In Love with the Lizard
Phew. I’ve finally got 5 mins to sit down and write!! Since we got back from Cornwall I don’t seem to have stopped. Been working really hard on the May issue of my magazine. I’d decided to run a business feature which proved to be very popular with people I’ve met through 4Networking, who all wanted to advertise and give me editorial. It was a bit of a nightmare to fit everything in but I got there in the end, and this issue might even make a couple of quid profit for once.
So. Our holiday. It was fab!! I’d read some reviews of the caravan park on Trip Advisor that weren’t too promising .. but fortunately either they were false or the place has picked itself up. (I’ve added a review now - you’ll find it on tripadvisor.com, search for Mullion Holiday Park, mine is Sapphire001 and Whyterose is my mum!) The day before we went I was stressing a bit about the journey - 260 miles - but it was actually okay, we left here 10ish and were on The Lizard Peninsula by about 3pm, having stopped off in Helston on the way for sandwiches and some groceries. The weather was damp and grey all the way down but brightened up when we got there, so we drove down into Mullion and spent half an hour exploring the harbour at Mullion Cove. Very pretty, but not a patch on some of the others we saw! Back to check in at the caravan park at 4pm, our van was pretty big, well equipped, reasonably clean, all good. Ate in the restaurant on site and the food was excellent - a bit pricey to do every day (about £10 a head with a drink) but very tasty. Into the club for the cheesy entertainment, kids club, bingo, “Park Dean Troupers” doing a musical show - but we were all a bit tired and headed to bed quite early. Didn’t sleep well though - the caravan was freezing cold. I discovered next day that lots of the windows were slightly open so I pushed them all back in, and I think it was probably the first time the caravan had been used this season, so it was probably a bit damp. Luckily a combination of me sorting the windows and leaving the heaters on all night meant it was much warmer for the rest of the week!
Tuesday was a beautifully sunny day and we were up and out early, on an exploration of the peninsula. First stop was Kynance Cove, which I was really excited about. The walk from the car park up on the cliffs round to the cove is very pretty and quite long - and when you turn a corner and see the cove, the view is absolutely stunning.
We went down onto the beach, the kids climbed rocks and paddled and mum and I enjoyed the scenery. Beautiful place, really loved it. From there we went on to Lizard Point, the tip of the peninsula where we admired the view and had the BEST Cornish pasty ever from Anne’s Pasty Shop. I also almost ran the car off the edge of the cliff … well not quite, we’d parked on a slop and it was gravelly and I tried to go forwards but slipped backwards, gave us all a shock! Lizard village was very nice, geared up for tourists but not in a tacky way. Cadgwith was next, this is a really lovely fishing village where a natural rock promontory divides the cove into two beaches - one is used for the fishing boats and the other for swimming. It was another beautiful place and I spent some time clambering over the rocks with the kids, followed by tea and Cornish ice cream in the village. Fab. We then went on to Kennack Sands (a big sandy cove, probably great for a day out but a bit dull really after Kynance and Cadgwith!!) and Coverack (another wide bay with a pebble beach) and finished the day in St Keverne, where mum and I explored the church while the kids sat in the car, as they were, apparently “all beached out!”
That evening the rain came down quite heavily. I had volunteered to get fish and chips from the village and made it there just before it shut (8pm!!) but it really wasn’t worth the effort as they were without doubt the worst fish and chips I’ve ever had!!!! The kids had been swimming earlier in the evening and made friends with another couple of kids Dan’s age, so we went to the club again that evening and they danced with their friends.
Wednesday we went to explore some of the coves on beaches on the north of the peninsula. The day started at Poldhu which was lovely, a long sandy beach with interesting rocks to climb on, and I went for a paddle with Dan which was fun. Then on to Gunwhalloe Beach which was again very pretty. Between Gunwhalloe and Poldhu is Church Cove, another sandy bay, which has a church in the cliffs above it. The kids thought that was really boring until I set them a challenge - to find the oldest and youngest people buried in the church yard. That sent them off reading all the gravestones and Dan found it really interesting, though Katie said it was creepy! There were some very interesting inscriptions there, including the two below, which I found really sad. Not sure if you'll be able to read it here but basically they are the graves of two boys who were killed by a land mine at Gunwhalloe during the second world war. one of the boys was local; the other had been evacuated to Cornwall from London. Mind you, it also says that his parents were both killed in the Blitz so I guess his time was up either way.
