Boscastle
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Day 2 - Dizzard - Tintagel
Author: Dave
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The road to Camelot
We started the second day with a decent breakfast from Fran which was just as well because we were going to need it ! This was always going to be a tougher day than it looked on paper. At first glance it looks a fairly short stint with no big climbs like the North Devon coast. The problem is none of it is on the flat. it's either up or down. A lot of the time on uneven wooden steps with the earth worn away closest to the wooden plank. This makes it tricky going down at speed as you feet can catch on the part of the vertical plank that stands proud of the step. Add to this a flight of these steps will contain every dimension possible from 2" high to18" high and the same variation in depth. When you don't have steps to contend with, it's loose rough tracks that have you slipping and sliding up and down the slopes.
Don't get me wrong, it's good walking - just a bit slower than you would expect. In fact this section of path was just what I pictured as classic SWCP scenery. Rolling hills with rugged cliffs, topped with low stunted windswept gorse which, being in flower, gave us an accompanying smell of coconut for our journey that day. All the trails were dry under foot and the sun was out and it was warm when we started. More or less a perfect spring day for walking the SWCP.
Don't get me wrong, it's good walking - just a bit slower than you would expect. In fact this section of path was just what I pictured as classic SWCP scenery. Rolling hills with rugged cliffs, topped with low stunted windswept gorse which, being in flower, gave us an accompanying smell of coconut for our journey that day. All the trails were dry under foot and the sun was out and it was warm when we started. More or less a perfect spring day for walking the SWCP.
Rocky valley - just after Boscastle
We plodded on through deep combes down at sea level only to climb back up through the blackthorn lined tracks to the exposed clifftop paths with the contorted gorse bushes with their shapes frozen in the direction of the prevailing winds.
As the day wore on it became hotter. In fact it was unseasonably warm for a day in late April which was more noticeable as there was no real escape from it over the exposed moorland type paths we were on. The sea was a deep blue and the shallow areas in the sandy bays were a turquoise that you normally associate with tropical islands.
I had noticed as the day wore on that Jason was slowing up. No sign of his engine light coming on yet and he wasn't limping so I guessed his feet were holding up against blisters. I assumed the heat and the undulations were wearing him down a little. It was our first full day of this week's walking with yesterday being just a short warm up.
As the day wore on it became hotter. In fact it was unseasonably warm for a day in late April which was more noticeable as there was no real escape from it over the exposed moorland type paths we were on. The sea was a deep blue and the shallow areas in the sandy bays were a turquoise that you normally associate with tropical islands.
I had noticed as the day wore on that Jason was slowing up. No sign of his engine light coming on yet and he wasn't limping so I guessed his feet were holding up against blisters. I assumed the heat and the undulations were wearing him down a little. It was our first full day of this week's walking with yesterday being just a short warm up.
J's new mate outside one of the many tacky tourist shops.
As we dropped down into Boscastle I could see J was struggling quite a bit. We paused on the bridge over the small river which has a habit of becoming a raging torrent when ever there is any substantial rain. Boscastle has had a few floods over the last ten years with a bad one in 2006 which had a lot of national news coverage and involved helicopter rescues. There was a lot of damage to the village during this flood but the rebuilding looked like it had been completed and there was no obvious evidence of the dramatic scenes from the news a few years before.
It was at this point that J said he was going to have to bomb out the last section of the day. I could see he wasn't best pleased about it but was working on the basis that if he pushed on he would be completely knackered the next day and would end up having to miss a whole day rather than just a few miles. He went off to find a bus to take him the last few miles to Tintagel and I pushed on along the path.
The paths on the way out of Boscastle were quite busy with people out for a short afternoon stroll around the Boscastle honeypot. After a short walk you drop down into the rocky valley and back up some steps out the other side. This is where the path returned to it's tranquil self. I chugged on at a reasonable pace and noticed that since leaving J, it had clouded over and looked like it was threatening rain. I picked the pace up to a slow trot to try and beat the weather to Tintagel. As I came up over a crest I could see a large ugly hotel on top of the cliff with it's fake tacky looking battlements. That was the edge Tintagel and the hotel was called The Castle (predictably). It's a blot on the landscape. I skirted round this monstrosity and continued along the coast towards the the 'proper' castle ruin of Tintagel - or Camalot as legend (and the tacky shops selling tat in the village) has it. It's accessed by a rope bridge to the island where the old ruin sits and although I didn't have time to visit it this day, I have been before and would recommend it. It is a bit pricey though. From here I headed up the main track into the village to find the B&B for the evening.
It was at this point that J said he was going to have to bomb out the last section of the day. I could see he wasn't best pleased about it but was working on the basis that if he pushed on he would be completely knackered the next day and would end up having to miss a whole day rather than just a few miles. He went off to find a bus to take him the last few miles to Tintagel and I pushed on along the path.
The paths on the way out of Boscastle were quite busy with people out for a short afternoon stroll around the Boscastle honeypot. After a short walk you drop down into the rocky valley and back up some steps out the other side. This is where the path returned to it's tranquil self. I chugged on at a reasonable pace and noticed that since leaving J, it had clouded over and looked like it was threatening rain. I picked the pace up to a slow trot to try and beat the weather to Tintagel. As I came up over a crest I could see a large ugly hotel on top of the cliff with it's fake tacky looking battlements. That was the edge Tintagel and the hotel was called The Castle (predictably). It's a blot on the landscape. I skirted round this monstrosity and continued along the coast towards the the 'proper' castle ruin of Tintagel - or Camalot as legend (and the tacky shops selling tat in the village) has it. It's accessed by a rope bridge to the island where the old ruin sits and although I didn't have time to visit it this day, I have been before and would recommend it. It is a bit pricey though. From here I headed up the main track into the village to find the B&B for the evening.
