The lizard walk

We’re off for a bracing cliff top walk from The Lizard to one of the most famous beaches in Cornwall – Kynance Cove.

The Lizard to Kynance Cove Walk is a short 2,5 miles section of the South West Coast Path and can be done in around 50 minutes.

The scenery along the way is wild and wind whipped so it will probably take considerably longer to complete as I like to snap everything I see!

It’s a grey day to start off with, but as we near our destination the sun is starting to poke through!

And here it is – Kynance Cove. Brace yourself for a lot of beach spam in the next post!

The tourist honey pot that is Kynance Cove! Already can see lots of tiny folk swarming over it!

Charlestown

The next (literal) port of call on our Cornish explorer is the beautiful little town of Charlestown.

The little town has a wonderful, unspoiled example of a late Georgian working port.

It was constructed between 1791 and 1801 by Charles Rashleigh who was an entrepreneur and member of a local landowning family. It was built to help facilitate the growth of the growth of the local mining industry.

Checking out the far reaching views

Charlestown was formerly known as West Polmear with a population of just nine people and a small fishing fleet that used the beach as a harbour.

When completed, Charlestown was a model Georgian “new town” and by the 19th century lots of businesses were established in sheds and warehouses around the harbour.

These included pilchard curing, shipbuilding, brick making and lime burning and the population grew to nearly 3,000.

Although the old traditional businesses around the harbour have mainly gone, it has found a new lease of life with bustling pop up cafes, restaurants and hip little bars.

Perfect Polperro

Polperro – meaning Pyra’s cove is a large village, civil parish, and fishing harbour within the Polperro Heritage Coastline in south Cornwall.

It’s a steep walk down to this picture postcard perfect village but it’s well worth the effort.

It’s idyllic appearance comes complete with tightly-packed ancient fishermen’s houses which survive almost untouched, a quaint harbour and attractive coastline.

Plus you can spot the tiny, mischievous Piskeys if you look hard enough!

Smuggling prospered and reached its peak in the late 18th century when wars with America and France lead to the high taxation of many imported goods.

So it was worthwhile for local fishermen to boost their income by smuggling in spirits, tobacco and other goods from Guernsey and elsewhere

Despite the crowds of tourists thronging its pretty streets, Polperro is still an authentic feeling village.

Fishing was traditionally the principal occupation of Polperro families and for centuries the village has been a pilchard fishing and processing port.

Shoals of these fish diminished however and pilchard fishing died out as Polperro’s mainstay in the 1960s, however a handful of commercial fishing vessels still operate from the harbour catching flatfish, scallops, crabs, monkfish, ray, pollock, bass and cod.

West Looe

West Looe is a separate area, across the bridge and out of the bustling tourist town of East Looe. It has a charming, quieter vibe all of its own.

Pretty little houses tumble down a hill towards a compact hamlet with little more than a pub and an estate agents (ironically given the problem with second homes)

West Looe is the smaller and quieter of the two parts of Looe but has its own distinct charm.

Lovely Looe

We’re heading into Cornwall now and stop off for a brief visit at the cute little town of Looe.

Enroute we visit Seaton beach – a quiet little hamlet a few miles away from Looe.

It’s a wild stretch of beach bisected by the River Seaton with a handful of cafes and a car park.

Then we’re into the quaint little town of Looe with it’s wide sandy beach and winding streets full of flowers and traditional seaside paraphernalia.

As well as being a tourist mecca it is still a working fishing port. Its name – Looe or in Cornish Logh – means ‘deep water inlet’.

The town is actually divided in two by the River Looe and is comprised of East Looe and West Looe (or in Cornish Porthbyhan meaning ‘little cove’) and the two are connected by a bridge.

Here’s a few more colourful snaps of the main town before we had over to check out the smaller, less touristy West Looe.

Plymouth art

Fresh off the little boat from Cornwall back to Plymouth I spy a colourful sights – the Plymouth covid wall art.

Full of peoples reactions to the global pandemic, lockdown, vaccinations and everything coronavirus related.

Not all voices agree of course – and this piece laments the perceived loss of freedom and governmental control that the lock down caused us all.

The hubby is menaced by a giant angry worm in this striking piece.

Mount Edgcumbe

You can take a boat from Plymouth to Mount Edgcumbe in Cornwall. A worthwhile trip to take taking you from Devon to Cornwall in a short hop.

The Edgcumbe Belle is a tiny little boat that ferries tourists to and from the impressive Mount Edgcumbe stately pile.

It’s a drizzly grey day but we’ve landed in Cornwall!

Mount Edgcumbe House is the former home of the Earls of Mount Edgcumbe. Set in Grade I Cornish Gardens within 865 acres Country Park on the Rame Peninsula, South East Cornwall.

Mount Edgcumbe House was first built in the 1500s and was restored after World War Two.

It is jointly owned by Cornwall Council and Plymouth City Council and is one of the regions most popular historic tourist destinations.

There’s art and sculpture dotted around the grounds to enjoy – and when it got too damp we retreated to a traditional Cornish past time – cream teas!

Fully stuffed and ready to do a little more exploring of this lovely little spot.

And below is the beautiful house itself which you can pay to visit – but we’re cheap skates (and very full) so give it a miss this time.

Southern Explorer 2021

Back on the 2021 trip round up now with a whirlwind tour of the South in July 2021. Starting off in Plymouth, we then headed to Boswinger in South Cornwall, Torquay and Bristol.

Here’s a few snaps from Plymouth to start us off. Plymouth is the capital, and historic hub, of maritime Devon.

As well as lots of wall art, there’s plenty of art and culture to be discovered. Including this gigantic sculpture known as Messenger, she was created by the Cornish artist Joseph Hillier and shows a female actor crouching in preparation to run onstage.

It was commissioned by and installed outside the Theatre Royal, Plymouth in 2019 in preparation for the city’s Mayflower 400 celebrations.

A bit more vibrant wall art from a few of the seedier corners of the city below!

Away from the urban centre there is more traditional sea faring sights to be found.

Tinside Lido is a 1935 Art Deco lido beside Plymouth Sound and overlooked by Plymouth Hoe and Smeaton’s Tower.

The lido is open in the summer months between May and September – it’s a bracing dip at this time of year!

The quayside is the perfect place to be if you’re after some food and drink, with classy and quirky venues jostling for position.

The Barbican area of Plymouth is a cute little maze of alleys, independent shops and places to eat and drink.

So it would be rude not to have a cocktail (or two!) while we are here.

Newport

Last stop of our Isle of Wight 2021 trip was another new spot – Newport. Often referred to as the capital of this tiny island.

This historic town has elegant Georgian and Victorian architecture and a little quay too.

While a lot of the town is generic, there are a few quaint little sections such as Watchbell Lane below.

A few random religious objects including a masked up Mary in the window next to a printer . . .

Then there is a touch of poetry including the Duck Snub Outrage! Including the immortal lines ‘That makes me sad. Ducks are bad’.

A few more shots of wall art dotted around the town.