Polzeath to Pentire Glaze

We were planning to follow the walk in the Ramblers book, "Short Cornwall Walks" and park at the National Trust car park at Pentire Glaze.  However, we missed the turning to this car park and ended up at New Polzeath.  As this was on the walk we parked there and walked from this point but in the opposite direction to the description.

To begin with we followed the South West Coast Path.  There were beautiful views  all along this walk and it was not too strenuous, although up and down at times, particularly where the path had to be diverted inland due to cliff falls.  In total we walked about 6 miles.

 From New Polzeath we had a good view across to Polzeath beach where many people were surfing.

 The first bay we came to after a short walk was Pentire Glaze Haven and we were surprised what a lovely beach this was that as deserted,

There was gorse growing on the cliff edges making the walk even prettier.

When we approached the Rumps we thought it looked like a dinosour.

Along the way we had seen the occasional bluebell, just coming out, but they were more prolific after we had walked past the Rumps, and the bluebells were out further.

There were clear signs from the coast path to the National Trust car parks and when we reached the sign to Pentire Glaze we followed this path back to the car park, then walked down the road until we came to a footpath that took us down to Pentire Glaze Haven.

When we got back to the car we carried on walking down to Polzeath beach.  Having crossed the beach we had a cup of tea a the TubeStation overlooking the beach before heading home.

Bluebells Galore

I love the sight of a blue carpet of bluebells, so knowing they were in season we set out to find where the best display was this year.

First stop was Saltram, our nearest National Trust property.  In the gardens around the House wild garlic and white bells were more prolific, although there were some bluebells that contrasted the white of the other flowers.

In the grounds between the House and Stag Lodge there were more bluebells.  Again there were white patches of wild garlic.











A few days later we travelled to Lanhydrock House, another National Trust property, renowned for the bluebells in the woods in the Estate.  There were plenty of bluebells to be seen, but the best displays were in woodland either side of the the Reception area.  It is great that this can be seen by anyone visiting this National Trust property, without them having to walk far.

Buckland Abbey was the next place we visited.  Previous years there have been wonderful displays along the walks around the estate.  We were somewhat disappointed as the bluebells were not so prolific this year and so did not give the same sense of a carpet.  However there was one patch that was good - just before you cross fields towards the end of the Red Walk.

As we had a whole day free from Buckland Abbey we drove onto Burrator Reservoir.  We had never been there during bluebell flowering time, but last year I noticed lots of bluebell plants and thought there might be a good display.  We were not disappointed, the bluebells were spectacular and it was lovely walking by the blue waters of the reservoir with a carpet of blue on the other side of the path.
At times the bluebells were right by the waters edge.

We walked along by the reservoir but on the way back came back along the road.  Even on this easy walk you could see bluebells but they were not as spectacular as those inside the woodland.

Photo taken from the road around Burrator

Wild flowers at Burrator

Saturday morning was showery so we did not head out until the afternoon.  We wanted somewhere nearby and sheltered if the rain came back.  We therefore decided to go to Burrator and walk around the reservoir.  It was lovely to see the rhododendrons.  There bright purple complemented the blue of the water and green of the surrounding moor.

There were still some bluebells out.  I was surprised how many bluebell plants were in the woodland around the reservoir.  Generally the flowers were dying but we found one patch still looking good.  I must remember to return next year when all the bluebells are out as it should be a good display.





The foxgloves were just coming into flower and near the water we saw yellow irises.  At times the path was very muddy but the flowers and beauty of the reservoir and surrounding moor made the walk very worthwhile.

Lanhydrock - Cycle track and Bluebells

It is bluebell season so a lovely time for a walk in the woods around Lanhydrock House in Cornwall.  But before we set off to explore the woodlands we wanted to see the cycle trails that have just been put in near the car park. We obtained a map from the cycle hire centre and followed the signs to the cycle trails.  The first part of the path is for cycles and walkers, but as the paths separated  we decided to follow the green trail, the easiest, which promised 1.5 miles of wide, firm track.  It was an easy walk, mainly through conifer woods, but not much of interest to see.  Many trees had been cut down to make space for the path, and some had obviously been blown down in the storms in the winder.

This is a wonderful facility for families with bikes, but not the most interesting walking routes.  However, we might try some more of the paths another time, in case there is more to see on them.