In the afternoon we went to the National Seal Sanctuary at Gweek, which was very good, lots of rescued seals and sea lions. In the early evening the kids went swimming again with their friends, and came back having befriended a load more! So that evening I went to the bar to watch Chelsea stuff Liverpool in the Champions League (Yay!!) and then on to the club with them (Mum stayed back for some peace and quiet) and there were of them - the two younger ones from the day before, two 17 year old stepsisters from the Midlands, an 18 year old girl on her own and 2 17 yo boys both called Martin! They all got on really well together and formed a very tight gang for the rest of our stay.
So tight that on Thursday the kids opted out of doing anything with my mum and me and chose to stay at the caravan park with their friends! So we went to the Poldark Mine which was interesting, a tour down an old tin mine where you really experience what it was like as the tunnels are dark and wet, and then on to Mullion to look round some crafty shops and grab some lunch. Got back to find out Dan had had a bit of a blip - got really angry and one of the kids and lost his temper, Katie had held him till he calmed down but not before he’d kicked shit out of her shins.
That evening we went back to the club and they had a real party night with their friends. I noticed that one of the Martins seemed to have a bit of a thing for Katie … and sure enough they’d kissed before the end of the night1 I’m really glad she’s over Kieran but he’s 17, eek!! He’s actually a really nice boy though. It was a good fun night, the entertainment was completely cheesy but even Mum enjoyed it!
Friday we packed up and I managed to thrown myself down the steps of the caravan, twisting my ankle and causing a HUGE bruise on one leg. Not good. The kids were swimming with their friends again, so Mum and I sat in the bar and spent the morning reading - which was actually really good as I was able to put my foot up and by the time we did leave it was feeling less sore. Don’t think I’d have managed if we’d left first thing. The swimming for an hour became two hours, then we had lunch, then they all went out on a kind of pedal car thing that took 6 people, and then eventually, at 3pm, they made their tearful farewells and we got going.
Home by about 8pm, fish and chips, red wine, sleep!!
Fab week all round and came home feeling really relaxed. The Lizard is a really stunning place to go - there's plenty to do and see and the beaches are all just beautiful. Hope to go back there again some time, I think the kids would like to, too. And you know what? Katie and Martin have been talking a lot on the phone ever since. He lives about 50 mins from us … I don’t think we’ve seen the last of him …
More pics on my Flickr account here.
So. Our holiday. It was fab!! I’d read some reviews of the caravan park on Trip Advisor that weren’t too promising .. but fortunately either they were false or the place has picked itself up. (I’ve added a review now - you’ll find it on tripadvisor.com, search for Mullion Holiday Park, mine is Sapphire001 and Whyterose is my mum!) The day before we went I was stressing a bit about the journey - 260 miles - but it was actually okay, we left here 10ish and were on The Lizard Peninsula by about 3pm, having stopped off in Helston on the way for sandwiches and some groceries. The weather was damp and grey all the way down but brightened up when we got there, so we drove down into Mullion and spent half an hour exploring the harbour at Mullion Cove. Very pretty, but not a patch on some of the others we saw! Back to check in at the caravan park at 4pm, our van was pretty big, well equipped, reasonably clean, all good. Ate in the restaurant on site and the food was excellent - a bit pricey to do every day (about £10 a head with a drink) but very tasty. Into the club for the cheesy entertainment, kids club, bingo, “Park Dean Troupers” doing a musical show - but we were all a bit tired and headed to bed quite early. Didn’t sleep well though - the caravan was freezing cold. I discovered next day that lots of the windows were slightly open so I pushed them all back in, and I think it was probably the first time the caravan had been used this season, so it was probably a bit damp. Luckily a combination of me sorting the windows and leaving the heaters on all night meant it was much warmer for the rest of the week!
Tuesday was a beautifully sunny day and we were up and out early, on an exploration of the peninsula. First stop was Kynance Cove, which I was really excited about. The walk from the car park up on the cliffs round to the cove is very pretty and quite long - and when you turn a corner and see the cove, the view is absolutely stunning.
