We left the security of the last campsite in Padstow with every conviction that we would be wild camping that evening. We were apprehensive but excited about the opportunity. However, we found that the car park had signage that unsettled us which referred to monitoring and “No Camping”. That said we pitched up in a discreet fashion, and proceeded to explore the surroundings. The day was blustery but fine with plenty of sunshine. I convinced Mandy that a walk would be good,  but it soon became apparent that the coastal path was more than a test for my better half.

[huge_it_gallery id=”9″]

We did do a 20 minute stint together towards Portreath Beach (not that I knew where I was heading), but turned back to the van to read her book leaving me to carry on. I must confess, the walk was a great release of energy. I love to walk at a pace that gets my heart going, and the views and climbs making the event even more exhilarating.

The English coastline is hard to beat and this just proves it!

The weather was brilliant, but we knew it was set to change for a period later on that evening and the wind had started to getting stronger. We both didn’t feel 100% comfortable about staying the night wild camping so we referenced our Britstop book for a local place to ‘legally’ pitch up for the night.  We found a really nice pub  called the Inn & Lodge in Balnoon only a few miles away, so decided to give it a try as the reviews were favorable. Next stop Balnoon

We had arranged our next camp over before we left Combe Martin. We arrived at Padstow Touring Park after a brief trip to Tesco’s just down the road. The campsite was very much more regimented than the previous one which meant we had to park our front end in, to the left of the orange marker. Me, not really listening to the chap at reception decided to do the exact opposite as i was tired and it was lost in translation.

So the first night was fine. Mandy watched her Coronation Street on the tablet, and I listened to music on my phone…just like being at home really 🙂

The  following day meant i had to spin Wolfgang around because “I vaz not facing In ze right direction!” The exercise was a total waste of time, but the fuhrer were happy! Other than that it was a nice campsite . Very clean and the shower blocks and facilities were great.

We headed down to the harbor. One mile trek apparently but that’s questionable .

[huge_it_gallery id=”10″]

We trekked through a couple of fields and came out on a road near Tesco. We followed the road down the hill and thrugh an alley way which lead on to the seafront. Another half mile or so takes you to the heart of Padstow.  Its renowned for Rick Stien ,and you can’t really turn a corner without being reminded of that. Top price for eating in his restaurant, but I guess that’s why Betty’s Tea room is a hit in Yorkshire. We are all guilty of wanting the best, and I guess ‘Rick’ is what you do here.

The village is very quaint, with lots of places to eat, drink and peruse. It is very touristy, but no great surprise there i guess.

Mid afternoon we headed back to the camp site. The sun was well and truly beating down on us so we took advantage, listened to some music, read and chilled by the van.

Late afternoon we took another local walk then sparked up the Cobb, had a few beers and watched the sun go down. Fantastic 🙂 .

The sunrise was equally impressive…After breakfast we packed up ready for the next part of the journey…. Cliffside Walk & Portreath Beach

(More information on Padstow can be found at the Tourist Information site)

We did very little in the way of planning for this holiday, but we did need a starting point for the first few days . We decided that a run of four hours or so from our home in Derby was enough for the first day, and this would be more than enough to drop us into an area of the UK we both loved. A Camp site in Combe Martin looked like a good first stop. So we committed ourselves to three nights at Mill Park camp site as it looked like it ticked the boxes for both Mandy and myself. The camp site seemed to be surrounded by trees in the online marketing material (which we prefer), and this rang true upon arrival.

The journey down started fine and dry, but ended in a downpour that became challenging as we weaved our way through the increasingly narrow Devon-shire lanes. The final drop into the campsite village gave me cause for concern as i stepped out of the cab to smell a very hot disk break. After all of the problems with my recent brake issues (yet undocumented), I was skeptical as to whether this issue may bring our holiday to an early end. On refection, it was probably more my paranoia creeping in.

[huge_it_gallery id=”12″]

Combe Martin and Ilfracombe were only a short distance away from the campsite. We wanted the first stop to be relaxing and an opportunity to unwind. Work is work and a holiday is most often the reason for the holiday in the first place. However, the run up to your holiday can be stressful with a camper-van because your also relying on  your vehicle to be your home as well as your transport. Once we had a pitch and were parked up i felt that I could truly relax and kick back. The first afternoon at the campsite was just exploring the facilities, listening to the radio and watching the rain come down. The new DAB radio was proving it was worth every penny of the £100+ I had spent on it. Changing the stereo was a last minute decision. I realized I couldn’t spend the whole two weeks with the previous unit continually tuning into Classic FM!

