quaint, although austere looking, little fishing village along a harbour between two high cliffs. The streets are amongst the narrowest I have seen and could not believe a Touareg managing to fit between the houses. We took a walk through the village streets and then went to see the sunset up on the cliffs - passing the local young bull herd very carefully. The views from the cliffs are quite breathtaking - as is the chilly wind that tends to be part of the scenery.
An aside again regarding parking fines. Parking fines are in a totally different league here (around R1000 !). We saw the story in the local newspaper of someone who had parked slightly over the line of their parking bay. In spite of the parking lot being totally empty, and them having paid for their parking, they received a fine of £60/R900 for this offence ! We are quite paranoid about ensuring that we don't get one of these "love letters" - not always an easy task and definitely a very expensive one.
The following day the sun was out again. We were told that Rock is the place to go ...so we went. Managed to find an affordable parking and made our way down to the beach. Interesting that the tide variation here is around 7 meters - so it was about a 1 km walk across the sand to the river and the sea at the river mouth. All the motorboats and yachts were sitting on dry land. Really strange to see. Walked along a section of the Coastal Path to Polzeath - with great views across the river to Padstow, the cliffs and the golf course tucked in amongst the dunes. Enjoyed the views and the sunshine. Definitely is a gorgeous holiday place, especially for families with children, due to the huge sandy beach and estuary water channels. However, had no intention of joining the many people on the beach and in the water ...far too cold for that !
Amazing to see how many people have their dogs (of all sizes) with them on holiday and therefore on the beach. The dogs are kept well under control and no mess is left behind. We worked out that not only are people really fond of their dogs, but it is just far too expensive to put them into kennels or having people to look after them, so they have to come along.
At 15h00 we made sure to collect our bicycles and then realised what is meant by "popular" cycle route. It is the highway of cycle routes - with every toddler that has just learnt how to ride a bicycle followed by the whole extended family ....from granny to great-aunt thrice removed. Oh my - cycle rage territory. We thought - what ...3 hours of this ...and then arrived in Padstow within 20 minutes. Ok...time estimates are meant for the toddler group. We found a spot to lock up our bikes (huge chain !) and wondered how we would ever find them again amongst the literally thousands of bikes in the bike park...but we did ! Padstow is another quaint seaside village with a small harbour and a fish&chip shop, bistro, cafe, delicatessen, restaurant and souvenir shop - all belonging to the gourmet chef Rick Stein (alternative name for Padstow is Padstein !)
While we were snacking on some hot chips whilst sitting on the harbour wall, we watched how a young boy, fishing with his father, managed to catch a seagull. Pandamonium !! Squeemish me was not getting involved. Clint tried to help - but was rendered totally useless without his glasses. So after struggling with the poor traumatised bird for a while, the lady who had tucked him under her arm walked off to the local fishing shop to have the hook cut, with the young boy and his father in tow.
We then headed back to Wadebridge and seeing that we still had the bicycles for 3 hours, decided to head up the river to Bodemin, the less popular route. What a beautiful cycle - through leafy green forests, along the estuary with its water pools, covered in greenery. The cycle route is along the old railway track - just amazing. In Bodewin we marvelled at the medieval buildings, church and the former prison - rather forebidding building. Then...the billowing black clouds sent us back to Wadebridge with a serious dash of speed. Happy to say that the rain did not catch us ! On the advice of the bike hire people, we went to a local pub for dinner. It is a traditional 300 year old pub, beautiful old building, with beautiful flower baskets and outside garden and the inside is decorated with lots of original wind-up clocks of all sizes. 7pm and they all chimed - amazing ! The landlady was much more pleasant than we had been led to believe, and gave us the last table for two. This table had a little bench with cushions as seating, so that Clint and I had to sit next to each other - directly opposite another couple in the same type of seating. Seeing that we were looking straight at each other, we started chatting and proceded to have a very social evening and dinner with this couple from Birmingham.
Cornwell is very scenic - full of little lanes and wonderful walking paths - and a stunning coastline.