Gorran Haven to Charlestown - 11 miles

What a wet miserable day for a long walk. 
 

Left home in St Ives at about 8.40am and it looked like quite a nice day.  Got to Charlestown just over an hour later and it was a bit drizzly.  Bus wasn’t due till 10.20am so wandered around for a bit and then waited for the bus on the opposite side of the road from the bus stop.  Had to ask a local lady where the bus stop was.  Apparently there isn’t one – people just stand ‘by the wall’??!!  Well how on earth is anyone supposed to know that?

While we were waiting three old men turned up at the bus stop.  We could tell they were trying to figure out where the bus left from and eventually one of them came across the road to ask us.  They were a bit like the three guys out of ‘Last of the Summer Wines’.  Anyway they all made friends with me and said they were walking from Pentewan back to Charlestown so we all jumped on the same bus (525) and all had to change onto the 526 bus at St Austell.  As luck would have it the 525 changes in to the 526 so we didn’t even have to get off the bus.  And what is better it only cost Ann £1.80 (I was free) to go all the way from Charlestown to Gorran Haven.  She thought that once the new driver got on she’d be asked for another fare but she wasn’t.  However, by the time the bus reached Gorran Haven she was the only person on it, so when the bus stopped at Gorran Haven we just jumped off, said ‘thanks very much driver’, and started our walk.

Then Ann said that the reason why we hadn’t been asked to pay another fare was because the driver thought she was an OAP (& had a bus pass) like the ‘Summer Wine’ guys?!  Ann wasn’t happy – she’s years off having a bus pass?!!

Anyway, once in Gorran Haven we started our walk.  No SWCP signs so after a couple of false starts we eventually found ourselves on the coastal path.  It was raining.  It was misty.  It was generally just a horrible day.

However the walk from Gorran Haven to Portewan (where we had lunch) only took about 2 and a half hours.  And then from Portewan to Charlestown was about another two and a half.  Actually the whole walk only took about five and a quarter hours including our lunch break.

We stopped for lunch at the ‘Ship Inn’ in ‘Pentewan’. Ann gave me a drink of water in my fabulous travel water bowl and she had a ‘jacket potato with tuna, sweetcorn and cheese plus a diet coke for £7.90.  It came with a very yummy salad and fabulous homemade coleslaw.

The hardest part was between Pentewan and Porthpean cos there were quite a few ‘up and down’ bits.  Steps down, steps up.  And there were also a lot of sheep in these bits – so I had to go on my lead.  The coastal path was very well fenced off from the fields but my owner still felt the need to put me on my lead ‘just incase there were any holes in the fences.’

Even though it has been a horrible day; today’s walk has been good.

Loving the SWCP walks!