Solo adventure to St Ives

I have recently been looking at booking another tip to Cornwall, so it has been on my mind a lot lately. I thought i’d share a little about my visit to St Ives last February.

I’d not really visited Cornwall since I was little, apart from a couple of day trips in 2019 when my son and I were staying in Devon on holiday. I think we had chippy tea in Newquay one evening, and a day visiting Watergate bay, then a cycle along the camel trail from Wadebridge to Padstow and back.

Those brief visits a few years ago really did stir something in me. I’d also read The Salt Path, by Raynor Winn during Lockdown, and I knew I wanted to return and explore more of the south west coast.

I also knew that I wanted experience the train journey from Dawlish to Plymouth, which runs right along the coast. I had seen a few people online who had made the journey by train, and it suddenly made it all seem possible. I did some research, chatted to a few people, and eventually settled on staying in St Ives, and booked the train from my local station.

It felt like a really big adventure, but one I was SO excited for! I started looking up walks I could do, beaches to visit, possible swim spots, places to eat… I probably could have filled 2 weeks, so I had no problem filling 2 days!!

The journey down was long but beautiful. There is just something about being on a train and seeing the sea swaying right next to you out of the window! I’d been told the branch line journey into St Ives was pretty special too, but I was not prepared! It was so, so special! I felt really emotional, and cried some happy tears as we approached St ives! The tide was out, the sky was blue, the colour of the water was like nothing I’d ever seen!

I’d booked an airbnb out of the main part of the town, which felt like a bit of a shame having to drag myself away from all the little cobbled streets and the beautiful little cottages at the end of each day. But I didn’t mind, it meant I got to explore far more of the town than I would have if I’d stayed in the centre! The main downside was that it was at the top of a pretty steep hill, no matter which route I took, but I could see the sea in the distance from one of the windows, so It wasn’t all bad!!

On the first day I walked the South West Coast Path from Porthmeor to Zennor. Quite the experience! Cornish miles are a lot harder to walk than Suffolk miles!! To say the path was undulating is an understatement. My original plan was to walk there along the coast path, stop for a picnic and maybe explore a little waterfall I’d read about, pop to the pub for some refreshments, then walk back along the old coffin route. However, it had really taken it out of me, and had taken a lot longer than I thought it was going to, so after the pub I decided to catch the bus back to St Ives!

I went and grabbed a burger from Hub, and ate it on Porthmeor beach as the sun started to set. epic way to end the day!

The next day my legs didn’t really want to work, but I didn’t let that stop me! I went out to watch the sun come up from the headland looking over towards Godrevy. Which I decided was one of my most favourite views ever! Then enjoyed some breakfast by the harbour, before decideing to walk the Coast Path towards Hayle.

For some reason I had convinced myself the path would be flatter than the previous day… Spoiler, It wasn’t! I soon developed a strong dislike for the uphill bits, of which there were many!

I stopped to catch my breath at the top of a hill in Carbis Bay, and got chatting to a lovely couple sat on a bench over looking the bay. They asked me where I was off to, gave me a few pointers about the path ahead, and told me to keep a look out over the bay, as they had just been watching some Dolphins! I didn’t see any sadly, but it felt really special knowing there were just there! Next time!!

I eventually dropped down on to Porthkidney beach, which felt huge as the tide was out, and the Sandy beach just looked like it went on for miles! After a paddle along the waters edge and some snacks, I decided I had nearly run out of steam. I walked down to the station in Lelant and after a bit of a wait, caught the train back to St Ives.

I had been made aware of a small tidal pool around the top of the headland, only accessable at low tide. I had my cozzie and a towel with me in my bag, just incase, so decided to go and have a look. I knew getting in some cold water after all the walking I’d done would feel really good, and the sea was just a bit too choppy for me.

From the Path around the headland I spotted the pool I’d read about. It looked so inviting, but the ‘path’ down to it didn’t look quite so welcoming. Lots of huge rocks to navigate, still wet and slippy from the last high tide. I remember stopping and thinking ‘I’m not sure how safe this is, If I was with a friend, I might try it, but on my own I’m just not sure’ closely followed by ‘ Sod it, I’ll just see how close I can get!’

I made my way slowly over the rocks, and sat by the edge of the pool just taking everything in for a moment, before deciding I absolutely wanted to get in the pool! To date, it is up there as one of my all time favourite wild dips, and I’m so glad I pushed out of my comfort zone to enjoy it! It still makes me smile when I think about it now! The water was incredibly clear. It was deep enough to get right in, and just about big enough to have a little float. The sea felt rough and wild, and the waves were crashing on the other side of the rocks, but the pool felt unbelievably calm and tranquil in the February sunshine.

I had a chippy tea by the harbour to warm up, before wandering along the quiet cobbled streets, and back up the hill to chill out for the evening.

Two very full days of exploring. brilliant weather, stunning views in very direction, and heaps of wonderful new memories made.

A few years ago I would never have considered traveling all that way on my own, but sometimes you just need to do the thing and dive in! I’m hoping to get back down there again over the next few months and explore some more of that magical coastline.

Thanks for reading if you’re still here, I’ve added a collection of images below from my time there. There are a mixture of images taken on my camera and my phone.