Introduction


When we started walking the coast of England we had no intention that this would become a major lifetime project. Having to make a last-minute arrangement for our summer holiday in 1987, we said "Let's go to the nearest piece of coast and see how far we can walk along it." It turned out well and we started adding further stretches of coast, initially once every two years, but soon annually, or even twice a year.

We had always enjoyed the coast - there is something refreshingly "edgy" about having the sea always at our side, and one of us was into marine molluscs. We also enjoyed long-distance walking and had long been involved in general natural history recording. This project enabled us to combine all three interests.

You soon discover when embarking on a project like this that you need a few rules, which evolve from the first experiences. Our main rule was that we should walk as close to the coast as possible, which meant beach-walking whenever we could (unlike the official coast paths that largely remain above shore, recognising that at high tides the beach may be inaccessible). The route should also be capable of being a continuous walk, so that when we came to an unfordable river we walked inland along its banks to the first place at which we could cross, whether a bridge or a ferry.

We only carried light packs, so that at the end of each day's walk we had the problem of getting back to our car where we started. Initially we walked back, but soon realised we would be walking the coast twice this way! We used public transport whenever this was available - buses or trains, sometimes adjusting our start and finish points to make this easier. Failing this - and it was often not possible - we would phone for a taxi (an increasingly costly option over the years). Having our car with us gave us more freedom as to where we could stay at night - and after a day walking and only light food we were usually ready for being spoiled by a good meal and a comfortable bed! Even so, we stayed on the coast itself whenever there was a decent option.

Each walk was made for enjoyment, it was not a route-march to see how quickly we could get it finished. We therefore took it gently at times when passing through pleasant scenery or where there were many plants or creatures to record.

In terms of biological recording, we systematically noted every bird, butterfly, creature or sea-shell that we came across, sometimes spending time searching for the shells. We could not record every plant in the same way - there are too many common ones - so we were more selective, noting all coastal plants and any others that were not run-of-the-mill.

In our daily posts, edited from our original diaries, we include a star-rating from no star to **** according to our subjective estimate as to how special that day was from the point of view of natural history. This score (and our daily records) will, however, have been affected by the weather - it is difficult to appreciate the environment fully, for instance, in torrential rain, and there are many more butterflies and other insects to be seen in warm sunshine!

A summary of all our natural history records on the walk can be found using this link: https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B1LLGD55lKRHYXd1SGU1QndrcUU/edit?usp=sharing





Friday, 17 January 2014

Cornwall: Porthcurno to Land's End 8/6/1999**


 

Merry Maidens
 
Eyebright Euphrasia tetraquetra
 
Grey seal
 
Having stayed at Penzance we visited the Merry Maidens Stone Circle (although Merry Minnows might be more appropriate) on our return to Porthcurno. Steep steps led from the Cove beneath Minack Theatre to the cliff-top path, less overgrown than the previous stretch.  We saw spring squill again at Rosflatter Cliffs – it is abundant wherever the turf is short and exposed to the sea air.  At the first (National Trust) headland we saw a jackdaw catch one of the drinker moth caterpillars that are abundant on the paths and vigorously thrash it about, presumably to get rid of the poisonous long hairs.  Again there was royal fern on the cliffs.  We descended to the small beach at Porth Chapel, largely composed of shell fragments like Porthcurno and with generally the same species.  A man was sea-fishing.  We were surprised to see wood sedge by the side of the cliff path, but woodland flowers such as bluebell and primrose often inhabit cliffs.  A pair of buzzards circled above.  There was some pink purslane as we went down to the boulder beach at Porthgwarra, where a tunnel through the cliffs (as at Mullion) led to a second beach entirely of sand.  At Gwennap Head was a spectacular collapsed cave creating a sheer hole to a beach below, with the path skirting dangerously close.  Shortly afterwards we rounded a corner to our first sight of Land’s End, one of the significant points on our trip around the coast. 
      The paths now became increasingly worn, although today there were hardly any other walkers because of persistent rain.  On the heaths were heath milkwort, heath spotted orchid and a small shrubby coastal eyebright Euphrasia tetraquetra.  At Mill Bay a narrow cleft went entirely through the cliffs and we looked down on grey seals putting their heads up from the sea to look around.  The steep bare cliffs were later covered with the white and pink of English stonecrop, and thrift was interspersed with the deep golden yellow of tiny hairy birdsfoot trefoil.  A whinchat showed itself as the rain thickened and the fog siren began sounding from Land’s End.  We arrived at the elegant Land’s End Hotel soaked to the skin, dripping water and mud – and with no change of clothes until we had caught a bus back to Porthcurno to retrieve our car and luggage!  The surroundings of the hotel were called the “Land’s End Experience” (or not!), but the hotel seemed to be a separate concern and was better than anticipated.  The restaurant had huge windows with the Atlantic filling the view on three sides, with rocks and lighthouse in the centre.  We sat drinking champagne to celebrate the end of the south coast, and as we did so the horizon brightened for the first time that day and the sun shone gloriously on the sea, clear enough to see the Scilly Isles 30 miles away.
Land’s End
 
New York/John O’Groats sign at Land’s End
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