Dartmouth to Brixham - 11 miles

Dartmouth/Kingswear

This title is misleading.  We didn't actually walk from Dartmouth - we walked from Kingswear.  We thought it was a bit silly to take the ferry across to Darmouth just so that we could get the ferry back to Kingswear and say we started our walk in Dartmouth.   However the official SWCP website states that Dartmouth to Brixham is 11 miles.  We're not sure if that includes the ferry crossing.  Anyway we walked from Kingswear to Brixham and are sure that it was more than 11 miles.  This was a very hard walk.  It is one of the most up & down walks we have done, it was very muddy & it took us about five & a half hours of walking non stop.

We're staying in a very nice apartment in Torquay - 'Chelston Dene Apartments'.  We've booked for a week but we'll probably go home after we've done all our walks. The owners have said we can stay for £165 for the week which is great.  What is even better - I can stay for free.  We have a one bed apartment with views over Torquay.  The owners like me.  Ann had already warned me that I had to be on my best behaviour when I met them so I offered them a paw.  They thought I was lovely so I rolled over onto my back like a right old tart so they could tickle my tummy.  We would highly recommend these apartments for any other dog loving visitors to Torquay.

Firstly we had to go in the car to Brixham.  We were going to park in the 'harbour long stay car park' but it cost £7 for 5 hours or more.  What a rip off?!  The machine only took coins and Ann didn't have £7 in coins.  We thought about buying a ticket for 3-4 hours (even though we didn't know how long our walk would take) but then we saw a parking enforcement officer prowling around so we decided just to park in the higher part of Brixham for free and walk into town to get our bus.

We had to get on the number 22 bus to Kingswear at 10.05am.  I was a good girl when I got on the bus but I was not very well behaved while waiting for the bus.  I woofed at other buses that passed us and when the postie dared to walk past our bus stop I went absolutely ballistic.  It cost £2.70 for Ann & 50p for me to go from Brixham to Kingswear.  We got there about 10.30am.

For the first 20mins of our walk I had to stay on my lead because we were walking along a lane where cars might have come.  The houses were lovely - huge, but we think some might have been apartments. 

And then we hit the coastal path and I was allowed off my lead all the way back to Brixham.  Well, apart from one very small section, when we had to walk down a very steep hill, through a field full of sheep.  Ann was a bit cross with me.  I wanted to go chasing & was pulling on my lead - until she went really mad at me.  She said  if I didn't walk properly there was no way we would do any more walks.  She said she would go shopping instead.  I knew she meant it, so for the rest of the walk down the hill I walked properly by her side.  I have to say it was quite hard because there were loads of sheep and all I wanted to do was herd them into a corner.  Even though I was on my lead I was giving them 'the evils'.  They knew I was a collie that could keep them in order if I was allowed to?!! 

The other thing that was a bit tricky on this walk was that Ann had forgotten to bring us any water.  She got so excited packing her new rucksack, with unnecessary things that we didn't need, that she forgot to pack the one thing that we did need - water.  For the first 1 & a half hours there was no water for me but after that there were streams & troughs so I was happy.  Ann had packed an extra fleece in her rucksack because she couldn't believe that the 'thin, with all the warmth' top that she had bought last week at 'Mountain Warehouse' actually was thin & warm?!!  In fact today Ann was like a proper walker for the first time - new walking top, new walking trousers, new rucksack.  The ice warning came on in the car when we were driving to Brixham but Ann was toasty warm in all her new clothes.

This walk was lovely.  However it was a bit isolated.  We only saw four people in 3 and a half hours.  And then when we reached the 'Berry Head Country Park' there were loads of people walking their dogs.  At that point we thought we were almost back at Brixham.  We weren't, we still had at least a couple of miles to go to Berry Head, which is about a mile from Brixham.  So we kept walking and walking and walking!

Once we'd reached the 'Berry Head Hotel' Ann knew we were back in civilisation.  But we still had a couple of miles to walk back to the car.  We think we've walked between 12 - 14 miles today.

We're both very tired & sleepy!

The Portland Circuit - 13 miles



Ann was really worried about me last night.  I was sick a couple of times (fortunately on the bathroom floor which could be easily cleaned) but when she took me out for my wee before bedtime I didn’t want one.  All I wanted to do was eat grass.  I had an upset stomach and I thought that eating grass might help.  Ann put down newspaper all over the bedroom floor in case I was sick during the night but I wasn’t.  She said if I wasn’t very well in the morning we wouldn’t do a big walk – we’d just have a drive around and do some little walks.