The following day the weather was better. So much so that we decided to take a walk into Combe Martin. This certainly wasn’t done as the crow flies. We first walked across another camping field until we found a coastline footpath…after a coastal path we popped up at the back of a hotel which turned out to be Sandy Cove Hotel. This had amazing views so we decided to have a coffee break before moving on.

We headed down a twisty path which lead us onto the main road for a 100 yards. Following this were steep drops with lots of steps with a field or two thrown in. I don’t mind a jaunt and a bit of a tab across the old terrain, but Mandy was less enthusiastic. That said she did well with minimal complaints. Combe Martin was nice. The weather wasn’t brilliant and the sun was intermittent. There were only a few shops open for customers and I thought this may be due to the time of year, but i guess it was a Sunday.

One very large ice cream later we set back to the campsite stopping at a very nice pub called The Saw Mill. It looked amazing in it’s setting with a stream running in front, trees at the back and a large log store almost the full length of the carpark. I love to promote places we have been to, especially if they are good. This had recently been refurbished and maybe that had something to do with the quality and service but it comes highly recommended.

The rest of the day was largely uneventful other than the fact we used our Cobb cooker for the first time.

I had only seen this item a couple of weeks before we embarked on the trip, but it looked a great bit of kit for outdoor cooking. This YouTube link pretty much sums it up, but there are a lot of videos and information out there if you need to know more. We used it extensively during the two weeks away…and at home after the trip.

The following day we ventured into Ilfracombe on the bus. We had been there before a couple of times so knew the area. It was slightly overcast again but that didn’t damp our spirits. I think this photo pretty much sums up Cornwall on an average British day taken into account the amount of rubbish weather we get, but it’s still pretty nice!

We had a coffee on the harbour front and walked into the carpark where the Damien Hirst statue Verity stood. It is pretty stunning.

[huge_it_gallery id=”11″]

I said to Mandy that it reminded me of the Jason and the Argo-naughts movie where a bronze statue comes to life after the pirates steal gold. A real life monolith at the gates of the harbor! Well worth a visit!

After a good nights sleep we had a shower, some breakfast and  packed up ready to leave the campsite. It’s great exploring locations, but we am always happy to get behind the wheel after a few days being static. Next stop was on the horizon. But we needed to get off the campsite, and the current rain fall meant that we were not going to be leaving this camp site without assistance.

Next Stop Padstow

It’s bazaar how time seems to expand when you embark on a holiday of this nature. It’s not due to boredom. God no! It’s for all of the right reasons! Visiting X amount of amazing places in a day, and chatting to so many interesting people along the way makes you feel like your daily hum drum existence has been sent into fast forward. Mandy and I found our self in bed a good hour earlier than we usually retire at home because we crammed so much in. Some say its the sea air, but I think in our case our body’s and minds just need to close down and try and process the day!

Our stints between locations, and the time we spent there varied so much that the whole holiday became a fluid and continual entity . However, I have tried to order the BLOG contents as best I can. The map above has been taken from my vans tracker data and shows the places we stopped for 2 hours or more. Some are camp sites, some are places we visited in-between camps (all listed in order below).

In the past we had booked our campsites and knew the time and duration between stops. This was mainly due to having to rely on electric hook up. Not the case now, so we can throw caution to the wind and accept accommodation in the least likely places. You only have to look at the map above or list below to see just how many places we visited in two weeks:

Links: (at the bottom of each post you will be able to move on to the ‘Next Post’ in the trip or back to the ‘Previous Post’)

1.  Come Martin & Ilfracombe
2. Padstow
3. Cliffside walk & Portreath Beach
4. Balnoon
5. Penzance
6. St Micheal’s Mount
7. Lizard Point
8. Falmouth
9. Little Winnick
10. Fowey – Polperro
11. Looe
12. Plymouth, St John
13. Torquay
14. Blackpool Sands, Devon