To a Long Steep Hill

 We are in good time for our train at Newquay station, and once aboard, we show our tickets to the inspector.   'Hmm.  there's a problem.  These tickets are for yesterday.'. Oh no!  I have made a mistake booking them on line.  Luckily, he doesn't make us pay for new tickets.  He advises us to go to the ticket office in Plymouth  and sort out the problem.  However, when we get off at Plymouth, the London express is just sitting there on the next platform about to leave.  We hop on.  Fortunately we come across a very friendly ticket inspector, who agrees to ignore the problem.  We are worrying about getting through the barrier at Paddington. All is well, however, and the train pulls into platform one - no barrier!

 My God, we are being lucky with the weather again - unlike our October attempt last year.  We get the 10.00 bus and have a coffee at the Merrymoor Inn at Mawgan Porth.  The plan is to have an early lunch which we have booked at the highly recommended 'Catch' restaurant before tackling the 6.7 miles back to Newquay. On Mawgan Porth beach Surfers near Newquay, plus my walking pole about which more later 'Catch' does not disappoint.  We both have fish soup.  I follow with lemon sole, and Chris has mackerel. The bill is £93.00 including service.  These are London prices, but worth it. The walk to Newquay is tougher than we expected, and we are knackered by the time we creep back to the hotel.  However, we are determined to see Fistral Beach and decide to walk over there before dinner.  It is almost dark by the time we reach the beach, but it is impressive. That's Newquay.  Best beaches in the West Country.  Town centre best for tattoo shops...

   But the whole thing happens again the next day!  It's a Saturday, and there is a wedding reception.  It is chilly when the alarm goes off, and the poor bride is sent out with her party.  We are literally just back from our second day's walk and Chris is in the shower, but out we go and it's off to the Fish Bar again. At least we have had a great day's walk.  We take Pete's taxi to Treyarnon and set out for Porthcothan, where we find a lovely coffee bar buried in the dunes.  We buy lunch which we eat at Bedruthan Steps. Steps are closed and rather disappointing for what used to be a major tourist attraction.  The highlight of the day, just beyond the steps, was to see choughs.  They look like rooks until you get close enough to see their red beaks.  I bemoan how heavy my binoculars are, meaning that I never actually carry them. We trek on to Mawgan Porth, where we get the bus back to the fire-prone Victoria Hotel.

 We use our Freedom passes to get the 09.02 bus to Padstow, arriving via a circuitous route at 10.26.  We use the bus station toilets and head through the pretty town onto the SWCP, casting a last look back at Rock and regretting that we never used the ferry, which we see ploughing across the estuary. The weather brightens and we enjoy a long, but easy day's walk to Treyarnon Bay, where we have a welcome cup of tea outside the youth hostel and wait for the taxi we have booked back to Newquay (£36). The day's excitement does not end there - far from it.  Hardly have we got our boots off, than the hotel fire alarm goes off.  A test, obviously, we assume - but no.  It's a real fire in the roof, apparently.  We hurriedly get our kit on and join the other guests on the grass in front of the hotel.  We wait.  Fire engines appear from all directions.   It's obviously going to be a while before we are allowed back in - assuming the hotel doesn't...

We are off again.  This time, it's the 12.04 from Paddington.  We change at Par for the branch to Newquay.  We walk the few steps to the Hotel Victoria, where we have a decent room on the town side.  The hotel is weird.  It must have been wonderful in it's heyday - early 20th century.  The lift took guests straight down to the beach.  Now the lift doesn't even take us to our room - and no attempt is made to fix it while we are here.  The hotel has no bar and only serves breakfast in the restaurant.  It has declined to a vast B & B.  The public rooms are stunning.  What a shame.  We head out towards the harbour for a drink and a pizza at 12 Beach St.