This morning when I went for my little walk before breakfast at about 8.15am I ate loads of grass.  Ann thought I’d be desperate for a wee, because I hadn’t had one since about 4pm yesterday, but all I wanted to do was eat grass so I didn’t have a wee until I’d been out for about 10 mins.  I had to go in the car while Ann had breakfast today and she said if I was sick while she was having breakfast we’d abandon our third day of walking.  I love our walking holiday so I tried my hardest not to be sick.

However I still wasn’t feeling that great.  We drove to the car park at Chesil Beach, at the start of the road to Portland, and got there at about 9.30am. It cost us £5.50 to park there for 12 hours.  It was a massive car park and at least two dog walking people arrived, didn’t bother paying and just wandered off to exercise their dogs.   I had to stay on my lead because we were near the main road but we were walking through a grassy area and I ate loads of grass.  Ann said we didn’t have to do the whole walk – we could just have a little walk round the first area on Portland and then go back to the car.  However, after about half an hour I was let off my lead as we had to climb up a big steep hill to the top of some cliffs.  By then I was having such fun running about, that I forgot I wasn’t very well.

It was ever so cold at the start of our walk.  Ann had to wear her fleece, anorak and gloves but after about half an hour she took her anorak and gloves off and didn’t need to put them back on again.  It was a lovely day.  We could see for miles down the Chesil Beach.

There were quite a few people about on this walk.  I don’t think we went for more than 10 mins without seeing someone.  And also because it is quite a built up area with quite a lot of buses Ann said that if I wanted to abandon the walk at any time we would look on the map and head for the nearest bus stop so she could take me back to the car.  Portland seems to be well served with buses into Weymouth and they all had to pass where we’d left the car.

This walk was described as ‘moderate’ on the official SWCP website.  The first trek to the top of the cliffs was hard, then once we'd done about half of the walk we then had to go down and back up to a place called Church Ope Cove and then the last bit of the walk from the prison down to the water was hard.  Ann said that she had sore feet and also her knees were hurting occasionally.

We got to Portland Bill (the very end of Portland) by about 11.30am and had a coffee at the cafe there.  I got to have a drink in my foldable doggie water bowl.  The worst thing about this walk was that there were absolutely no streams for me to have a drink in.  Ann gave me drinks at regular intervals and I also had several drinks out of muddy puddles but there were no streams.  It wasn’t until we got back to the B&B and I drank loads that Ann wondered if Portland was a water free environment?!  We certainly couldn’t see any water marked on the map.

Once we’d rounded Portland Bill and were on the homeward route we had to walk past a ‘Young Offenders Institution and also the Prison – all very eerie.  I suppose they have these places on islands because if any of the inmates escape there’s only one route via the road off the island.

Apart from stopping for coffee we didn’t have any other breaks.  We didn’t have anything for lunch today but Ann said that she doesn’t really like stopping because her feet get sore when she stops and starts.  In fact neither of us has eaten very much during the last few days.

We got back to the car at about 2.15pm so our walk today took us just under 5 hours.

I’m absolutely shattered.  I’m just lying on my duvet fast asleep.  Ann is lying on the bed having a snooze.  She says her legs feel stiff all over.  I’ve had an absolutely lovely holiday walking the SWCP.  But 38 miles in 3 days is very tiring for a 6 year old collie like me.  I’m looking forward to going home tomorrow and hope that Ann is going to be at work a lot this week so I can have a few days of quiet sleep time.

However, I’m sure when I’ve re-charged my batteries I’ll be up and raring to go on our next walking holiday.  We think we might go to the Torquay area next.

Lulworth Cove to Ferrybridge (Weymouth) - 14 miles

I’m exhausted.  I’ve been walking for six hours and have had no sleep time today. 

We had to get the X53 bus to Wool Station at 10.05am and when we arrived at the bus stop at the Esplanade in Weymouth there was a massive queue.  We think everyone was going shopping in Poole because the bus was the Exeter to Poole one.  Anyway when the bus came it was a big double decker and even though we were at the end of the queue we still managed to get a single seat right at the front of the bus which meant that there was loads of room for me to sit and watch everyone getting on and off.  It cost £3.20 for Ann and the driver let me on for free.  It took us about 35 mins to get to Wool Station and then we had to transfer onto the 103 bus which was a little bus that arrived at 10.45am.  Again the driver let me on free and it cost Ann 90p to get to Lulworth Cove.  We arrived just before 11am.