After lunch we headed down to Lanhydrock House.  As we approached the reception centre we could see bluebells on either side of the path.  The wood on the right was particularly spectacular.

When we entered the gardens at Lanhydrock House  the tulips in the formal beds quickly caught our attention.

The rhoodendrons and azelias brightened the gardens, although some of the rhododendrons were not fully in flower.

From the gardens we walked down through the woods to the River Fowey.  There were bluebells throughout the woods, but some of them were not out as far as those by the Reception Centre.  This meant the looked more like a blue mist in the woods, that was not so spectacular close up but looked lovely in the distance.

Cothele, bluebells and rhododendrons

Having walked 8 miles yesterday I felt too tired to drive far or attempt a strenuous walk, so we decided to take the train to Calstock and walk from there to Cothele House.  This is a lovely train ride as the line travels alongside the River Tamar most of the way.  As we approached Calstock we could see bluebells in the fields and apple blossom in orchards which is what we would see more of at Cothele.

From Calstock station it was a steep hill down to the river Tamar which we then walked along until we came to Cothele Woods.  The direct path to Cothele (which is about 1.25 miles from the station) goes up at the side of the wood, but we chose to carry up the Danescombe Valley as I wanted to see the bluebells in Cothele Woods.  After walking past the derelict Sawmill we took a path on the left that went uphill but away from the River Tamar.  To begin with this was a gentle incline but it then became steeper as we made our way to the top of the woods.  However, as we climbed we could see the bluebells.

The bluebells were not as spectacular as those in Wembury Woods.  It looked as if some of them were past their best.

At the top of the hill we turned left on to a flat wide path called Lady's Walk and continued along this until coming to a small path that went down to the main path from Calstock to Cothele.  As we approached Cothele we could see lots of colour from rhododendrons in the Valley Garden.  However, we decided to first visit the orchard to see the apple blossom.  Many of the trees had finished flowering but there were still a few at their best.

All the gardens around the house were looking lovely, particularly the beds on the terraced gardens.

After a delicious tea in the garden of the restaurant we went to explore the Valley Garden.  There were lots of large rhodoendrons trees giving bold colour and  orange bottle brush shrubs giving a bright contrast  against the purple, pink, red and white rhododendrons.

From the Valley Gardens we walked back to Calstock, this time taking the direct route.  As we were a little early for the train when we reached Calstock we continued on to the quay where there was a festival going on.  We browsed the stalls and listened to the music before heading up the hill to the station.

Wembury, bluebells and coast

As the bluebells were finally in flower we thought we would re-do a walk we found last year to see the bluebells in the National Trust's Wembury Woods.  This walk is described at http://www.nationaltrust.org.uk/article-1356405894339/

We parked at the car park by Wembury village recreational ground and followed the marker posts along the edges of fields until we reached Wembury Woods.  We immediately saw a wonderful display of bluebells.

We continued to walk through the woods, but chose not to go down to the viewpoint by the River Yealm as the path was muddy in parts and we knew it was a steep path down to the viewpoint.  We thought the bluebells were at their peak, but when we reached the bridge over the brook there were some still not out.  This was a pity as I am sure when the bluebells behind the bridge are fully out it will make a lovely photo.

For a while there were not any bluebells in the wood, but we were walking parallel to the River Yealm so this made interesting viewing.  But as we started to climb away from the river the bluebells started again and they were very plentiful in Traine Wood.

It was a fairly steep climb up through the woods up to Hollacombe village, but once we had crossed over the road and started to walk down Traine Road it was downhill back to Wembury village.  As we passed farm gates we had views out to the sea.

This was a lovely walk, especially at this time of the year when the bluebells are in flower.

© Crown copyright and database rights 2012 Ordnance Survey 100023974

Once back to our car we drove to the National Trust car park at Wembury Beach. The sea was looking  lovely and there were several paddle boarders trying to catch the occasional wave.

After eating our lunch we walked along the coast in the direction of Heybrook Bay.  It was interesting to see where there had been landslips earlier in the year, which meant the path had to be brought away from the edge.

We continued to walk until we reached the finger post telling us we had walked a mile and it was a mile to Heybrook Bay.  As we had walked this morning we did not want to have a long walk this afternoon so we turned back.  On the return journey we saw two butterflies.