We went down onto the beach, the kids climbed rocks and paddled and mum and I enjoyed the scenery. Beautiful place, really loved it. From there we went on to Lizard Point, the tip of the peninsula where we admired the view and had the BEST Cornish pasty ever from Anne’s Pasty Shop. I also almost ran the car off the edge of the cliff … well not quite, we’d parked on a slop and it was gravelly and I tried to go forwards but slipped backwards, gave us all a shock! Lizard village was very nice, geared up for tourists but not in a tacky way. Cadgwith was next, this is a really lovely fishing village where a natural rock promontory divides the cove into two beaches - one is used for the fishing boats and the other for swimming. It was another beautiful place and I spent some time clambering over the rocks with the kids, followed by tea and Cornish ice cream in the village. Fab. We then went on to Kennack Sands (a big sandy cove, probably great for a day out but a bit dull really after Kynance and Cadgwith!!) and Coverack (another wide bay with a pebble beach) and finished the day in St Keverne, where mum and I explored the church while the kids sat in the car, as they were, apparently “all beached out!”
That evening the rain came down quite heavily. I had volunteered to get fish and chips from the village and made it there just before it shut (8pm!!) but it really wasn’t worth the effort as they were without doubt the worst fish and chips I’ve ever had!!!! The kids had been swimming earlier in the evening and made friends with another couple of kids Dan’s age, so we went to the club again that evening and they danced with their friends.
Wednesday we went to explore some of the coves on beaches on the north of the peninsula. The day started at Poldhu which was lovely, a long sandy beach with interesting rocks to climb on, and I went for a paddle with Dan which was fun. Then on to Gunwhalloe Beach which was again very pretty. Between Gunwhalloe and Poldhu is Church Cove, another sandy bay, which has a church in the cliffs above it. The kids thought that was really boring until I set them a challenge - to find the oldest and youngest people buried in the church yard. That sent them off reading all the gravestones and Dan found it really interesting, though Katie said it was creepy! There were some very interesting inscriptions there, including the two below, which I found really sad. Not sure if you'll be able to read it here but basically they are the graves of two boys who were killed by a land mine at Gunwhalloe during the second world war. one of the boys was local; the other had been evacuated to Cornwall from London. Mind you, it also says that his parents were both killed in the Blitz so I guess his time was up either way.
In the afternoon we went to the National Seal Sanctuary at Gweek, which was very good, lots of rescued seals and sea lions. In the early evening the kids went swimming again with their friends, and came back having befriended a load more! So that evening I went to the bar to watch Chelsea stuff Liverpool in the Champions League (Yay!!) and then on to the club with them (Mum stayed back for some peace and quiet) and there were of them - the two younger ones from the day before, two 17 year old stepsisters from the Midlands, an 18 year old girl on her own and 2 17 yo boys both called Martin! They all got on really well together and formed a very tight gang for the rest of our stay.
So tight that on Thursday the kids opted out of doing anything with my mum and me and chose to stay at the caravan park with their friends! So we went to the Poldark Mine which was interesting, a tour down an old tin mine where you really experience what it was like as the tunnels are dark and wet, and then on to Mullion to look round some crafty shops and grab some lunch. Got back to find out Dan had had a bit of a blip - got really angry and one of the kids and lost his temper, Katie had held him till he calmed down but not before he’d kicked shit out of her shins.
That evening we went back to the club and they had a real party night with their friends. I noticed that one of the Martins seemed to have a bit of a thing for Katie … and sure enough they’d kissed before the end of the night1 I’m really glad she’s over Kieran but he’s 17, eek!! He’s actually a really nice boy though. It was a good fun night, the entertainment was completely cheesy but even Mum enjoyed it!
Friday we packed up and I managed to thrown myself down the steps of the caravan, twisting my ankle and causing a HUGE bruise on one leg. Not good. The kids were swimming with their friends again, so Mum and I sat in the bar and spent the morning reading - which was actually really good as I was able to put my foot up and by the time we did leave it was feeling less sore. Don’t think I’d have managed if we’d left first thing. The swimming for an hour became two hours, then we had lunch, then they all went out on a kind of pedal car thing that took 6 people, and then eventually, at 3pm, they made their tearful farewells and we got going.
Home by about 8pm, fish and chips, red wine, sleep!!
Fab week all round and came home feeling really relaxed. The Lizard is a really stunning place to go - there's plenty to do and see and the beaches are all just beautiful. Hope to go back there again some time, I think the kids would like to, too. And you know what? Katie and Martin have been talking a lot on the phone ever since. He lives about 50 mins from us … I don’t think we’ve seen the last of him …
More pics on my Flickr account here.