Day 6

August 14^th Depart Westward Ho

Arrive Clovelly Accommodation: The New Inn

Distance 18.0 KM | Cumulative Distance: 150.33 KM | Grade – Strenuous

Ascent 2,589 FT | Cumulative Ascent: 17,837 FT

Google Map Clovelly

Woke at 6.00 am after another solid sleep. I could hear the rain falling and the wind blowing, and I felt toasty warm and so pulled the quilt up and fell back to sleep for another 30 minutes. At 6 - 30 am I got up, packed my bag and did some work e-mails to kill time before breakfast.

At 8 - 25 am I gathered my stuff and headed downstairs to check out and have breakfast. It's amazing what effect a good nights sleep has on the body, as I felt no aches and pains going down stairs, unlike a few hours earlier when I felt like I was 90!!!

I had my usual for breakfast and just before I left a lady came in and it turned out she was also a SW Coast Path hiker. She explained she was only going to Bude where she was meeting family for a holiday. I wished her happy trails and set out. No sooner had I left than I was back indoors, as the rain had returned and so it was time to gear up. In hiking parlance this means putting on your waterproof gear to keep dry. As I hike in shorts this was pretty straight forward for me, as all I had to do was throe on my Goretex rain jacket, and put my backpack cover on to keep the contents of my bag dry.

I walked down the street to the Co-Op and picked up a sandwich for lunch, and some chocolate bars, and then I was off. No sooner had I reached the sea front than I stopped to take a picture of the huge black cloud that was right over where I was headed. Also, I had to be careful not to get too close to the sea wall as every now and again a huge wave would wash over the top. The track for the 1st mile was very straight forward, and it was pretty easy going, although a little on the wet side. Eventually the trail resumed it's usual roller coaster ride of ups and downs, and every now and again a nice view would present itself and be gone again. The rain was pretty steady today, unlike yesterday when we had none, but that's the one thing we cannot control.

Eventually I noticed a field full of birds and then realized they were grouse, and August 12th is when the Grouse Hunting season opens up. Thankfully none of these fellows seemed to be in some hunters sights, and it was comical at times to watch them. They look like roadrunners, going at 90 mph to escape. One time there were 4-5 on the trail and as soon as they saw me they took off around the corner, as soon as I got there they took off around the next corner. This went on for a few minutes before they eventually just flew off.

The path eventually dropped down into Buck's Mills, a picturesque little spot with a small convenience store, which was closed and a house opposite. Just beyond the house was a bench, and a hiker stood next to it, so I decided I would use the bench for lunch, and got into conversation with the hiker who was from Norfolk. Lunch was limited to 10 minutes as the rain that had been threatening arrived, and it was back on the trail. No sooner did I turn the corner to start the next climb than I was brought to a stop by a photo opportunity of some great flowering shrubs that I will post below. After the brief photo op it was back to climbing, and I was so much happier to be back in the hills than wallowing on the Tarmac !!

From the start of this climb the sign said it was 4 1/2 miles to Clovelly, my destination, and so I resolved myself to be there by 3 - 00 pm and so the march was on. Up and down I went and after a mile or so the path gave way to a track that was man made, which would eventually lead me right to Clovelly. Unfortunately, due to all the rain, the path was very slippy and so lots of due care and attention was required. Along this path I saw more and more grouse and I'm at a loss as to how you can possibly hunt them in this terrain.

Eventually I reached my destination, and you have no idea just how wonderful it felt to get in at a decent hour, instead of the 6, 7-30 and 7-15 pm that I achieved the last 3 nights.

Clovelly is a very unique English Village and would strongly urge you to look up the town on Google or whatever search engine you use. The only access into and out of the village is on foot, as no vehicular traffic is allowed, and the streets are all cobble stone and I will try and get a better shot in the morning for you.

After checking into my hotel, I wandered down the hill in search of a cream tea, to celebrate my early arrival, and found an absolutely fabulous panoramic view of the last two days of hiking, I was going to video it for you, but for whatever reason my I - Pad Mini decided not to co-predate so I'm going to try again in the morning.

As I was leaving the tea rooms I bumped into the lady from this morning, and she had finally made it into Clovelly. We agreed to meet over dinner to discuss war stories and compare notes. I then returned and completed the missing blog from yesterday before heading down for dinner. The lady from this morning is called Katherine and she was doing a walking holiday from Minehead to Bude where she's meeting family, which I'm assuming is her husband and children. With the day being only 10 miles, and 1000 feet less elevation than today, we have decided to walk together, and I'm hoping to bump into Silvio as I believe ha has a pair of my hiking socks!

Before leaving you I wanted to acknowledge a donation from my good friend Jean Claude Munyezamu.

I wouldn't normally highlight any one single individual, for obvious reasons, and hope you don't mind me singling out JC.

Liz and I have become good friends with JC and his lovely wife Christine, and their young family. JC and Christine are survivors of the Rwandan genocide, and their story, like so many genocide survivors is compelling. I know JC probably needs the money that he has donated, but that is the measure of this remarkable man, always giving of himself, so if you are reading this JC, I thank you, most sincerely.

Now here are some photo's of Day 6