After a night at The Five Pilchards and a battering of rain we wake up to clear blue skies over Porthallow Cove. Motor to our destination then taxi back and we are setting off by 10:30.

Having pondered the map and read “Ruth’s Coastal Walk” we are pre-warned the first half of today’s walk is on roads and inland footpaths so we head out of Porthallow up the quiet road towards Porthoustock. The route takes us right through the Fat Apples Café and Wild Campsite which is closed for the month of November –it looks like it would be my kind of place. A narrow footpath takes us between a woodland and orchard – a perfect spot for a bit of wild camping, maybe we will come back with our bell tent?

Head along a tiny Cornish Road, across a field, over an array of different stiles consisting of stones arranged in different ways to deter wildlife yet allow walkers access. Most are easy to navigate but some provide a moving wooden post to ease the ride! Head down the valley into the tiny hamlet of Porthoustock – this little corner of Cornwall is so unspoilt. Some extremely bushy Monterey Pine trees are providing a windbreak on the hilltop, they look very healthy trees.

A little stall selling apples, aeoniums and other exotics awaits us at the first of the thatched cottages, pop a pound coin in the honesty box and walk away munching some very juicy crisp apples. A lady pops her head out of another of the cottages to say good morning, although she says she’s not sure of the time of day – maybe she was at The Masked Ball at Flambards the night before?

At Porthoustock beach a couple of men are throwing a ball for their dogs, colourful boats, tractors and fishing gear are stashed up high and very little else is happening. To our left a deserted stone block building sits with its foundations in the water’s edge, to our right the cliff down to the edge of the cove was brutally broken in two with a digger nearby resting for the weekend and in between the beach is grey – grey stones, grey gravel, even under today’s bright blue sky.

The South West Coast path skirts the next little peninsula – I’m guessing because of the disused quarry I can see on the map. So, we head up the road out of the village, passing a gate to Dudman, West of England quarry – it’s difficult to tell on a Sunday whether this is a working quarry or disused? We cross more fields coming into the tiny hamlet of Rosenithon where we pass our first walker of the day, surprising when it’s a beautiful sunny weekend. Find the path squeezed alongside a house which leads down to Godrevy Cove. We know we are heading to a beach when a couple of ladies with damp hair wearing Dryrobes pass us by. The beach is backed by an area of reeds which make an almost sea like sound as they wave in the breeze.

Back on the coast this area is not picturesque, in fact it is decidedly brutal – Dean Quarries looks abandoned now, but signs say to keep to the footpaths and warn of explosives. Massive bays divided by concrete blocks lie empty of aggregates, a pier sticking out into the blue sea is devoid of any ships and the area feels rather bereft of wildlife. We are pleased to wander onto the grassy Lowland Point where we sit for a while on the edge of the low cliff above massive boulders. There’s now a handful of walkers and well-behaved dogs enjoying a meander along the coast in the sunshine.

The next couple of miles into Coverack are dominated by grassy fields dotted with large stepping stones, then stepping stones through muddy tracks – it takes a lot of concentration and I certainly wouldn’t want to venture through in the dark. A couple of lads carrying fishing gear pass us by, I wouldn’t want to meet them with their long spears on a dark night either!

We join a small road leading down into the village with some lovely homes overlooking the sandy bay of Coverack. The sea is out, walkers and dogs are enjoying the wide expanse of sand and there are a few swimmers in the sea – the seal we spotted this morning has long since gone. We continue as far as the village store, where we stock up for the evening before heading to nearby Roskilly’s Farm to meet friends and taste their ice cream.