Blackpool Sands was the venue for the last stop of our two week vacation. This was to attend the “2016 Vans in the Sands” camper van meet. This is a unique opportunity to camp on one of the best kept beaches in the country. It turned out to be a cracking event, and the Grand-Finale by all accounts.

Last year we attended the same event and this is the reason we committed ourselves early on as soon as the 2016 event came available to book. Last year it was at the mid way point on our two week travels, and  we had relatives visit which distracted slightly from socializing with the other campervan owners . 2016 was different in as much as it was our time to sit back, have a drink, and enjoy a little company with like minded people before we embarked on the drive back to Derby to conclude our holiday. Words can’t describe just how good it was. We made some great friends, and caught up with some of the people we met last year. We have decided that everything permitting we should be attending Vans in the Sands 2017 🙂

We arrived at Bay View Farm late afternoon after time in Fowey and Polperro . The last couple of miles off the main road were challenging. Very narrow and parts of the road had large pot holes and other areas  were eroded quite badly as we approached the farm. I think the campsite had been told to restrict the sizes of vehicles that can stay on the site to reduce further damage to the roads. However, the views were worth it once we arrived. It was still chilly and overcast which turned out to be the theme of the day.

Extract from Campsite website

“At Bay View Farm Camping Site we offer you a warm welcome to our Cornish coastal farm, with its wonderful sea views overlooking Looe and St George’s Island.

The camp site is right on the South West Coast Path, making it an ideal holiday location for exploring the cliff paths to Black Rock beach, Millendreath and the quaint fishing village of Looe with its hideaway streets, harbour, fish quay, beach and cafés offering delicious cream teas. Further along the coast path is the village of Polperro, with its wide choice of restaurants and taverns, smugglers’ cottages and harbour.”

W e were pleasantly surprised to find two other similar campervans to ours on the  site. One an Autohomes conversion, and another Westfalia.

We spent time chatting to both owners who turned out to be really nice. As the sun went day faded into night we admired the view.

The following day started dull, wet and rainy. We thought that we were going to be affected by a weather front that meant that these conditions were going to continue for the rest of the day. So we decided that today would be a chance to unwind and have a day in the van with a book / radio / TV.  Surprisingly the weather cleared and the day turned out to be great. We still chilled but it was nice to be able to sunbath and admire the vista.

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We felt really relaxed after chilling out. The following day was the day we were going to take a closer look at Looe. So far we had only admired it from a distance. That day turned out to be spectacular. We couldn’t have wished for the weather to have been any better!

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The next stop was going to be St Johns, near Torpoint, Plymouth. We knew that my Uncle wouldn’t be available to greet us until teatime, so the last hour or so we chilled out in the car park by the tidal river before setting off to visit my Uncle.

Next Stop St Johns

We awoke in the morning at Little Winnick Touring Park to damp and drizzly conditions. We chose not to stay another night at the camp site, but hadn’t found another pitch for later on in the day. We knew the general direction in which we were needing to travel so we had options, but nothing we had committed to yet. We had heard that the Mevegissey to Fowey Ferry was one of the best boat trips in the UK. Mevegissey was literally two miles round the corner from Little Winnick so we considered this as our main excursion of the day. However, after checking on the website we found that due to unsettled conditions in St Austell Bay, all trips had been cancelled 🙁 . Plan B was to drive to Fowey and see what that had to offer.

The day remained gloomy throughout, but it didn’t damp our spirits. We were content to be moving on after a couple of nights in one spot. It only took us about 35 – 40 mins from Little Winnick but climbing the hill to the main car park required us to take a second run up after a car pulled out of a junction at the bottom of the hill killing Wolfgang’s momentum. Quite embarrassing really, but we made it in the end 🙁 .

Fowey is quaint there is no doubt about that. Its twisting streets and alleys give it real character, and there are a raft of small shops and galleries to peruse. I would imagine that had the weather been good we could have gone on a harbor trip, or just sit and admire the boats. We spent an hour and a half looking round and getting our bearings before we decided it was coffee time. We found a nice Pub called the Gallion Inn. The view over the harbor was good so we chilled with a drink and took advantage of the free Wifi to look for a suitable campsite for the evening. An hour later we had polished off our drinks, had a meal and made a phone call to book in to our next campsite. It was still only early afternoon so the day was not over yet..

