Walk 22 (Day 2) - 22nd June 2014 - Portwrinkle (Cornwall, England) to Looe (Cornwall, England)

The photograph left shows the stunning view, looking towards Portwrinkle village, from our accommodation for the night, The Bungalow just outside Portwrinkle at Crafthole. The Bungalow started life as a world war 1 troop hut, but has since been converted into immaculate accommodation. Fiona is a wonderful hostess and the English breakfast is delicious, including homemade bread, jam and marmalade. 

After breakfast, we made an early start, walking down the hillside from the bungalow, perched on top of the hill. Already the sun was high in the sky, with the promise of a very hot days walking to come. 

Looking back, one last time towards The Bungalow on its lofty perch with Portwrinkle nestled below. 

Not for the first time this Summer, we were amazed by the still, clear, azure beauty of the sea, how tropical the English Channel can be! The photograph on the left was taken somewhere betwixt Portwrinkle and The Brawn.  

Looking back to Portwrinkle. The distant headland jutting out into the sea is Rame Head, around which we had walked yesterday. 

Again beautiful azure English Channel. 

The stunning view of Looe and Looe Island from just outside the village of Downderry. 

The seaside village of Downderry, which inspired the following words from Sir John Betjeman - 'Downderry! Downderry! The very name of this small Cornish village has a rhythmic lyrical quality..... Downderry down, Downderry down..... it rings of lymeric, folk song and rhyme. Snug between the bay of Whitsand and the promontory of Looe, Downderry with its  spouse Seaton, bathes in the constant ebb and flow of the English Channel. Their gentle cliffs roll and tumble to the sea'. 

From the village of Downderry we had a short walk, until we reached the sandy beach at Seaton, pictured left and below. 

The view from just beyond Seaton Beach, looking towards Looe and Looe Island. 

At the start of our walk we had been planning to walk as far as Polperro, but as the day unfolded, it became clear that the three T's of Terrain, Temperature and Time were working against us. Our learning here was that if just one of the three T's is demanding or limiting in anyway, then all will be well. Two out of three, manageable at an extreme push. Three, impossible! So as we reached the beach at Millendreath, we decided Polperro would be too far, given the Time we had left. The Temperature and Terrain had taken their toll and we didn't have the legs to complete!

Instead we treated ourselves to a delicious lunch at The Black Rock Cafe and Beach club, luxuriating in the knowledge that we did not have far to walk to our new end destination of Looe.  

Just outside Looe we were lucky enough to see a Fulmar (the white dot on the sea, by the cliff face on the left, is the bird itself). The area has a small colony of breeding Northern Fulmars, and is unique as it is the only known instance in South Cornwall of a colony within an urban area.  

As it transpired, our decision to end our walk at Looe, was a wise one. We walked through the town and straight onto the bus which would take us to the train station at Plymouth, over the dramatic Tamar Bridge.  From Plymouth we traveled by train back to Bristol and from there back to Gloucestershire, courtesy of our crew and support, Tops. Thank you Tops,