Wild camping on the north coast.

Guess who went camping in a tent during Storm Aileen? If I had seen the Storm warnings, I would have stayed at home, but the most recent weather forecast I'd heard was for strong winds on Sunday evening, dying out by Monday lunchtime. 

So I arrived at this site on the north coast of Cornwall at 1pm on Monday, then took Benji for a walk while waiting for the wind to calm down.  However, a walk along the coastal path had to be aborted because the strength of the wind was enough to pluck us off the cliff edge.

By 6pm I had set up the tent and transferred all the gear from the car in slightly calmer conditions, but that first night was horrendous with the tent material flapping and banging as gusts of 60mph pounded in straight from the sea. It was impossible to sleep because of the noise and because I was unsure if the tent would stand up to such a ferocious wind.

However, Benji had no such concerns - he slept soundly in his bed at the side of mine all night!

Next day I was admiring the lovely colours of the heather which covers the cliff tops and the song of skylarks as they soared high above.

 From the coves at the foot of the cliffs, the roar of the sea as big waves crashed onshore

 Overlooking Mawgan Porth beach. That morning, warnings were broadcast about the danger of Portuguese Men'O'War that had been washed up on the beach; their stings are extremely painful and can actually cause death.  Later the beach was closed, as was Perranporth Beach further along the coast until the danger was past.

I'd seen reports of Crantock Beach being threatened by the River Gannel changing course and washing away the sand, so I had to go and see for myself. I was there just a few weeks ago and it had certainly changed; the river had switched sides and washed away a huge area of the beach, making access to the beach difficult (or even impossible) for the lifeguards' vehicles or of the regular ice cream van. Below the lifeguards' hut, rocks that had previously been under the sand were now exposed. 

 Bedruthan Steps  

 Benji leading the way along the clifftop coast path

 This section of the coastal path was a work of art - and a labour of love by National Trust volunteers.

 The cosy cafe at Bedruthan Steps which serves the most wonderful Bacon Baps - hot, seeded rolls with 3 - THREE - rashers of very tasty bacon inside it. Mmmmm.  

That's my niece waiting at the counter; we were able to spend a couple of days together while she was down on holiday from her home in Leicestershire.

Funnily enough, we turned up for another bacon bap the next day as well.

And after stretching our legs along the coastal path again, we also had our tea, this time at an outdoor table in the sunshine.

 On Wednesday I took advantage of yet another National Trust car park (free to me because I'm a member) and followed this footpath.  

Beautiful stone walling 

 One tired little dog

 Despite the fierce winds at night we had a couple of lovely sunny days together, but after a third stormy night I'd had enough.  I decided to pack up the tent the next day while it was dry and head home again.

I hope you've enjoyed the photos.