Day 24. Mousehole to Marazion, 18 February 2025.

 I had planned to tick off the short section through Penzance before driving home, so I left the car at Marazion and took the bus to Penzance. I had to wait about 15 minutes for the second bus to Mousehole so I found a seat and started doing the crossword on my phone, but forgot to keep track of the time and looked up to see my bus just leaving. Blooms, as my brother would say. 

 

I couldn't be bothered to wait for another half hour, so decided that my rules could be relaxed to allow this short section to be done in reverse, and set off walking west.

 

On the way I passed these pebble seats on the promenade at Penzance

 

the harbour at Newlyn

and this allotment by the sea

 to end up by the harbour at Mousehole.

 

I took the bus back to Penzance, picked up a pasty for lunch, and wandered along the seafront path back to Marazion.

  

Distance today, 10 km. 

Day 23. Sennen Cove to Mousehole, 17 February 2025.

 Although I had been in the Old Success a few times for a post-climb pint, I had never stayed before. I was quite impressed - in a place like Sennen it would be easy for a pub to just trade on its location and not try too hard, but the welcome, the food and the room were all excellent and the breakfast was the best of all the places that I had stayed in on the coast path.

I was away just before 9 and left the village on a familiar route up to the top of the crag where I had climbed many times, then followed the cliff top to Land's End for the obligatory selfies by the signpost and the First and Last House. 

You might think that Land's End is the halfway point on the Coast Path, but that was still 100 km away on the far side of the Lizard peninsula. At least I was now heading in the direction of home...

The coast between Land's End and Lamorna has some of the best scenery on the whole coast path. On a bright sunny day the light and the colour are wonderful and some of the beaches look as if they could be on a tropical island. But not today; it was overcast and grey.  

The route took me past many crags that held good memories from 50 years of climbing; Pordenack Point, Carn les Boel, Carn Sperm, Carn Barra, Fox Promontory, Chair Ladder, Hella Point, Porthguarnon, St Loy... And also some superb beaches - this is Nanjizal with the cave known as the Song of the Sea.

and Pednvounder, my all time favourite beach, though not at is best on this gloomy day and now closed by the National Trust due to elf'n'safety worries about the steep path down.

At the headland of Tater-du the waymarking was rather confusing which caused me to make an unnecessary diversion to just above the lighthouse. Back on the proper route, the last mile to Lamorna Cove was more like an assault course than a path, wandering around and sometimes clambering over huge granite boulders. I must have walked this path in the past on the way to climbing at Tater-du but could not remember anything like this. No doubt that I was fitter then. Just before the cove there was this warning sign - not much use if you were travelling east rather than west.

 Fortunately the going became easier for the final section to Mousehole where I caught the bus to Penzance. Now I had a choice; wait two hours for another bus to the Gurnard's Head and walk 2 km back to the Count House, or splash out on a taxi. A no brainer. I was soon back at the Count House with a cup of tea.

 

Distance today, 25 km. 

Day 22. Bosigran to Sennen Cove, 16 February 2025.

It's an easy drive to Cornwall early on a Sunday morning in February and I was back at the Count House just after 10. After making a cup of coffee and leaving a note about my parked car I resumed the trail westward where I had left off a few months earlier. This was the view back to Porthmoina Island and Bosigran, the venue for numerous climbing trips over the past 50 years.

 

and this is Portheras Cove with the Pendeen Watch lighthouse in the background. 

 After the lighthouse the character of the route changes; the rock is now killas slate not granite, and the path goes past many buildings, chimneys and spoil heaps that are reminders of the tin mining industry.

This is Crowns Mine near Botallack; the mine workings were under the sea.

After passing Carn Kenidjack (another climbing venue) I descended into the Cot Valley, took a photo of the resident donkeys to send to Liz, and continued towards Cape Cornwall with its distinctive tower.

After Cape Cornwall and back on the granite, I continued past Porth Nanven and Aire Point (another climbing spot) to finish with a stroll along the beach at Whitesands Bay before checking in at the Old Success pub in Sennen Cove just after 4 pm.

Distance today, 21 km.