Lulworth Cove was lovely.  All the houses had thatched roofs and it was ever so pretty.  There were a lot of people about.  We think most people were just having a little walk to Durdle Door Cove which was very pretty and about a mile from Lulworth Cove.  The coastal path out of Lulworth Cove took us up a big steep hill but it was obviously part of a well walked route because there was a wide path of steps leading right to the top.  Then, when we started to head down the other side, we met a group of about four young Dutch boys who told us there was an abandoned dog further down the path.  They said they’d tried phoning the number on its collar but got no answer.  Ann was a bit cross that they’d just left it for someone else to deal with, and so began our first adventure of the day.

The little dog was gorgeous.  It was a puppy spaniel and she was absolutely exhausted.  She was all wet and had loads of thorns etc sticking in her fur, her paws were red and it was obvious she’d had a really long walk and could go no further.  She was just lying at the side of the path half asleep but she wagged her tail when we approached her.  Ann was really annoyed because there were loads of people walking on this part of our walk and they all must have just ignored her.  Ann phoned the mobile number on her collar and left a message saying puppy was exhausted and that we would take her back to Lulworth Cove.  She let Ann pick her up and she snuggled right into her but as we had almost a mile to go back to Lulworth Cove, Ann asked if I’d mind if she borrowed my lead because puppy was too heavy to carry for long.  I didn’t mind.  I liked the puppy.  So we walked back.  I was off lead and puppy walked by Ann’s side on my lead.  When we got into the car park Ann told me I had to walk off lead by her side as there were a lot of cars about.  I managed to do that perfectly, but then when we got to the Heritage Centre she took the puppy off the lead, tied me up outside and carried puppy into the centre.  I couldn’t believe I’d been left outside when I’d been such a good girl.  Ann told the Heritage Centre man that she’d found puppy exhausted and didn’t know what to do with her.  Secretly I think Ann wanted to keep her but we knew she must belong to someone because she had a collar & ID tag on and she was also wearing one of those collars that sends out an electric shock if they bark too much.  The Heritage Centre man phoned a dog rescue centre, the dog warden and someone else but couldn’t find anyone that would help locate her owner.  The dog warden wasn’t even answering the phone and if he’d come out he could have scanned her to see if she was micro chipped.  Ann really wanted to take puppy with us, but she was so exhausted all she wanted to do was sleep.  When Ann put her down in the Heritage Centre she immediately just went to sleep so a 14 mile walk with us wasn’t really an option.  Ann told the Heritage Centre man that we were walking to Weymouth and if he could look after her, we’d come back and get her.  But the Heritage Centre closed at 4pm and we knew we wouldn’t be finished our walk by then, let alone be finished and be able to drive back to Lulworth Cove by 4pm.  Anyway after a lot of discussion, the Heritage Centre Man eventually found someone in the village that agreed to look after her until her owners contacted us.  We left her there, but by 3.30pm we still hadn’t heard anything from her owners so phoned the Heritage Centre.  Apparently the lady who was looking after her had phoned the local vet and asked him to do a search on puppy’s phone number.  It turns out that puppy belonged to someone who actually lives in Lulworth Cove and she’s been returned to her owners.  We’re happy about that, but very disappointed that puppy’s owners couldn’t even be bothered to return our call or the call from the Heritage Centre.  It makes us wonder what kind of a life puppy has?!

Anyway by the time we’d finished faffing about with all that it was well after 12 noon when we started our walk.  And obviously we had to go back up the big steep hill.  The first part of our walk was ever so hard.  There were three or four really strenuous areas where we had to walk down and up very steep hills.  The cliffs were very high and although we had lovely views (we could see all the way to Portland/Weymouth) it was very hard going.  After about the first half an hour there wasn’t many people about but it was a really lovely day, in fact Ann had to take her fleece off for some of the walk.  Also, after the first 1 – 2 hours the walk was quite easy.

