D118: TREGONHAWKE to POLPERRO
Friday 19th April 2024
Today miles: 17.9 Total miles: 1989.1
As is now customary I boiled some water and drank my coffee with a couple of small snack bars before packing up and moving off. I’ve noticed a slow puncture in my Thermorest air mattress and it’s hugely irritating, having to re-inflate several times during the night. I’ll have to find a repair kit and try to resolve the problem.
The first two miles of walking is along a minor road towards Freathy and then onwards towards the disused Tregantle Fort. There’s very little traffic and a scattering of expensive looking motorhomes parked up on the side of the road. I left the road at the impressive looking Tregantle Fort then took to a vehicle track which winds its way through the Fort ranges. There’s an excessive amount of signage warning me about sticking to the public track and not wandering onto any MOD land. After the ranges I dropped down off the cliffs into Portwrinkle and had a short break before re ascending more cliffs and carrying on. I was starting to get hungry and hadn’t passed any shops or food establishments all day. To make me even more peckish after entering Downderry I passed a row of new terraced homes and there’s a strong smell of fried breakfast which is wafting in my direction, from a couple sitting on their balcony.
A few minutes later on the Western end of Downderry I entered ‘The Inn on the Shore’ public house and ordered myself a much needed full English breakfast and a cup of coffee.
After Seaton there’s a steep climb up Looe Hill. It’s then three easy miles along another minor road all the way into Looe. Looe village is a busy fishing port on the River Looe and it’s unbelievably busy. The streets are cobbled and narrow and there’s a good mix of traditional high street shops and local specialist stores. I walked around for a while before grabbing some additional food from the co-op store. I bumped into two fellow walkers who were also coincidentally Geordies. We chatted for a while about the SWCP and a Geordie’s favourite subject, Newcastle United before setting off in opposite directions. I only carried on for a further few minutes, waiting for the hoards of people to disperse before stopping and removing my socks and shoes, I now had a great view out to Looe Island whilst drinking my fizzy pop.
There’s less than four miles to go until I get into Polperro and it’s a pleasant and breezy two hours of walking. The only thing of note was the surprising presence of a platform rig just off the coast at Polperro harbour. It looks completely out of place and is apparently a temporary piece of equipment there to repair an underwater sewage pipe owned by South West water company. Polperro is a small but pretty harbour and like Looe, it was also very busy. I decided to hang around Polperro for a few hours before jumping on the bus to Tencreek holiday park, which is less than three miles away. I even managed to take a short nap whilst lying on the harbour wall.
Just wanted to add that I’m hugely impressed with the campsites in Cornwall. Most of the sites, including Tencreek Holiday Park offers a discounted rate to backpackers and it’s very much appreciated. Well done Cornwall, credit where it’s due.
Werewolfandflump UK Coast Path 