Penzance to Camborne – 16.9 miles (29.9 total)

I woke up at 6.30 this morning to the sound of heavy rain bouncing off the velux window in my bedroom. The prospect of walking a full day in those conditions filled me with dread and did not encourage me to spring out of bed – so I didn’t. I lay there for another hour listening to the rain and feeling sorry for myself.

Over breakfast the rain eased off slightly which was encouraging. I wasn’t taking any chances, though, and put on my waterproof overtrousers. That was obviously a signal for the rain to stop and the sky to brighten up. So having spent 10 minutes putting them on, I then wasted another 10 minutes taking them off again and packing them away. Only walkers will understand this eternal conundrum and the obsession with the weather.

20 minutes later I was walking along Penzance seafront, following the South West Coastal Path in (short) shirt sleeves in beautiful sunshine. We had a spectacular walk around the bay heading for Marazion and the iconic St. Michael’s Mount. We could see it clearly all the way until we ended up opposite it. This is yet another tourist hotspot, but, unlike Lands End, the set-up looked professional and tasteful.

We then turned inland for a day of mostly road-walking. After 10.5 miles we reached the Smugglers Inn, which was thankfully open. After a bowl of soup, okay, and a pint of Tribute, we set off again to finish the day’s walk.

Sadly, the elusive rain then appeared and proceeded to keep us company all the way to Camborne. We were a tad wet when we eventually checked in to the Vyvyan Arms Hotel… well it’s an inn really. At 16.9 miles today was a bit longer than planned (14.5) so both Christopher and I feel as if we’ve done a serious walk today.