From: St Agnes Head to Newquay
Distance: 14m / 22.4km
Cumulated distance: 63.2 / 101
Percentage completed: 6.1
Today turned out to be quite a saintly day. I woke up in the village of Saint Agnes, overlooking the church.
View from my attic window at St Agnes Hotel ..
When I was studying Art History in Manchester back in the day, the Early Medieval art option required that you got familiar with the lives of saints. It was crucial to be able to distinguish your Huberts from your Hedwigs, so that you could read the iconography in a stained glass window. The most interesting saints by far were the martyrs, because of the unbelievably inventive and very often gory deaths they were meted out. Take St Agnes for example .. she was apparently a real beauty who attracted many suitors. But as she had given her heart to God, she turned them all away. Piqued by all the refusals she was reported as a Christian and sent to the stake to be burnt alive. But the flames miraculously parted and refused to burn her until eventually, they were forced to behead her instead. After her death, she became the protector of virgins and gardeners, since virginity is symbolised as a closed garden. Indeed, the word Agnes means ‘pure and chaste’.
The hospitable St Agnes Hotel
The beach at St Agnes
When I was little, the highlight of the year was the two week holiday we took down in Cornwall. We’d drive down from Liverpool, together with half of the country, for our time in the sun. And truly, it always was sunny in those days during the summer. Ask anyone of my age. We used to stay on farms close to Newquay and the build up to the fortnight was thrilling. My sister and I would make holiday ‘advent’ calendars .. like the Christmas version, except that instead of snowmen and baubles behind the windows, there would be drawings of buckets and spades and icecreams. The days were very simply filled with time on the beach and then tea back at the farm at the end of the day. We never sun-bathed. The hours were taken up investigating rock pools, playing french cricket and building the biggest sandcastles. It was idyllic to us, even if there was always sand in the sandwiches, the farm wreaked of pig pooh and the Atlantic turned your skin blue within minutes of paddling .. we rarely swam.
Nostalgic shops
Following the holy theme I was delighted to discover that today was St Perin Day and by total coincidence this morning I was walking the length of Perran Beach, which gets its name from the saint. It’s just north of Perranporth and is a fabulous 3 miles long, Even though the rain was pelting down, it was still really beautiful. I had the whole beach virtually to myself, bar the odd runner and several stalwart dog walkers.
Dogs with their runners
Time to play ..
The cliffs along the beach would be a geologist’s dream, I imagine .. with deep caves and magnificent colours. It’s certainly a note I’ve made to myself to find out more when I next speak to Mr Google. The shells and rock pools were just as I remember from my childhood.
Geologist’s playground
Pretty, pretty colours
Not a walk for anyone with vertigo!
The rain continued to fall all morning and I took refuge in Willow Café, for a latté and a slice of delicious coffee cake http://www.willowbistro.co.uk. I got talking to Jeanine, the owner, who had walked parts of the Wall of China. She kindly gave a donation to Walking The Black Dog, which will get paid into the SANE account tomorrow on my first rest day. I’ve been bowled over by the number of people who on hearing the story of the walk, have given donations. Sydney-sider friends know that we raised a fabulous $55600 for the Australian mental health charity, The Black Dog Institute, ahead of the walk. And now in the UK the sum being raised for the UK’s SANE is rising every day .. take a look at the sites. And if you feel saintly, like the day, please donate!
Sheep with full compliment of legs
Lost something?
View looking back to Perrenporth
And then the sun came out as I walked up and over the cliffs, past beautiful inlets and crashing waves. Looking back over the miles I’d covered I truly felt for the first time that I really could do this whole walk. It was an exhilarating feeling.
Looking back to where I’d come from
At the end of the day there was time for one more bit of saintliness .. I was met by my lovely friend Liz, in her very welcome Volvo. The wonderful Heis family is giving me a home for the next week, ferrying me from the end of a day’s walk to be revived, washed and fed in the evening at their home in and returning me to the exact same spot the following morning to continue the walk.
Tomorrow is a day of rest, so no blog .. but please join me the day after for more musings!
Black Dog Tails
1st Officer William Murdoch had the mighty Newfoundland Rigel at his side when he rescued people stranded after the Titanic disaster.
You write a wonderful blog Jules and so interesting. Philip and I spent a week in a tin miner’s cottage (so cute) in St. Agnes a number of years ago. We spent our days walking by cliff edge and through countryside. It is indeed a lovely area with dramatic, pastoral and also somewhat faerie scenes. I didn’t know about St. Agnes and I loved reading that. Enjoy your rest. Loved your photos too. x
Thank you, Marilyn. I’ve made a mental note to return to St Agnes .. it was so pretty and the people at the St Agnes Hotel really lovely. x
Give the sheep his leg back!!!
Too late .. ate it with mint sauce! x
Happy memories of bucket and spade holidays! Enjoy your day off – we’ll miss you! Xx
They were the best, weren’t they! x
So glad to hear you had such a
Good day in the main and that you feel so strong and positive. Have a great days rest – you’ve certainly earned it! Xx
Thanks Kate .. just had a fabulous rest day massage! And will later get my Robinson Crusoe hair tamed! xx
Your childhood hols in Cornwall sound just like my childhood hols – felt very nostalgic reading today’s blog. But Jules – Jules! – a day off from the blog too?! You can’t do this to us! It’s the high spot of my day! Have a lovely rest. Xx
Oh Woze, you are lovely! But a girl needs to attend to all the essentials on her day off .. like getting her hair done and a full body massage! xx
Have you any dry clothes left to wear!? Pennines sounds great….my part of the world…..which month/timings are you aiming for. Xx would be a privilege to walk with you. Xx
WAshing machine and tumble drier here been working overtime!! x
So beautiful Jules! Can’t wait to join you. Nigel x
I had totally forgotten how beautiful the Cornish coast was. But the Cotswolds will also have treats! x
Jules , you are spoiling us with wonderful daily story and gorgeous photographs , it’s a bit like being addicted to a Netflix series when you can’t wait for the next episode .. have just read day 5 and now can read day 6 too ! Bingeing on your blogs 😊😘 .. you will have to tell me what French cricket is when I see you xx do enjoy your rest day !
And you are spoiling me with the lovely long emails, which I am failing to reply to at the moment .. so sorry. I am loving reading them. Rest day was lovely with massage etc. Wonderful being at Liz’s home. xx
I have just found your blog and as I was in Padstow last weekend and off to St Agnes next weekend I’m really enjoying it! I am in awe of you taking on such a mammoth task and look forward to keeping up with your travels. X
So glad you’ve enjoyed it! J