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We walked up to the van and waved goodbye to  Fowey. The next campsite was in Looe so we plotted a course to included Polperro. We weren’t sure how much time we would have there, but it was good to have the flexibility of pulling in another Cornish fishing village, even if it was on a whistle stop tour.

We were there within the hour, and parked the van in the main ‘tourist’ car park at the bottom of the hill on the way into the village.

From there we caught the Tram down the road to the harbor. It was only a short journey passing some of the gift shops and pub / restaurants. We could have walked but I liked the idea of travelling in this odd looking vehicle (We would walk back 😉 )

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Polperro is just a few miles from Looe,  and is sheltered from the ravages of time in its cliff ravine.  There was a tourist element about the place with the odd tacky gift shop, but that was limited and not overwhelming. I would say that Polperro had a similar genre of shops to Fowey. Some designer shops and art galleries. In total we probably spent about two hours there. Just enough time to walk around the shops and have an ice cream. In summary both Fowey and Polperro are amazing places and well worth a visit if you find yourself in this beautiful part of the UK. For us the lack of time in both places left us with enough reason to want to go back again in the future. Hopefully we will have some sun then, but for now we needed to get to our next campsite. Bay View Farm!

Next Stop Looe

After a great day in Falmouth we headed to Little Winnick Touring Park. This evening was meant to be a wild camp but we decided we couldn’t be bothered with the potential hassle of being moved on…and we liked the idea of having a shower in the morning 🙂 . We had already booked for two nights. However, arriving early we didn’t want to commit ourselves for a full three night, and the campsite was fine about us being indecisive. So we paid for two nights with the option of extending it further if required.

The weather was great late afternoon. The campsite gave us total autonomy as far as the non electric hook up pitches were concerned. We found a spot near a tree to set the van up. My fist job afterwards was to give Wolfgang a clean. However, not long after the sun moved behind the tree and the temperature dropped as a result. Maybe not such a good idea pitching up next to the tree 🙁

Food that evening was done using the Cobb Cooker. Foccia bread, potatoes, salmon and savory rice stuffed peppers with pasta 🙂 . We ate this in the van with the heater on 🙂

To settle the meal we took a stroll a short distance along the main road and over a bridge onto the opposite side of the stream. The stream formed the boundary of the campsite. This path was a part of the Pentewan Trail which lead through a forest to the coast. After 20 minutes we headed back as it was starting to get dark. No great shakes as we ended up walking to the coast the following morning after breakfast and a shower.

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One thing we noticed about the campsite was the very limited mobile phone connection. That twinned with the fact we couldn’t do a great deal in the immediate location without having to pack the van up and use it to get around meant that it was a little restrictive. I guess we had been lucky at the previous locations we had visited and now we felt a little hard done to 🙁 .

The second evening we drove to a pub called the Polgooth Inn about 3 miles from our touring park, but it was very popular and there was more than an hours wait for a table. So we headed back after a drink and got the Cobb Cooker on the go. Suffice to say we decided not to stay for a third night.

Next Stop Fowey & Polperro

Falmouth was a bit of a last minute punt if I am totally honest. Originally we were set for the second of our two wild camps after Lizard Point. However, after the failed attempt at wild camping we  were thinking of bringing the Little Winnick campsite forward a day if they could accommodate us. So we looked at the map and saw Falmouth was en route.

As soon as we arrived the town had a good vibe about the it. As time passed it was apparent there was plenty to see and do for the day. Both Mandy and myself agreed was a good decision in the end.

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We managed to get in touch with Little Winnick campsite whilst in Falmouth and they agreed that we would be able to arrive a day earlier than originally planned 🙂

Next Stop Little Winnick

After St Michaels Mount we departed for our next stop, Henry’s at Lizard Point. We decided to stay there for a couple of reasons.  Firstly It’s claimed to be the most southerly campsite in Britain, & second it just looked too quirky a campsite not to visit. As we pulled up to check in the clouds had started to form and the temperature had started to drop.  Palm trees and Yukka plants are in abundance, and there is certainly a ‘Good Life’ Kind of vibe about the place.