This walk wasn’t totally isolated – there were other people that we met on all sections of the walk but because we’d ended up leaving so late we were very conscious of the fact that we had to get to Weymouth before it got dark.  Ann had some mini pork pies for our lunch but she wasn’t very hungry so we didn’t eat them.  We stopped a couple of times so that we could both have a drink.  There weren’t very many streams on this walk for me to drink out of and as I was doing quite a bit of running about I was getting thirsty.

After we’d been walking for a couple of hours we could hear loads of dogs barking.  And then, the next thing we knew, we saw 12-14 beagles running across several fields.  There was no one with them and we couldn’t see anything that they were chasing, but they were running in a pack and quite obviously seemed to know where they were going.  I was desperate to go chasing with them, but Ann said ‘NO’ so I was a good collie and just stuck to the path.  It was strange though – we didn’t know what they were up to.

We got to Osmington Mills at about 2.30pm and there was a very nice pub there called the ‘Smugglers’ with loads of seats outside.  It seemed like a really nice place to stop for a coffee but because we were very conscious that we had to get back to Weymouth by about 4pm-ish we didn’t stop.  Instead we just kept walking and walking and walking.  What was quite nice with this walk was that right from leaving Lulworth Cove we could see Weymouth and Portland so could see where we were aiming for.  We just didn’t know how long it would take us.

However once we got to the last hilly bit of our walk which was just before 4pm, and a built up area where we could see the Weymouth Esplanade, we stopped for a coffee in a very nice cafe called the ‘Lookout’.  Ann tied me to a picnic table while she went inside to order a coffee, but I was so tired I would have lain down even if I hadn’t been tied up.  In fact I didn’t feel very well

After coffee it was about another hours walk along the Esplanade, through the town and back to our B&B.  I kept stopping and trying to eat grass as I was feeling really sick by then.  We got back about 5.10pm and I’m totally exhausted.

I’ve been sick a couple of times since coming back but now I’m just lying asleep in the shower cubicle.  I hope I’ll be well enough to walk round the Portland Island tomorrow.

Abbotsbury to Ferrybridge (Weymouth) - 11 miles

Today we had to be at the bus stop on Weymouth Esplanade by 9.15am to get the X53 bus to Abbotsbury.  It was a big double decker bus that goes from Poole to Exeter.  It cost us £2.70 to get to Abbotsbury – 40p for me and £2.30 for Ann.  It wasn’t a very busy bus so we had a seat to ourselves.  We got to Abbotsbury at about 9.40am.  First, I had to stay on my lead while we walked down a little road until we got to some fields where we saw a coast path sign.  For the first hour or so we were walking through fields which were inland from Chesil Beach.

I was on my lead for most of this time as there were a lot of sheep in the fields and Ann said I couldn’t be trusted not to go chasing.  However, a little deer ran right in front of us, jumped over a fence and went zooming across the sheep field.  I was desperate to chase it, though I have to admit it was so speedy I don’t think I would ever have caught it.  It made all the sheep run together into the corner of their field, but by that time it was almost right at the other side of another field.  Then we met a farmer rounding up some other sheep on his quad bike.  He had three mongrel type dogs sitting on the back of his quad bike.  They weren’t collies and I thought I’d look much better than them sat on a quad bike – I’d have loved a go at that.

After about an hour or so we reached the sea at Chesil Beach and I was allowed off my lead for the rest of the walk.  I was a bit thirsty because I hadn’t had a drink since we left the B&B.  But then I spotted a big deep trough so I jumped in, had a drink and also had a good wallow in the water.  Unfortunately when I came to get out I couldn’t because the sides were too steep so Ann had to help me.

The weather wasn’t that great today.  It wasn’t cold and it didn’t rain but it was quite misty so we couldn’t admire the view.  We didn’t take very many photos.  Chesil Beach would have been lovely if we could have seen all the way to Portland but we only managed to see a little bit of Portland when we got to the end of our walk, and even then, most of it was shrouded in mist.  Also we didn’t meet many people on our walk today.  Every now and again, when we got near a village, we met dog walkers but we didn’t meet anyone else walking as far as we did today.  At least we don’t think we did.

Today’s walk is described on the official SWCP site as being easy – and it was.  Apart from the start, when we had to walk up hilly fields, it was pretty much all on the flat.  However there was absolutely nowhere for us to stop for coffee/lunch etc.  Ann had brought an M&S quiche that she hadn’t eaten last night, for our lunch but because it was so damp and misty we didn’t fancy sitting down anywhere so we just kept walking until we got to the end of our walk which took exactly 4 hours.  After my dip in the trough, I managed to find a couple more places to have a drink so I was OK and Ann had a few drinks of water but she just did that on the go.

