According to the SW Coastal Path guide, the section from Bude to Hartland Quay is probably the toughest on the path, 15.2 miles. We therefore decided to divide the route into two sections and stop at Morwenstow (around 7 miles). However we were unable to arrange accommodation here, so I chose a pub at what I estimated to be 2 miles inland. Unfortunately, not only was the Old Smithy Inn considerably further than I had promised, it involved almost as much climbing as the cliff path!

We left Bude in full wet weather gear, having checked the forecast and then decided we had been overly pessimistic, as the sun was shining. However, as we progressed up and down the paths, down came the rain and boy did the wind blow! Fortunately the showers were short lived and we arrived in Morwenstow where we enjoyed a lovely stop at the old tea shop for lunch. Our route then took us through very muddy paths through fields of cows and up and down steep hills until we finally reached the comfort of our B & B. And we have finally left Cornwall and entered Devon!

A Backward Glance

After a day’s rest from walking and freshly cleaned underwear, Carol stopped keeping her customary three metres in front of me. It was a pleasant dry, cold but not too hilly stroll along the cliff tops so time and miles just slipped past. We had the large white radio dishes of GCHQ in front of us as we headed North. This is where government eavesdrop on telecommunications, mostly Russkies probably but I reckon they’ve Johnny on their radar too. As we got close to the dishes, wet windy weather returned and we were climbing again until a long descent into Morwenstow, and lunch at the Rectory Farm Tea Rooms (a 13th century farm house). The vicar there Robert Stephen Hawker (1803 – 1875) was a character by all accounts. Smoked opium, wrote poetry (friend of Tennyson), refused to wear the regulatory clergyman attire, enjoyed a good joke (dressed in seaweed on the beach to bemuse his parishioners), and the only views he readily shared were those of the cliffs and countryside around him. A grown up version of Otto in fact – but I’d keep off those poppy seed rolls if I were you mate. The last mile of the day is always the longest and today’s was a very steep winding ascent to our lodgings ‘Old Smithy Inn’ and across the Cornwall border into Devon. Phew, we made it!