Wednesday, October 07, 2009

Dad and I had a quick day walk to finish up to Plymouth and then I carried on after that to Seaton Bridge. The Mount Edgecumbe Gardens reminded me of the parks where I used to live and as I crossed the Devon – Cornwall border the landscape also changed. My knees were getting quite painful with the constant up and down of the cliffs – descending is so much more painful with the extra weight of a pack forcing you down! On the 15th day I set off from Looe with an incredible red morning sky, passing Nelson the seal on the way out. The sky had stayed clear so I stopped in Polperro for suncream – just as I started smothering my shoulders everything turned dark and a huge rain cloud soaked everything within seconds! The knees were getting worse but I made really good time – I think I was excited to get to Fowey where we used to go on holiday. The town seemed a lot bigger and busier than when I was young – I only remembered the fishmongers where we got crabbing bait and the old aquarium where I had spent hours as a child and Readymoney cove!

Walking to Mevagissey the next day was frustrating with lots of road walking and diversions and a hot sun. I hitchhiked with a lovely family from Mevagissey to the youth hostel in Boswinger where I started feeling quite ill and slept from the minute I arrived.

The 17th day was my final day of walking so far. I woke up feeling quite sick still and made a slow start on the rough terrain that wasn’t made easier with the fog and dew. My boots then decided to give up and let the water flood in and my knees also complained a lot so by the time I got to Portloes I really wasn’t enjoying myself and decided to stop the walk until my knees and boots were fixed and after University applications are completed. The first 280 miles have been great fun and I look forward to completing the walk when I can.