We passed several caravan sites and wondered if they had a cafe/pub where we could stop for lunch but they all seemed to be closed for the winter.  We also walked through an area where I had to go back on my lead because there was a sign saying that ‘fast horses’ could be galloping past and there was what looked like a horse racing circuit.  But we couldn’t see anything on our map that indicated this.

The other thing that was really annoying was walking through a military area where apparently we had to keep to the path because there might have been unexploded devices.  Well we always keep to the path.  So, we walked round this area at Tidmoor Point where there is a rifle range, we kept to the path as all the signs said, and then we got to the end of the danger area and found a locked gate.  After consulting our map we realised we only had about another 10 – 15 yards to go.  So we climbed over the gate (which said ‘KEEP OUT’ at the other side but nothing on our side) and then we had to climb over another one.  It all seemed a bit weird – we’d followed all the signs, there were no flags flying to say that anything was happening and yet one weeny, teeny area of the SWCP appeared to be closed off.  Anyway we passed through this area in less than a minute and were on our way again.

We got to Ferrybridge, which was officially the end of our walk, at about 1.40pm and Ann spotted a really classy looking cafe with a lovely outdoor area called the ‘Crab House Cafe’.  We went there and Ann tied me up at a lovely outdoor picnic table, which was under cover, while she went in to ask if she could just have a coffee.  Once inside, Ann realised that it was a very posh fish restaurant.  However, because she’d gone in (looking like a scruffy, bedraggled, walker), she felt she had to say something so she asked if she could just have a coffee.  The ‘chef’ said that as it was so quiet we could.  Ann had a lovely cup of coffee for £1.90 and she gave me a drink of water in my foldable doggie bowl.

After that we had to walk back to our B&B which we did via the Rodwell Trail which is a walkway from Ferrybridge into the centre of Weymouth.  We reckon this added 1 – 2 miles onto our walk, but that’s OK.  Tomorrow when we do a more strenuous walk from Lulworth Cove to Weymouth it will be slightly less than the 14 miles to Ferrybridge.

I’m really tired now.  I’m trying to sleep but there’s fireworks going off and I just don’t know where to  lie so that I don’t hear them.

I’ve had a lovely day but I’m such a tired little collie dog now.

On my hols in Dorset

I am such a little lucky collie dog.  I’m on my holidays.  I’m in Weymouth for four nights and am going to be walking 38 more miles of the SWCP over the next three days.  We’ve never been to Weymouth before and Ann chose Weymouth for our mini break because it’s quite an urban area and with the dark night’s drawing in, we need to finish our walks by about 4pm, or at least be walking through ‘civilisation’ by then.

We left home at about 9.45am and first we had to stop off at M&S so Ann could buy herself some tasty snacks to eat tonight.  She’s ‘googled’ all the dog friendly pubs in Weymouth, where she thought we could eat in the evenings, but then she remembered it’s ‘Bonfire Night’ tomorrow evening and I hate fireworks so she promised we would stay in for most of the evening tonight and tomorrow.

We’ve been in our B&B since about 6.45pm.  We’re staying at the Elwell Guest House on Rodwell Road.  We were hoping to get here by about 5pm but spent forever driving around trying to find it, as there’s loads of road works going on and we kept being diverted so didn’t actually get here until about 5.30pm.  It’s OK here, though our room is very small.  Ann booked a single en-suite room for £40 per night, bed and breakfast (I’m free) but the owner said we were the only people here tonight so we don’t know why we couldn’t have a larger room.  Actually I don’t care.  I’ve been lying in the shower room for most of the night and a couple of times I’ve actually gone into the shower cubicle and lain down in there – it’s lovely and cool.  On the plus side – I’m allowed to go into the breakfast room with Ann tomorrow morning as we’re the only people here.  Apparently I’m not allowed to stay in the bedroom by myself so if other people book in over the weekend I’ll have to be put in the car while Ann has breakfast.

We’ve had a really lovely day en-route here.  We decided that we’d spend the day driving the coastal route to Weymouth because we’ve never been to East Devon/Dorset before, and then on Monday when we go home, we’ll probably go the direct route.  It took us about two and a quarter hours to get to Exmouth (including stopping at M&S). 

