|
Walked
26.1.1997: Ascent 1004 ft : Descent 923 ft : |
Distance 4.52 miles:
4¾ hrs |
|
We parked Colin's car in Porthtowan beside the village hall
and went off to Bassets Cove in John's car. The day was bright
and sunny but the wind was freezing cold and very strong. It
was whistling around the car and we had to prise ourselves out
of the warmth. Poor Dot had forgotten her hat, so a spare scarf
was gratefully accepted.
Off we went at midday, heads bowed into the wind. The first
thing that we saw was a great sward of white roses in bloom.
Porth Cadiack Cove was especially pretty with Samphire Island
just offshore and with a waterfall falling onto the beach below.
Under the cliffs below us was a little crab boat pottering around
the collapsed caves called Ralphs Cupboard. The water was so
calm, the men were standing up; as the wind was offshore the
cliffs sheltered them.
|
Above
- Looking from Bassets Cove past Crane Island towards Godrevy
in the distance
Below
- Looking across Portreath. The coastpath runs down the valley
 |
We arrived at Portreath and walked down past some lovely
fishing cottages to the beach below. Across the beach to the
road, around past the harbour with all the houses, and up a steep
hill to a daymark tower. This is dedicated to Laurence Binyon
who composed on this spot, the lines that are used in the Remembrance
Day services. The views here are very inspiring and you can see
why he came up here.
We went on hoping to find a sheltered spot to have our lunch,
but no luck. After we had been walking for nearly two hours we
found a slight hollow and sat down near the edge of the cliff.
We were not in the lee this time and the wind was really strong.
The waves were being whipped up and looked beautiful, but we
began to get very cold, so we moved off again. We went past Nancekuke
with all the big wire fences, but they were not as intrusive
as we had been led to believe. Further along the path we came
to a walkers hut, and stepped inside out of the wind for a few
minutes.
|
Portreath
beach and entrance to Harbour
The
Daymark |
|
Before Porthtowan we dropped down into a steep valley where
there was a lovely stream and waterfall again, also some abandoned
stamping houses. It was so steep even the M.O.D. fences were
raised on stone pillars over the stream. There were high steps
out of this valley, 113 in total and they nearly beat us. They
were newly put in, and the earth was still fresh. The views from
here are very spectacular, so many headlands stretching into
the distance. We walked through some more mining waste and then
down a sharp winding road past lots of bungalows to Porthtowan
village and the waiting car.
|
And
the plaque |
