classic cottages | January 2009
A dozen great journeys on foot
Above: Stray gloves seek owner. Cover: All loved up on a cloud nine day above Sandymouth, north Devon.
Photography: Annabel Elston Printing: Severnprint Copyright Š 2009 Classic Cottages
The Inuit have over 100 words for snow. We have as many for walk. In rough order of mph: amble, stagger, stroll, stride, stomp, ramble, hike, plus another ninety odd nestled in the pack. But speed alone does not classify a walk. The where and who matter too. Some do it alone, some do it en masse, some do it ’til they drop. As for location, forgive the bias but we think we’re spoilt rotten in SW England. With or without a map, you can forge your own virgin path or trace the steps of saints and giants. But why walk? Well, the great thoughts of classical Greece came about by foot. Huffs become hugs as we assuage ourselves of all that stinks in life. Get out more. Stop the cold snapping away at the joints and the bills eating away at the purse. This list is not a tour of duty, but one of pleasure, the first in a series of three such pleasure guides. We hope it spurs you on to log and blog your own favourite walks, however far and fast they may be.
classic cottages | A dozen great journeys on foot
1 WARM UP LAP Before you rigor mortify yourself on an all-day yomp, limber up with a toddle. Your body will thank you. 1. Morning milk and a paper from the local shop at the crack of crows. Draw straws the night before. 2. The width of any cove at low tide. 3. Stile step-ups to ease the knees in. 4. Take a dog, and a bag (if you’re beach-bound, respect the signs and times). Effort: 1/10 Tip: Toddling is an excellent way to warm down too.
Above: Gwennap Pit, Redruth, makes the ideal warm up number 3. Right: Braving the breath of a Rosuick camel. Far right: First scent and sight of the Helford River, the end is nigh.
2 THE TRABOE PERAMBULATION
This walk is literally as old as the hills, as it’s logged in the Domesday Book. Sadly, we don’t have a copy, but Oliver Rackham’s Illustrated History of the Countryside will do. From the standing stone that guards the satellites on Goonhilly Downs, ancient markers lead the way to the Helford River. Wade the ford at Tregidden, hit the pub at Newtown-in-St Martin and swing the tree at Tremayne, until your nose drags you saltwards down to the quay. Effort: 2/10 – 7/10 Tip: Near the start at Traboe, you can mount a camel and traipse the eerie moors on humpback. www.cornishcamels.com
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3 THE SAINTS WAY Aka: Mariners Way. From: Padstow to Fowey, or vice versa. Age: Bronze. Miles: 30. Saints: Petroc, Breock, Brevita, Fimbarrus (plus Tristan and Iseult if you’re lucky). Tricky bit: Helman Tor – path splits west via Luxulyan, east via Lanlivery. Effort: 7/10 over 2 days, less over more. Tip(s): a) 2006 Saints Way Guide and its 8 trail cards are a big help. b) East route has better pubs.
classic cottages | A dozen great journeys on foot
4 BRAUNTON BURROWS As sand dune systems go, this is the daddy. UNESCO agrees and now bodyguard it as a biosphere reserve, which keeps the rabbits happy as long as they evade the Peregrine Falcons. Sea kale, yellow horn poppy and viper’s bugloss add feathers to its cap. As for meandering, this three mile unmade bed has just enough downs to propel you up the next up. So stray the way the slope sends you. Effort: 5/10 Tip: At 340 acres, Braunton Great Field is just about our last open-field farming structure. Go now, before someone sticks up a fence.
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5 FOUR PEAKS Far left: The final downhill furlong, Braunton Burrows, north Devon. Left: Mother and foal play hide and seek on Dartmoor.