I had a lovely play on the beach at Exmouth.  We parked for free right next to the beach.  I got to chase wind surfers, though I couldn’t catch them.  Then we went into the ‘Harbour View Cafe’ for lunch.  There was a big sign on the door saying that doggies were welcome as long as they were on their leads.   It was really busy so we didn’t get a ‘harbour view seat’.  We sat next to lots of squealy toddlers.  I just ignored them and was ever such a good girl when Ann left me alone to order her lunch and go to the loo.   Ann had a black coffee and jacket potato with egg mayonnaise and cheese for lunch (£5.50) but she said it wasn’t very nice.  The jacket potato was teeny weeny and there was too much filling and some of the salad garnish was starting to go a bit brown.  I was happy because I had the doggie water bowl all to myself.  There was only one other doggie there when we arrived but just as we were leaving about three others appeared.

Then we went to Budleigh Salterton.  We drove into a car park by the beach and had a five minute walk around but decided not to stay.  It wasn’t a very nice beach – it was a bit stoney and Ann didn’t think it was worth paying to park the car.

After that we went to Sidmouth.  For some reason we thought Sidmouth was a genteel little seaside town in a relatively flat area.  It’s surrounded by the most massive cliffs we have ever seen, on both sides.  Anyway we had a half hour walk along the promenade and around the town.  It seemed quite nice but was nothing like we’d imagined.

Next we wanted to go to Lyme Regis and went via Seaton because one of the SWCP walks starts/ends there.  We didn’t stop at Seaton but again it’s surrounded by really high cliffs.

Lyme Regis was another place that was nothing like we expected.  It’s a town nestled between two lots of really high cliffs.  We had a 20 min walk here but there were lots of really interesting little shops.  Ann walked to go in some of them and have a look around but she couldn’t because I was with her.  She said I was a very spoilt little dog because most owners would have just left me in the car while they went for a look round the shops.  Ann said she’d planned this holiday because she knew I would enjoy it and she’s promised not to leave me by myself for any longer than is necessary.

The East Devon coastline is very, very high.  The cliffs are enormous.  We think this area of the SWCP is going to be really hard.

After leaving Lyme Regis we drove along the coastal road to Weymouth.  East Devon/Dorset has some really pretty little villages with lots of thatched cottages.

Ann left me in the car while she checked into our B&B and unloaded our luggage and then she took me for a walk into town so that we could check out where to get our bus from tomorrow.  We have to walk to the Esplanade in Weymouth to get our bus.  It took us half an hour to get there and 20 mins to get back.   Weymouth seems lovely but we didn’t start our walk until 5.45pm and by that time it was dark so we couldn’t see much.  Also, I wasn’t a good dog.  Several fireworks went off and I pulled on my lead.  Ann said she would look after me, but I just wanted to get away from them and was constantly pulling, so Ann said our walk wasn’t enjoyable.

Anyway we got back to the B&B about 6.45pm and I’ve been asleep ever since.  I’ve got my duvet here, but I’m lying on the shower room floor because it’s nice and cool.

Tomorrow we’re going to walk from Abbotsbury to Weymouth along the Chesil Beach and I’m so looking forward to it.

Porthcothan to Newquay - 10 miles

Well we've now walked the SWCP all the way from Padstow to Falmouth, that's 169 miles. Impressive or what?

Today we had to leave home at 8am so that we could drive to Newquay in time to get the 9.05am bus to Porthcothan. We parked for free on a road next to the car park which was right next to the bus station and then I was allowed to go for a little walk around Newquay as we had about 15 mins before the bus came. It was very quiet in Newquay at 9am on a Sunday morning. There were three other people waiting for the bus and one of them said I had a really pretty face. I was a bit naughty when the bus came - I barked at it. But that was the only naughty thing I've done on my walk today. Ann says I've been an exceptionally well behaved little collie. The bus was a little green Western Greyhound one so I was free, it cost Ann £3.80.

It was really interesting on the bus. It was the Newquay to Padstow bus and it went to Porthcothan via the airport and lots of very pretty villages that we hadn't been to before. We got off the bus at 9.55am and it was really cold. There was frost on the grass and Ann said she wished she'd brought her gloves. When we were driving to Newquay the ice warning message had popped up in the car. However, by 11.30am it was so hot Ann wished she'd worn her shorts and a vest top!

