Cornwall Walk 1: Pendeen Watch to St Just

Date: Sunday 20th March
Distance: 5 miles approx
Route: Cornish Coastal Path from Pendeen Watch to Cape Cornwall then inland to St Just

No walking last weekend - but hopefully walking every day this week (weather permitting, luckily the sun has been shining for most of today)

We've rented a holiday cottage at Pendeen lighthouse, which, aside from having the biggest pack of welcome groceries ever seen, is right next to the coastal path - so no excuse for slacking off and lots of excuses for eating Cornish pasties and cream teas!

Having spent most of yesterday driving down to Cornwall, we didn't want to drive anywhere today, so today's walk was a case of "go outside, turn right, follow the coastal path".

It's exceptionally difficult to get lost, as the path is well signposted, with occasional benches along the way. This particular stretch is not too strenuous (certainly not compared to the path near Mousehole or Tintagel) and the theme of the day today was mines - this isn't the most picturesque bit of the coastal path but the multiple ruined tin mine buildings and pumps make for striking scenery and the derelict chimney stacks and collapsed buildings give the whole area a Roman ruin feel against the backdrop of steep cliffs and bright blue sky and sea.

Spring is also here with a vengeance, with vast quantities of flowers (daffodils, primroses, buttercups, periwinkles) and plants (notably some very smelly wild garlic and lots of gorse) making up for the lack of wildlife along the path.

The Trailfinder Cornwall Coast Path guide comes in handy from time to time, particularly if you want to know the names of the rocks you are walking past or the villages you can see from a distance, but it is by no means essential.

The path makes its way through the middle of abandoned mines (and slightly melodramatic signs urging you to stay on the path, on pain of upside-down death) to Cape Cornwall, which was long thought to be the most westerly point of the UK (before Land's End claimed the honours). From there it's a 15 minute walk along the road into the village of St Just, a very good Sunday lunch at the King's Arms and a bus back to Pendeen village. A good, not too taxing, start to what looks like it will be a fantastic week.