Day 11 - Gwithian

Beer drunk: 1 pint, Distance walked: 17km (estimated), Time taken: 5h (estimated)

This B&B advertises itself as a working farmhouse and they aren't exaggerating.  I felt like I'd walked into Aunty Alex's place in Warragul.  Just to top it off it turns out these people have family on a farm in Warragul too!  I seriously lust after their kitchen.  The whole house in fact.  But perhaps it is best I will never have it.  Every room had radiators lining the walls and they were very particular about closing the doors to each room.  The walls are solid stone and I suspect it gets just a mite chilly in winter.

The lady of the house has a severe duck fetish.  I counted 28 duck ornaments and several pictures of ducks in the bathroom.  There were 29 if you include the duck-shaped loofah.  I felt like buying her one more duck to make it a round 30.  I particularly liked the duck that peers coyly out at you from behind the toilet cistern.

There is the one bathroom for all the guests and there is another couple staying here tonight which make things a bit awkward.  We've had to stagger our breakfast times so we aren't all trying to get in the bathroom at the same time.  As the last to arrive I got the last slot.  I hope they leave me some hot water and toilet paper.

The walk here was much the same as yesterday.  A few brief showers but constant howling gales.  I was even passed by another mad jogger.  The actual terrain was easy going but I was disappointed not to see any seals at a noted seal colony.  Even they thought the weather too miserable to be out and about in.  Time and distances are estimates as the batteries in my GPS died just outside of Gwithian.

For lunch I stopped at a cafe along the way, more to get out of the wind than anything.  I had a Cornish cream tea that was horrid.  The scones were dry, the jam commercial and the cream had obviously being sitting out in its serving dish for too long.  For the rest of lunch I ate some of my fruit haul from yesterday.

This B&B is a mile inland but the owners dropped me off at the pub in the village for my dinner.  It turned out to be the first gastro pub I've encountered.  Here, of all places.  I'd be surprised if the resident population (including farms in the area) number more than 200.  I had a crab and sherry soup to start.  Main was sea bass in a butter and caper sauce with new potatoes with dill and fresh mange tout beans.  I was eyeing off the cheesecake in the dessert menu but couldn't fit it in.

Normally the B&B owners would give their guests a lift home from the pub but they were going out tonight.  Instead, they kindly gave me the card for a local taxi service.  Unfortunately, there is no mobile phone reception anywhere around here.  I suppose I could have asked the people in the pub to call for me but I thought I'd better burn of some of all that dinner and walked back.  It has finally stopped raining and the wind has died down.  It might even be a nice day tomorrow.

There are a lot of books around the house here.  I went looking for a copy of Watership Down as I saw lots of rabbits on the walk here.  There is a warren in the lane leading to this place.  When I mentioned seeing the rabbits the husband cursed and complained about them.  Like I said, this is a working farm and to them they are pests that eat the crops, not cute little (tasty) bunnies like they are to me.  I doubt I'll find a copy of WD here.  Shame.