The hardest thing about our summer project is the logistics of it all. It is so difficult to work out how we are going to get to the start of our walk and how we are going to get home at the end. Today we went in the car to 'Zennor'. Very cheap parking there - we only had to put £1 in the honesty box! However we couldn't remember how long it would take us to drive to Zennor so we got there at 11am and the first bus to Pendeen didn't leave until 11.31am.I was allowed to go for a little walk along a lane while we were waiting and I found some straw to roll in. When I got onto the very busy, open topped bus, Ann was a little bit embarassed because she said I smelt like a farmyard dog. Fortunately no-one sat next to us, but I'm a good girl on the bus anyway. I immediately lay down underneath the seat and all the foreign tourists on the bus said what a good dog I was. Actually I don't know if that's what they said because I don't speak German but they were looking at me and smiling. It cost Ann £3.65 to go to Pendeen from Zennor and 65p for my normal doggie day rider ticket.
When we got to Pendeen the bus driver forgot to stop his bus so we ended up having to go to Geevor Tin Mine. That was much better for me because it meant that I could go 'off lead' for the whole of our walk. If we had got off the bus in Pendeen I would have been made to stay on my lead while we walked down little country roads to the Pendeen Lighthouse which was at the start of our walk. I think that would have taken us about 20 mins. It took us 25 mins to walk from Geevor Tin Mine to the start of our walk so I suppose there wasn't much difference time wise.
We are trying to do the walks as described on the 'South West Coast Path Website' so really we should have been walking 14 miles today from Pendeen to St Ives. We got to the Geevor Tin Mine at 12 noon (that was the earliest we could get a bus). Ann said she thought it would take us 3-4 hours to walk to Zennor but if we got there by 2pm we'd carry on to St Ives and then ask someone to drive us back to Zennor to get the car.
Needless to say we didn't get back to Zennor until 4pm!
It was a really, hard walk today. There were a few parts that were easy, peasy, but a lot of the paths were very narrow, very steep, very rocky and very boggy. It had said on the website that this is one of the hardest sections of the entire coastal path but we thought that meant the Zennor to St Ives part. Ann has been wearing her trainers for our walks and while they're really comfortable to walk in, she has discovered they're not waterproof when walking through bogs. She thinks she might now have 'trench foot'?!
When we started our walk it was really hot and sunny. Ann had to take off her fleece and roll up her trousers. I was OK 'cos there were lots of streams and boggy bits that I could wallow in to keep me cool. Ann was moaning about carrying her rucksack - she said it makes her back all sweaty! However, just as we stopped for our lunch it started to drizzle a tiny bit and got a bit cold. Ann had to put her fleece back on although she didn't have to get her anorak out until we were almost back to Zennor. I was a little bit upset at lunchtime - because I didn't get any! It was beef sandwiches today and Ann said I couldn't have any because they had mustard on them and she said I didn't like mustard - I'm not so sure about that!
On the website it had said that this was one of the most remote parts of the SWCP. There was no cafes, toilets, etc unless we went a long way inland. There wasn't really too many other people doing this walk either. We passed a huge group of German school kids going in the opposite direction to us and we also saw two lots of rock climbers perched on two lots of rocks/cliffs with ropes - that looked a bit scarey! Also when we were treking through a particularly boggy bit which was taking us ages (well it was taking Ann ages, I was quite quick!), a gorgeous, hunky looking guy appeared out of nowhere behind us. For the second time today, Ann looked a bit embarassed 'cos she'd been yelling at me to get out the way so she could navigate the stones & turfts of grass while trying to avoid getting her feet too wet. Anyway she had a bit of a chat with 'Mr Hunk', who obviously had no interest in her whatsoever. He'd already walked from Gurnards Head earlier, done a bit of rock climbing, and now was on his way back. She tried to impress him by saying she'd walked from Pendeen and was on her way to Zennor but he just said, 'Have a nice walk' and was about a mile in front within 10 mins!! That was after we'd stopped on a rock to have lunch and because it was getting a bit cold and drizzly she hadn't bothered to reapply her lipstick. She asked me if she thought that would have made a difference? As if I'd know? He was probably about 20 years younger than her anyway?! - so no - if she wants an honest answer I doubt it. I actually walked a few yards with him 'cos I quite liked him and he was nice to me. But then I realised that Ann was being really slow and was struggling over the boggy bits and stoney bits so I knew thatI had to go back and support her.
However, although there wasn't really too many people on this section of the walk, everyone we met was really friendly. We only met one other dog today - one of those pointy faced collies! I was loads prettier than it, though I have to say it was a lot cleaner than me. Ann asked its owner how she managed to keep it so clean and she said they hadn't gone through any boggy bits! We thought that was a lie because we went through loads of boggy bits after we'd met it. I ended up really, really dirty today. I didn't do anything naughty but it's just so difficult to stay clean when one has to walk through several sections of boggy coastal path. Ann said she would let me have a wallow in the stream beside the car park at Zennor when we finished our walk. However, just before we got to the track that leads back into the village of Zennor we had to cross a stream and I had a really good swim and wallow. Ann was so pleased with me. She said that even though I was still a bit stinky, at least I was clean so all she had to do with me when we got back to the car was towel dry me and then I was happy to jump into the boot.
We did have one scarey experience today - Ann tripped over a gorse bush root, fell down and hurt her right hand and left foot. I didn't know what to do so I just stood and stared at her. It made us realise that accidents can happen at any time. Fortunately she was OK and we had mobile reception in that area but Ann says we have to buy a whistle (to attract attention if there's no mobile reception) and also buy some cleansing wipes to keep us clean.
Our walk today was lovely although now that I've had my dinner, I'm a very, very tired little collie dog and I'm lying at Ann's feet while dicating my blog for the day!
Even though we should have walked 14 miles today Ann says we can do the Zennor to St Ives section of the SWCP on Friday. She thinks this will take at least 4 hours and she's going to check out the bus timetables now to see what time we can start.
Our walk today was lovely - the scenery was very dramatic and Ann has taken lots of photos. Unfortunately, she hasn't yet worked out how to upload more than one photo to each blog. She says it's a learning experience and by the time we've walked the full 630 miles of the SWCP we'll be experienced in everything!
I don't care. I've had a lovely day and I'm having a little snooze in my bed now!
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