Dai's slow LEJOG

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Day 8 Camelford - Burnard's House near Holsworthy

42 miles (243 miles overall) - 238 miles to get out of Cornwall!!

This was a real tough day - not the longest at about 40 miles but almost continuos hills on a day which alternated between bright sunshine and torrential showers.

Setting off from Camelford I climbed the first hill of the day and cycled the four miles out to Port Isaac. This wasn't going to be on my itinerary but had been strongly recommended by the couple I had met the night before in the pub. It was worth the trip , a delightful cove up to Pembrokeshire standard! I had a cuppa at a cafe looking across the harbour to watch the filming of the tv series Doc Martin with Martin Clunes. After another pull, the road ran a mile or two inland past the Delabole slate mine before I diverted to the National Cycle museum. This was handy as it coincided with a particularly torrential shower and the museum only leaked a bit!
On and down another steep hill into Boscastle which showed few signs of the devastating floods of the previous year - except that it was pouring down again.
Another long pull up then I turned on to a great little lane with spectacular coastal views which opened up as the sun came through. Not another - yes a rather alarming descent to Crackington Haven.
After a coffee and an ice cream I pushed on (well I did manage to ride up most of the hill) and soon came to the steep descent to Millook. The lane looked as if it was going to drop straight over the cliff but eventually dropped down to the little beach. Both Crackington Haven and Millook had really spectacular geological features. Up a severe 1.4 hill and over to Widemouth Bay where I rested above the beach and watched the surfers.
Not for long as another mini monsoon closed in and I had a damp trip in to Bude on the relatively level coast. Bude was wet so I didn't linger but set off initially following the Bude canal through the reedbeds and then turning inland back into hills leaving the sea behind. Crossing in to Devon I reached Bridgerule - the only village in Devon on the west side of the Tamar. The River Tamar here is not so far from its source up near Hartland.
Finally I arrived at my isolated farm B&B at around 7.00pm so knackered that I was asleep by 9.00pm

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Photos

Port Isaac
There was filming for a TV series with Martin Clunes going on when I visited

National Cycle Museum
One mans passion - a good place to shelter from the rain

Crackington Haven
Big cliffs around this cove at the bottom of a long hill

Millook Cove
Horrendously steep hills either side of this cove with spectacular geological strata in the sea cliff

view to Widemouth bay from above Millook
This was the reward for a severe (1:4) climb up from Millook

near Bridgerule
After 8 days cycling I finally get out of Cornwall!!