Funster Birthday Weekend – Padstow, Tintagel and Rough Tor

Onto our final day of the birthday weekend. A much soggier and wet outlook plus the need for a waterproof for me, having forgotten to bring one, saw us head into Padstow.

Despite the commercialism I like Padstow and out of season it returns to being a quiet Cornish fishing village

We took an easy stroll around the harbour and up towards the war memorial. The views over the Camel estuary, Doom Bar and Daymer Bay were superb

Dark clouds were billowing and heading our way so we had to turn and flee. Not before this rather fine shot of storms approaching while we grabbed the last rays of sun

My new cagoule got a try out but heavy rain put a stop to Padstow fun, so we moved on, figuring driving through the rain was better than walking in it. On  whim we went to Tintagel as I’d not been there since I was a kid. By the time we got there the sun was out again and all was fine. We declined the offer of over £20 to look around the castle. Whilst the position is dramatic and evocative the word “castle” somewhat overplays the hand of English Heritage. Lots of steps and a few sparse walls sums up this monument plus a few “King Arthur had a pee against this rock” plaques is pretty much all you get. The views and the coast are undeniably superb but so is the coastal path to the north which is free so that’s where we went

Its a magnificent walk around Barras Nose to Willapark

These are The Sisters

Willapark was superb and completely deserted, we had the whole place to ourselves

The views north towards Boscastle were especially fine

The cliffs on the south side are frighteningly sheer, one of those places you feel you could step off the edge and fall straight into deep water. We stayed dry as well, always a bonus

Afternoon was pressing on and there were showers in the air. Most people would have decided to head home but we are better than that. Never ones to waste precious winter daylight we took a short drive to the edge of Bodmin Moor with a view to a final walk up Rough Tor. We pass by this summit on our way to and from Cornwall holidays so I was keen to take a look. We brewed up in the car waiting for a window in the weather which duly arrived

It was memorable walk to finish the weekend, just a short walk from the car to numerous granite tors that spread across the summit

The light was fading and not easy for photography but I was able to capture some nice shadows and spooky outlines

I was in my element scrambling about the rocks but the light was fading fast and the cold seeping into the soul. We enjoyed a few more shafts of sunlight and brooding views before we headed down to begin the long drive home

A weekend that started on the granite tors of Dartmoor finished with an equally fine walk on the Bodmin variety

We had one final treat in store. As we drove away from the car park we noticed that a huge flock of starlings was gathering in a nearby wood to roost. We pulled over and watched mesmerised as thousands of birds swooped no more than a couple of feet over the car and swirled above our heads. They put on show for 10 minutes or so and we were so entranced it never occurred to me to take any photos or video.

A birthday treat for TBF to remember and I quite enjoyed it as well