Day 10

August 18^th Depart Crackington Haven

Arrive Tintagel Accommodation: Lewis`s B&B

Distance 18.4 KM | Cumulative Distance: 225.63 KM | Grade–Moderate/Strenuous

Ascent 4,045 KM | Cumulative Ascent: 31,141 FT

Google Map Tintagel

Mt Everest summited!!

Encounter with intimate sheep!!

The lull before the Storm!

Camelot !

190 steps!

1586!

The above are reminders to ensure I capture everything that I encountered today, so hang, here goes.

Last night I woke just once, to go to the bathroom, and the wind was howling outside. When I woke at 6 it was still roaring and so I lay there and made a decision that from here on I would embrace it and enjoy it. I rolled over and, as breakfast was not until 8 - 30 am, just lazed, tucked up in comfort. I'd had a great sleep and was ready for the day ahead. Finally at 7 - 40 I jumped into the shower and by 8 - 20 was downstairs hoping I could get breakfast early. Unfortunately no one was around, so I got my hiking book out to read about the upcoming walk. At 8 - 30 breakfast was served and by 9 I was on my way.

The path started right across from the Inn and I was soon climbing up to the top of the cliffs. The climb was not as vigorous as some starts that I've encountered and already the wind and rain were my constant companians! Up on top I made sure to keep away from the cliff edges as the book very specifically warned about not getting too close. Ahead loomed High Cliff, the highest cliff in Cornwall and the ascent was steady, however on the other side the descent was brutal. My thighs were burning on the way down, and I had a twinge in my left knee, but there is no choice but to keep going. The only problem with going down is the fact that you have to go back up again!! Once I was on top I stayed there a while and the views were very impressive. The rain had stopped and so I was able to get some great photo's which I hope you enjoy. I took several of the signs, so you can see how the path is marked, plus I got a shot of a really neat wall. England is famous for the stone walls that run all over the country, however the South seems to have a lot less walls than those up North, but in turn they have way more hedgerows. A number of years ago there was a campaign to eliminate the hedges and create bigger fields to farm, but it turned out disastrous, not only for the farmers but also the wildlife that inhabited the hedgerows.

The morning was a lonely time and it was over1 hour before I saw my first person, and it was a youngish women, well wrapped up against the elements, and she was out running with her dog. I'm amazed at how many folk I see out running, and normally encounter 3 - 4 each day. A little while later I encountered a couple of fellows with a young boy, and the one guy was from Vancouver, and he knew I was a fellow Canadian as I was wearing my Canada hat! The morning was the lull before the storm however, as I think I counted 7 people in total, but in the afternoon it was a totally different story. I must have seen, in total, 500 - 600 people in total, it was crazy.

When I'm walking I set myself goals, and had marked noon as lunchtime, and I'm walking along enjoying the day and the weather, as the rain had abated, although the wind was insistent on keeping me company! Earlier I had noticed someone was following me, and because I had stopped a number of times to take photo's and a water break, the lady came by. It turned out to be the same women who had passed me going the other way yesterday, so it seems she was just doing day hikes here and there, and not the SW Coast Path. I finished taking a couple of pictures and then set off again and caught sight of the lady at the bottom of a climb down to a path that then wrapped around the cliffs. It was a beautiful section of the path. Eventually the path started to go down again, and I noticed the women on the opposite side of the valley, (I had stopped to take a couple of pictures again), and was intrigued at the steepness of the climb. About one hour into my hike that morning I had a mammoth climb, that had followed a steep descent, and the sign pointed straight up the hill, which went up and up and up. The climb that the lady was on was of a similar vintage and she was now 3/4's of the way up. I eventually got to the bottom of the valley, crossed the small bridge and encountered the first flight of stairs and so I started the count, 1,2,3,4, and up and up we went, 100, 125, 150, 175. Eventually I had reached the top and my count finished at 190 !! To add insult I then had to climb a stile, and by now it was 12 - 05 pm, which was perfect timing for lunch. The wind was blowing but I managed to find a place at the bottom of the wall, and opened my bag and got out my cheese sandwiches, sat on my bag, and started to eat. Several minutes had gone by, and I was halfway through my sandwich when I felt something nuzzling my ear, I turned my head and was eyeball to eyeball with a sheep, and a couple of her pals were right alongside. "Hello" said I, and this one sheep was insistend on sniffing my boots, lunch, face etc. No amount of shooing would deter them, and I've never met such brazen sheep before.

I only stayed for 10 minutes as the rain had returned and I was soon on my way again. I was only 30 minutes from Boscastle and wanted to get there as soon as possible as I wanted to find a coffee, as I have not had a decent one since Minehead. The path now led through several fields, each marked with the official marker, but in the last field I entered I could not find it, and so had to drop down to the road for the final 1/3rd of a mile into town. I soon found a coffee shop and they did a great job with their coffee. It was a neat building to. On my way out I saw my favourite dog, The Old English Sheepdog (I used to have two in a previous life) but this one, although an OES, had a tail which was disappointing to see. After coffee it was time to motor on as I still had 4 1/2 miles until my final destination and I was soon climbing out of Boscastle. The town was full of tourists, and now they all seemed up on the trails, and I couldn't wait to put some distance between me and them. Unfortunately they were everywhere, and it was hard to escape them!

The path to Tintagel was pretty straight forward but there were still a couple of stiff descents and climbs, with one very stiff climb out of a magical spot where I stopped to take a picture. Eventually Tintagel was in my sights and for those historians this is the place of English folklore and the home of King Arthur and the Knights of the Round Table and the mythical Camelot. I would imagine in the right circumstances, and weather, it could be a magical place, as the place was over run with tourists. I took a couple of pictures, but will try and get more in the morning when I'm leaving.

Somewhere between Boscastle and Tintagel, I had accumulated enough elevation to put me on top of Everest, for the 1st time during my journey, and I'm now on the way to climbing Chumalunga for a 2nd time.

There was a real stiff climb up to the Village from the ruins of Camelot and you can get a Land Rover to run you up for Two Pounds Sterling, but that was not for me and I soon reached the main road that led to my B&B. Upon checking in I wanted to email home, to let Liz know I had arrived safely but could not access the Wi-Fi. It turns out the house dates back to 1586 and the walls are 18 inches thick!!

Now for some pictures,hope you enjoy them.