The minute we got off the bus I was allowed off my lead and we had quite an easy walk along the cliff tops to Mawgan Porth. For the first hour we didn't see anyone but then when we got nearer to Mawgan Porth there were loads of people out and about. The tide was out so we had a lovely walk across the beach there. We got to Mawgan Porth at about 11.30am and the signpost said that Watergate Bay was two and a half miles away so Ann said we'd stop there for lunch. She'd brought a ham roll for lunch but as it was so hot she thought it would be nice if we had a proper stop at a pub/restaurant called the Phoenix which she'd spotted from the bus.

We got to the Phoenix at 12.25pm and Ann tied me to a picnic table while she went to order lunch. The blackboard advertised a beef roast dinner, with yorkshire pudding, cauliflower cheese, roasties & other veg for £8.50 and Ann thought yum, yum. So did I, because normally when we go out for Sunday lunch I get little bits of beef. However, the bimbo behind the bar said lunch didn't start until 12.30pm and she wouldn't let us put a order in and sit and wait. We were really cross. It was lovely and sunny and we would have sat and waited for an hour if need be. Ann bought a diet coke for £1.30 which was mainly ice and by the time she'd got settled at the table and given me a drink there was a huge queue of surfers ordering lunch. And actually we didn't really like it there anyway. Ann felt very old as the place was extremely busy with young, gorgeous, surfers and I didn't like it 'cos nobody paid me any attention. We were sitting on a biggish decking area upstairs and wished we stayed downstairs where we'd met a very nice man selling paintings. Ann had originally tied me up to a picnic table downstairs when we arrived but the downstairs bar wasn't open so she'd asked the man if I was allowed to walk through it to get upstairs. He told us the bar was very dog friendly so we went upstairs. However he also said we could stay where we were and he'd look after me while Ann went upstairs to the bar. We wished we'd done that as he liked me and I think he liked Ann even more?!

Watergate Bay is about 3 miles from Newquay so after a 15min rest we set off again. We had to walk above very high cliffs to Porth. There were loads of people on the beach at Watergate Bay with surf boards but the waves weren't very big. It was a lovely walk to Porth and when we got there Ann let me have a wallow in the stream that ran down through the beach. She was still thinking of having a roast dinner and the bar on the beach there, advertised Sunday lunches and there were seats available outside, but then she decided she wasn't that hungry after all. So we continued walking to Newquay.

When we got to Newquay it was very busy and I had to go on my lead because we were walking through the town. There were masses of people about. We had a look at the menus of a couple of pubs that had beer gardens but decided to give lunch a miss and so got back to the car at 2pm.

I'm not sure if we're going to do any more walks this year. Apparently if we do any more of the SWCP this year we are going to have to stay in B&B's because getting to the start point of our walks, and then walking the walk, have to be done in daylight hours. Logistically, that's not very possible because winter buses don't run very regularly and we've now got a long way to drive to do more sections of the SWCP. ....But I know that Ann has still got a lot of holiday to take from work so I'm hoping we can go away together and spend a few days walking. I'd love that!

Helford to Coverack - 13 miles

Today our walk was supposed to be 13 miles but I think I've walked more like 16-17 miles. I'm a very tired little collie dog.

We met Bev & Doug & Dave at Coverack car park and then Ann drove us all to the car park at Helford so we could start our walk at 10am. It cost us £2.30 to park all day there but we were the only car in the car park. And do traffic wardens ever patrol these areas? Ann decided not to risk it.

This section of the walk was lovely. For the first hour or so we were walking through loads of 'woody' areas. It was really beautiful as the leaves were a lovely colour and the path was littered with acorns, conkers, leaves, etc. When we first left the car park we went in the wrong direction. We walked down the hill into Helford village and crossed the ford/bridge. That was lovely. I had a good old wallow in the river. And then Ann decided that we were going the wrong way.

Fortunately we met a lady with a massive grey dog (he was almost as big as a pony) who told us that the start of the coastal path was at the other side of the car park.

The first hour of our walk was really lovely - we were walking through loads of woods. Then we came out of the woods and had to walk through fields to 'Dennis Head'. Well that was a waste of time. The path twisted round so that we'd walked in a circle and came back to the field that we'd walked through when we came out of the woods. Ann reckoned that had added at least a mile to our walk.