Website Quote:

“The site has mainly level pitches all with hook-ups and most have a sea view. our pitches are all different and have their own character. each pitch is individual with an array of wild and cultivated plants, some have walls partially surrounding them and some are more open. Because of our climate we have some unusual exotic plants and we hope that you feel, when you are staying with us, that you are sharing our garden.”

We set the van up and walked back up the driveway to the showers and toilets to freshen up. These turned out out to be unisex. If I’m honest I quite liked the campsite. Mandy on the other hand was less impressed. I think she likes a bit of luxury in a shower block 🙂 . The night seem to draw in rather quickly as the clouds got thicker, the wind picked up and the rain started to fall.

We had only booked this site for one night as we didn’t know what to expect. If it turned out to be a real gem with lots to discover we might have considered extending our stay. That said, we had a wander around Lizard village in the morning which turned out to be pretty sparse. There was the occasional brightly painted building which may have been influenced Henry’s campsite?

We were hoping to find a local beach to walk to, but there didn’t seem to be any obvious way to get to one even though the sea was tantalizingly close.

Suffice to say we headed back to pack the van up pretty early on, and set off for the next destination…Falmouth

This proved to be one of the best last minute decisions of the holiday. We drove out of Penzance and inland slightly on the A30 before heading to the coast. We stopped to admire the landmark at the first available car park a mile or so away from Marazion.

It was still overcast, quite cold and pretty windy, but a great opportunity for a brief stroll on the beach. We hadn’t caught the forecast for the day but we were all set for these conditions to continue. How wrong could we be? We left the car park and headed up towards the Mount and Marazion. We found the main car park near the beachfront, paid and parked up. As we strolled towards the ferry we saw the first few rays of sun break through the clouds. We crossed using the ferry as it was high tide. Ten minutes later we were on the harbor wall all set to explore.

Over the next hour or so the clouds cleared completely to reveal a blue sky. I must say that both Mandy and myself were totally blown away by the beauty of this place. I find it hard to sum it up in words, but I hope the following photos give a good overview.

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Marazion is the small village on the mainland where the ferry’s depart for St Michael’s Mount. Not a great deal to see there, but its very picture postcard y ..

Next stop Lizard Point (Henry’s)

More information on St Michael’s Mount

Penzance was the nearest place of interest after our Brit Stop camp over in Balnoon . The weather was a little gloomy, so we thought that being in a town and having the safety of the shops close by, with a meal at a restaurant for lunch would be the order of the day. After which we would head over to Lizard Point for our pre-planned stop at Henry’s Campsite. Not knowing the area we used the sat-nav to find a car park near the harbour. First impressions were not brilliant. We had a wander around but it was all slightly disappointing .

Penzance sounds like some magical foreign place you would find in Italy or Southern France. Maybe the name gives a false hope of better things but the reality is It looked slightly run down. I think if it had been a little warmer and the sun was out it may have had a different feel. Suffice to say, after a couple of hours and a coffee we decided it was time to move on . The distinct lack of photos for this portion of our holiday proves how unimpressed we were. Looking back on my photos for that day, this appears to have been the highlight of the stop. A scary looking manikin tied to the wall outside a fancy dress shop 🙁 

Because of the short stop in Penzance we weren’t ready to drive to Henry’s at Lizard Point just yet. So we decided to drive a few miles to Saint Michael’s Mount…

A short 40 minute drive found us at the ‘Inn & Lodge’ pub. We were both pleasantly surprised on first impression. It was close to a busy road which we though may be an issue later on, but it turned out to be mainly rush hour traffic

As you can see from the picture below, the car park was just about as idyllic as a pub car park could get.

In case you didn’t know, the ethos of Britstop is that if you spend the night in one of the locations, its courtesy to provide them with some custom for a free camp over. So it would be rude not to eat there. The meal was really nice and this was washed down with a pint of cider. ?  .

The following morning coffee was the first thing on my mind 🙂

Then we had our porridge and OJ before setting off to Penzance.

Next stop Penzance