Cornwall Coast Walking Weekend

In March we experienced a very enjoyable walking weekend to the Cornwall coast. It turned out to be a weekend of great weather, great company and some amazing hikes. Our trip report from the weekend follows.

Our accommodation for the weekend was YHA Perranporth which we booked it on the YHA Exclusive Hire scheme. It sits high on the cliffs overlooking the sandy beach below which is popular with surfers. It sleeps 24 people and has all the facilities you are likely to need.

Cornwall Coast – A Poldark Walk

Perranporth is also where author Winston Graham lived most of his life. He’s famous for writing the Poldark novels which are set in this part of Cornwall. I remember watching the Poldark TV series in the mid 1970’s and it was recently revived with a new cast. Our walk on Saturday would leave the hostel door and head west following the Cornwall coast. We would pass Cligga Head, Trevaunance Cove and St Agnes Head before reaching Wheal Coates.

Wheal Coates is a former tin mine, a once important industry to Cornwall. Our walk then continued on to Chapel Porth where we left the coastal path to head inland. We eventually arrived in the village of St Agnes where the group became fragmented, some heading for the toilets, others to a shop to buy local cheese.

Once regrouped we continued on past the row of cottages on a slope which are known as Stippy Stappy. Our route would then rejoin the coastal path at Trevaunance Cove where we retraced our steps to the hostel.

“I remember watching the Poldark TV series in the mid 1970’s and it was recently revived with a new cast”

Once back at the accommodation it was time to hit the showers as our thoughts began to turn to food. We had booked a table at a local pub which was just a short walk from the hostel. It’s always good when we can walk to our pub or restaurants so that the drivers can also enjoy a drink.

Cornwall Coast – Bedruthan Steps Walk

On Sunday we cleaned the hostel and packed our belongings into the cars. Our walk was a 30 minute drive away, luckily in the direction of home. We parked at Carnewas Point for a short 8km walk. Keeping the distance short would allow us more time to enjoy the beach at Bedruthan Steps and still mean a decent arrival time back in London.

The weather was incredible, blue skies and temperatures very unlike March. Rugged Cornwall coast views greeted us at every turn with the group stopping often to take photographs.

Once we reached Bedruthan Steps we descended to the beach. There were a number of dog walkers, tourists and even a couple of surfers. Despite this there was plenty of space to find your own section of beach to sit and relax. It was a perfect place to enjoy our lunch and let your mind drift away. It was not going to be easy to leave this idyllic place behind and return to the big, noisy city that is London.

Eventually it was time to climb the steps again back towards the car park. Before leaving though there was time to visit the cafe for refreshments. For many this meant a cream tea but who would eat it Cornish style and who would eat it Devonshire style? We could not delay the inevitable for much longer though as we said our farewells and headed back to London. At least we had rosy complexions and lungs full of coastal air.

A few extra photos from the weekend appear below.

The Cornwall Coast is always a popular destination for the group. Perfect for coastal walking at any time of year you can be sure that we will be organising a similar trip again soon. Why not ‘like’ our Facebook page to keep up to date with newly added events or check out the trips page on this website.