After that I had to go back on my lead as we walked down a road into St Antony and then I had to stay on my lead as we walked along a little country road around the edge of Gillan Creek. We only saw about two cars but Ann said I had to stay on my lead just to be on the 'safe side'. The tide was in. Apparently if the tide had been out we could have gone across stepping stones which would have saved us walking about 2 miles. Though there was no mention of that on the official SWCP website.

The walk alongside St Antony & Gillan Creek was lovely. The leaves on the trees were a lovely red colour and it was so peaceful and beautiful. I have to admit I like to run around but because I'd had at least an hour 'off lead' I was quite happy to go back on my lead and trot along next to Ann. Dave had been on his extendable lead for the whole walk - he's naughty, he runs away if he's allowed 'off lead'. Doug was OK. He gets to run free. But because we were on a little road Ann thought it was best if we all went back on lead.

Anyway, once we'd walked round Gillan Creek and then down a private road to a beach at Gillan I was allowed off lead again. So was Doug. Dave was allowed off his lead for about 2 secs, then Bev saw that there were chickens and ducks in a garden by the beach so he had to go back on his lead incase he killed them. Dave's a bit naughty. He does stuff like killing seagulls, so chickens & hens would be easy prey for him.

Once we'd passed 'Nare Point' Bev started complaining that her toes were hurting. Ann tried to pacify her by saying it wasn't much further. All Bev wanted to do was take her shoes off. At this point Ann offered to take Dave's lead. Dave was being a naughty boy, and was pulling on his lead which was resulting in Bev's arm being pulled out of it's socket- not literally?! In all fairness Dave was a good boy once Ann had him.

However, once we rounded 'Nare Head' and could see 'Porthallow' we thought it would be plain sailing. At 1.05pm we met a couple who said they'd left the pub in Porthallow at about 12.35pm. I was so happy. We thought 'whoopee doo' - we'll be at the pub at 1.30pm.

And then disaster struck - Bev fell off the path into a load of ferns. If it hadn't been so serious it would have been funny. There she was screaming and lying face down in a bed of ferns, saying that her ankle was in agony. The path was very narrow at this point so she stayed sitting down while we complemplated what to do. Us doggies were happy because while she was sitting there she gave us some treats out of her bag. Then she decided to take some pain killers and hobble to the pub. Well it was either that or call out the air ambulance. And there wasn't anywhere for that to land so they would have had to winch down someone to rescue her. Anyway she managed to hobble to the pub and we got there at 1.55pm just as they were stopping serving lunches.

Ann ordered cheesey chips and a sandwich for her and Bev and then she gave us doggies a drink in my foldable doggie bowl. We'd had quite a few drinks on the walk but we were all really thirsty again. I had to wait for my drink because Doug & Dave immediately stuck their faces in the bowl and gulped up all the water as soon as Ann put it down. Then I think they must have chewed a hole in it because as soon as Ann put some more water in it for me it started leaking. I had to drink ever so quickly before it all disappeared. We were all tired doggies so we all behaved ourselves in the pub and had a little sleep.

After lunch Ann told me that Doug & Dave were going to stay at Porthallow and look after Bev and we were going to walk another 4 - 5 miles to Coverack to get Bevs car. It was lovely and sunny when we came out of the pub. For the first half hour or so I was on my lead for some of the time because the coast path goes inland for some of the way and we had to walk on little country roads. Then it went down to the sea again and I got to go of lead all the way back to Coverack. We left the pub at 2.45pm and got to Coverack at 4.30pm.

There was hardly any other people doing this walk which we thought was a bit unusal because we normally see loads of people walking on a Sunday. The website described this section of the walk as 'moderate' and it was a fairly easy walk apart from a few bits where we had to go up and down. It was certainly quite nice to be doing this walk in October because the trees were really pretty and it was a lot less bleak then some of our walks.

Ann drove Bev's car back to Porthallow and we got there at about 4.40pm and found Bev hobbling around outside the pub with Doug & Dave because the pub had shut for the afternoon. Apparently she'd sat on the bench outside the pub for a while but thought she looked like an old wino so had a wander around. Fortunately Bev could drive so we went back to Helford to get Ann's car and then came home so that I could have a nice long sleep.

We've had a lovely walk today but I bet Bevs ankle will be hurting even more tomorrow.