First training walk for the Camino - Kynance Cove

With such a beautiful day ahead of us, we decided to explore a nearby coastline walk called Kynance Cove. Its only a few Kms from The Lizard and is considered by many as one of the most beautiful parts of the coastline in the UK.

Even with the grey skies and the crashing seas, I could see that it would be a glorious spot in the summertime ( as is, arguably anywhere in the UK)

Kynance Cove has been a popular spot for sightseers for eons.. though Queen Victoria made it a definite tourist destination after she made her trip here. The stones - a black shiny type called serpentine is - apparently - the highest concentration in any place in the world here. With the crashing waves into a tiny stony cove and hidden caves,  its a romantic spot screaming to tell tales of pirates and smugglers. Whether there were any actually here is another story, but the Victorians loved a good story.. and truth often just got in the way of a good one.

The teahouse and buildings which stood on the cliff face for nearly a century have been pulled down by National Trust in order for the natural beauty to return to the spot.

At the moment, the hills are covered in gorse - all brown and spiky; and I had to explain to the kids how beautiful it will look in the spring when the heather and wildflowers come out.

In anycase.... the track was slippery and muddy, and I need to remember to actually get our walking poles out and use them next time.. they are in the boot of the car - so no excuses!  It was a few Km round walk - down to the cove and back up over the cliffs - so a perfect starter training walk for us and the Camino. We plan only to be walking 12 - 15 km a day - so nice and steady with opportunities to stop and enjoy the scenery - for me to take LOTS of photos and to explore the little villages we go to.

It was nearing high tide when we got down to the cove. The waves were crashing in every seventh - so it was a good opportunity for me to let the kids watch and predict when it was a good time to try to cross over the stones and to safety to the next rocky beach.

I felt so blessed we had a great day weatherwise today. After a few days or dreary misery, it was good to get some fresh air and warm the leg muscles up.