Long Weekend in Cornwall

  2020 was the year the world stopped in its tracks but we were still able to fit in some fun within the UK during the warmer months.  We escaped for a few days in July to Cornwall and I'm so glad we did! This itinerary could easily be spread out over a few more days, especially when the weather is warm and sunny like it was for us. We ended up at a different beach each day and they were all amazing.

Day One:

It was a bit of a drive for us so we got to our first stop at Pendennis Castle after lunch time.  This is a classic (small) defensive castle with amazing views over the water.  When we arrived, we selected our time slot for our castle keep entry- they were taking small groups inside with a guide.  We had some time before our entry so we walked around the grounds for a while.  Great views, cannons, lots of open space... and then the guide in the keep did a great job of telling us about the history of the castle and how the spaces were used back when it was an active castle.

Next we popped over to a little castle that is now a restaurant but was closed at the time- Carn Brea Castle. This castle is tiny and cute and is built on a stack of boulders as a foundation. It's at the end of a narrow single track gravel road, and was originally built in the 14th century as a chapel to St Michael.  This was a fairly quick stop for us, but you could easily make this into a stop in a larger hike around the area (to include the nearby Carn Brea monument).

We finished our day at Summerleaze Beach, near our AirBnB in Bude. This was such a great place to spend our evening and watch the sunset.  It has these adorable colorful beach huts and sand that's perfect for playing.  We didn't swim but we waded in the water and saw surfers enjoying the waves.

Day Two:

We started the day at Tintagel Castle, which was one of the places I was most excited to see.  Its literary history was just too alluring to me! Tintagel Castle is famous as the site of King Arthur's conception- Geoffrey of Monmouth first wrote in the 12th century of Arthur's origins here, and since then the legend has expanded to include Tintagel as Arthur's birthplace and his stronghold once he became king.  Tintagel castle is also the setting for the story of Tristan and Isolde, and there is a walled garden with paving stones that tell their story.  Only some walls of the castle remain, but there's a brand new bridge linking the two sections of the castle (the bridge has been open since August 2019 but it was officially opened by Prince Charles a few days after we were there!) and there is a larger than life bronze statue entitled "Gallos" (derived from the Cornish word for Power) which is super impressive to see.

Below the castle is Merlin's Cave, which you can explore when the tide is low enough.  From here it's a bit of a climb back up the hill to the town and the car parks, but it's so worth it!

After lunch at Tintagel we made our way to Port Isaac. You'll recognize it if you're a fan of Doc Martin, but it's also just a great fishing village with meandering narrow roads and footpaths.  We got some ice cream and mostly just wandered around the town, stopping in a few shops along the way.

Our next stop was the Bedruthan Steps.  We had a little snack picnic at a great spot overlooking the beach, but unfortunately the actual steps were closed due to rock fall so we couldn't go down to the beach to explore.  We figured there must have been another way down, since we saw a few people walking down there, but we decided to just enjoy our food and the view and head back to the car, with more time to spend at our last stop of the day.

Holywell Bay- another TV location! This is one of several Poldark filming sites we saw during our trip.  This beach appears several times in the series.  We had a great time playing here, even though it was a bit of a walk from the car to the water. We spent the rest of our afternoon/evening here.  Andrew and Brandon especially enjoyed climbing on the huge rock near where we had laid out our towels.

Day Three:

Another one you'll recognize if you've watched Poldark- the Botallack Mine.   These engine houses are part of the Crown Mines at Botallack, and play the role of Wheal Leisure in the show.   Unfortunately the path to the lower engine house was closed (again, due to rock falls- I guess this is a common hazard with all these oceanside cliffs) but we were still able to go right up to the higher engine house.  There are a few other ruins left over from the old mining days here as well.

Then we went to the end of the world at Land's End.  Not going to lie, this is a bit of a tourist trap.  Rick Steves warned us about this but we decided to go anyway. We found a table to eat the picnic lunch we had packed and then took in the views.  We weren't willing to pay a photographer to snap a shot of us with the famous sign, so we just took a selfie from outside the photo area.  If they're open, there are all kinds of other "experiences" to be had here, as well as food and ice cream, and a few gift shops.

We enjoyed the rest of the day at Porthcurno Beach.  The car park was pretty packed when we got there, but it's only a short walk from there to the sand.  Until the end of the day when part of the beach was in the shade of the cliffs, we had plenty of space between us and other families and we had a fantastic time playing in the sand and water.  It was warmer at this beach then the ones on day 1 and 2, which meant that we were more comfortable getting in the water, and this one ended up being our favorite of the beaches we went to on this trip.

Day Four:

Only one stop on our last day, since we also had to drive back home, and of course it was another beach!  This one also involved a bit of a hike.  Kynance Cove is a tidal beach, which means that during some parts of the day there is no beach at all, as it's covered in water.  The parking attendant told us that it would be a few hours before the beach would be uncovered, but by the time we hiked down there was enough space on the beach for us (and everyone else) to enjoy!  This beach was wonderful for playing in the sand and in the shallows. But when you hike down you have to hike back up! Fortunately there is a toilet building which also has an outdoor rinsing station so we could get the sand off our feet to get our sturdy shoes back on.  It's not a strenuous hike, but I'm glad I wasn't trying to do it with wet flip flops on!

We changed clothes in the car and then made the trek home!  It was a pretty quick trip but we loved it and it was so nice to get away after the lockdown of the spring!

Stratford-upon-Avon

  I got to pick our outing for my birthday, and being the literary nerd that I am, I chose Stratford-upon-Avon, home of William Shakespeare.  We picked up a map at the Visitor Information building and we were off!

We started at Shakespeare's birthplace- why not start at the beginning? It was neat to see where and how little William lived as a child.  The window that used to be in the room where he was born has since been removed and put on display in another room because it's been etched with the names of famous visitors to the house.  Outside in the gardens there were performers doing scenes from Shakespeare's plays.

Then we had a lovely pub lunch at The Windmill.

Next we went over to Shakespeare's New Place, which is the home William lived in as an adult (and where he died).  But the home itself is no longer there.  It was passed down to his daughter, then granddaughter, before it was replaced with a new house, which was also eventually demolished.  But the site and the gardens have been cared for and and an exhibit in the building which adjoins the property. There were some neat interactive exhibits here, including some that were especially great for the kids.

Our next stop was Hall's Croft, which was the home of Shakespeare's daughter and her husband until she inherited New Place and they moved back there.  It was a really interesting old house, but definitely more of a loose Shakespeare connection.

Our last stop before a leisurely river walk back to the car was, of course, the church where Shakespeare and his wife Anne Hathaway are buried.  It's a beautiful old church and has quite a bit of information about the Shakespeare family hear the graves inside the chapel.

We saw lots of swans as we walked back along the river.  We also passed the Royal Shakespeare Company theatre and saw a boat going through a lock.  All in all a very successful day out!