| Day | Route | Mileage | Approx time |
| 20 | St Ives to Pendeen | 14.2 | 9 hours! |
| 21 | Pendeen to Land’s End | 9.5 | 5 hours |
| 22 | Land’s End to Lamorna | 11.5 | 6.5 hours |
This was a particularly eventful stretch of the coast path where we experienced every season in the 3 days. Arriving at St Ives in mid-March, spring was in the air. Two friends had joined us for this section of the walk and we spent the afternoon in St Ives, dropping into art shops and galleries and sipping wine in a beachside bar.
The lovely afternoon in St Ives had lured us into a false sense of security of what was to come on the following day when we set off on the notoriously challenging section to Pendeen. The day was cold and wet, with few moments of respite between the downpours. The walk was a roller coaster of climbs to towering cliffs and plummets to remote coves. It felt isolated and wild and we came across only one other group of walkers all day.
Due to the rainfall, the path had disappeared and become a mass of thick, deep, slippery mud. No alternative path with more solid earth was available, so we trudged through mud for mile after mile. Progress was extremely slow, requiring constant vigilance to plant each boot in a safe location without slipping over. It was impossible to avoid deep, wet mud, way over ankle height, which found its way into our already sodden socks. At times the paths were narrow and precariously positioned close to the cliff edge, which made the successful placement of footsteps even more crucial. The rugged and rocky landscape tested us at all times and even some scrambling was thrown in just to add to the challenges of the day. Unfortunately, the amazing views that this stretch is famous for were completely obscured by the adverse conditions. This 14 mile walk lasted a gruelling 9 hours, which was our slowest pace of the entire coast path.
The following day’s walk couldn’t have been more different; the visibility was excellent as we followed the route through old mining country, around Cape Cornwall and over the sweeping white sands of Sennen Cove. Known as the Granite Coast, some scrambling was needed over the rocky terrain, but it was mostly meandering paths on high cliffs and a handful of short ascents and descents. We breezed along so smoothly that we arrived at our destination, the Land’s End Hotel, by 3 in the afternoon. Our timing could not have been more perfect. Within 10 minutes of arriving, the Mini Beast from the East brought in a snow storm, extremely rare at this most westerly point in England. The snow was swirling in the cold wind and settling on the outside terrace, as we sat inside supping cocktails. We had passed daffodils in full bloom a few hours earlier and now we were witnessing the return of winter.
On waking, there was a light dusting of snow on the relatively warm ground, so we predicted that it would melt fairly quickly in the March sun. The snow covered landscape created a silence and stillness as we started our day. As the sun rose higher the snow began to melt and the scenery transformed to the blues and greens that we were familiar with. Much of this walk was rugged and secluded with fascinating rock stacks, exposed cliff tops and stunning views, enhanced by an incredible light. Walking around a headland and seeing the view of Porthcurno Beach for the first time was breathtaking – the aqua blue sea, perfect white sand, backed by imposing granite cliffs and a cloudless blue sky.
The path climbed again to the cliff top, with a few dips to sea level and back up again. We negotiated huge granite boulders, as large numbers of stacks of all shapes and sizes clung to the cliff edges. The walk ended in the beautiful hamlet of Lamorna after 3 extremely varied and challenging days.
| Drive to Penzance and park car |
| Train Penzance to St Ives (Great Western Railway via St Erth) – 40 minutes |
| Walk from St Ives to Lamorna |
| Bus Lamorna to Penzance (First Kernow, Land’s End Coaster bus) – 20 minutes |
| St Ives | Chy Vean (Airbnb), St Ives, Cornwall |
| Pendeen | St John’s House B&B, Pendeen, TR19 7DW |
| Land’s End | The Land’s End Hotel, Land’s End, Sennen,TR19 7AA |
