What a difference a day makes, after yesterday's perfect weather and easy going along quiet lanes, today we got a full drenching and were back to struggling to get the navigation right. The day started off dry as we left Okehampton Youth Hostel behind and picked up the Two Castles Trail that links Okehampton and Launceston. Then, one missed turn saw us at the bottom of a viaduct we needed to be crossing over and caused us a costly diversion via the Meldon reservoir to get back on track. At this point the rain began and persisted all the way to Launceston, making the remainder of the walk a bit miserable. However, we did reach the milestone of passing into Cornwall as we crossed the river Tamar just outside Launceston.
I have read several accounts of Launceston and not found a good word to be said about it by anyone, so my expectations were not high as we approached the town, set at the top of a steep hill with a castle visible at the top. The place didn't seem that bad to me, even though the weather was bad and everything was shut as it was late Sunday afternoon. There seems to be a Polish community here, judging by some of the restaurants on the high street and Eastern European sounding people in the only shop we found open. For me, I'll say that Launceston is ok, because our accommodation is great and we're not staying here long enough to put it down.
We gained another day today, but we're not congratulating ourselves, because we could easily lose it again tomorrow if we don't get things right. With 30 odd miles to cover over Bodmin Moor and a weather forecast to make your heart sink, it's fair to say that we need to get everything right. Food, navigation, feet, wet weather clothing all need to be right otherwise we'll be camped out on the Moor for the night. Yes, tomorrow is our Beeches Brook, once we are over that, there will be no big obstacles remaining on the way to Land's End.
I have read several accounts of Launceston and not found a good word to be said about it by anyone, so my expectations were not high as we approached the town, set at the top of a steep hill with a castle visible at the top. The place didn't seem that bad to me, even though the weather was bad and everything was shut as it was late Sunday afternoon. There seems to be a Polish community here, judging by some of the restaurants on the high street and Eastern European sounding people in the only shop we found open. For me, I'll say that Launceston is ok, because our accommodation is great and we're not staying here long enough to put it down.
We gained another day today, but we're not congratulating ourselves, because we could easily lose it again tomorrow if we don't get things right. With 30 odd miles to cover over Bodmin Moor and a weather forecast to make your heart sink, it's fair to say that we need to get everything right. Food, navigation, feet, wet weather clothing all need to be right otherwise we'll be camped out on the Moor for the night. Yes, tomorrow is our Beeches Brook, once we are over that, there will be no big obstacles remaining on the way to Land's End.
Just Cornwall to walk through now.
Statistics
Distance: 23.8 Miles
Moving Time: 8 Hours 12 Mins
Have you both been told about the Bodmin Beast?
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