Brown Willy, High Willhays, Pilsdon Pen and Dunkery Beacon…sounds like Dad’s Army. Each county’s highest hill. Can you bag them all, in a day? As far as we know, it’s not an event, yet. Best kept that way or else you’ll miss out on the magic and mystery of each area. Cornwall – Bodmin Moor: Dozmary Pool – where Arthur’s sword might lie. Devon – Dartmoor: Letterboxing – orienteer between 4,000 stone boxes hidden on the tors and collect a rubber stamp pass. Somerset – Exmoor: Head for Horner Wood dressed in rust so as not to spook the red deer. Dorset – Pilsdon: Pilsdon Manor is a utopian refuge for those trying to rebuild their lives. Feel the philanthropy from the top of the hill. Total height: 1,377 + 2,038 + 1,706 + 909 = 6,030ft Effort: All 4 in a weekend, 11/10 Tip: Start a ‘4 peaks, 1 day’ race and invite Simon, our MD. classic cottages | A dozen great journeys on foot
6 BY WIND AND BY WHEEL
Kitesurfing. Sand-flats-wise, the north coast delivers in spades and gets its fair pelt of wind. Inland, the knots pick up enough to sail the savannah-like moors. Just beware the bog. Skateboarding. Promenade-wise, we’d say the bigger the town, the longer the run. South coast edges it for us, from Penzance to Weymouth. Technically, these two sports are rides, not walks. Still, the legs take quite a hammering, so they made our top twelve. Effort: Pro rata with the Beaufort scale and the laws of gravity. Tip: Skaters, unless you can bunny-hop a lobster pot, avoid the quays. Above: Gwithian Sands, Hayle. Right: Mind the prickles and puddles after a pie and a pint.
7 THE AUK WALK Shhhhsh. Puffin breeding ground, April – mid-July. Two miles NE of Tintagel, take B3263 to Trevalga. Head for cliff path, bear left, spot the stacks of Long and Short Island then watch all hell (and love) break loose. Effort: Hold your breath, and don’t sneeze. Whisper too. Tip: Bring your zoom lens and a pair of bins.
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8 HALF WALKS Don’t drink ‘n’ drive. But do drive ‘n’ drink. Take the car to a pub in the sticks then walk back by the light of the moon on the moors, or the puff of a pipe in the woods. Failing that, use a torch. Effort: 3/10 or 0/10 if you end up legless and need a cab. Tip: Ask the locals where they eat out. If they don’t, go somewhere here: www.camra.org.uk
classic cottages | A dozen great journeys on foot
9 CHEAT WALKS Burgh Island – As the tide ebbs, wade across to see the Art Deco Mecca then hitch a tractor ride back. Tip: The Pilchard Inn grub is good and isn’t uppity about what you wear.
St Erth to St Ives – Take the outbound cliff path fed by estuaries, fairways, dunes, wells, viaducts and valleys. Tiny train back (no buffet). Tip: If you fancy a swim on the way, skip all of Lelant as the riptide is evil. Carbis Bay is as serene as it sounds.
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10 MAIDEN CASTLE EARTHWORKS Wow. Huge fort. Size = 50 footy pitches. Climb 3 x 6 metre high ridges that circle hill. Ace roly poly. Built AD43 by jumpy Romans. It means ‘Great Hill’. Now know why. Effort: 7/10 uphill, 0/10 down. Tip: Good moby signal 2 miles S of Dorchester. Text an old friend, or enemy.
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11 CLASSIC QUARTER Ready, steady, go…the most southerly point of Britain to the most westerly, on foot, in one dawn-to-dusk day. This 44 mile Lizard to Land’s End mid-summer ultra marathon covers a quarter of the compass (hence the name) and scales 2,000 metres (1.5 x Ben Nevis from sea level). Dreamt up by Classic Cottages in honour of our founder to raise money for local hospices, it is both humane and insane. To enter the 2009 race, go gung-ho to: www.endurancelife.com Effort: 12/10 Tip: The scenery is earth-shatteringly beautiful. Don’t waste it on one barely conscious day. Stay a week and drip-feed yourself. Right: Saphie, the ultimate pacemaker for any epic trek. 10
12 SOUTH WEST COAST PATH IN ONE GO Only kidding. 630 miles of coast in a day is asking a lot of an arctic tern, let alone you. Do it bit-by-bit, holiday-by-holiday and sunset-by-sunset. Take your time and scribble down stuff on a map. A long dawdle will reveal magic you’ll never see in a race (for fear of running far from the madding crowd and straight over the cliff). We adore every strip of this well-trodden trail and often trade favourite trees, benches and beaches. Stumble upon your own, just stay away from the edge. Effort: More than you think – double the miles to allow for the ups and downs. Tip: You can download GPS files of one of the world’s greatest walks in 13 official sections at: www.southwestcoastpath.com
classic cottages The specialists for coastal and country cottages of distinction throughout the West Country Leslie House, Lady Street, Helston, Cornwall TR13 8NA Telephone 01326 555 555 Facsimile 01326 555 544 Email enquiries@classic.co.uk www.classic.co.uk www.classicguide.co.uk