30th Sept. - 2nd Oct. 2011
A Marathon a day for 3 days along the 'South West Coast Path' from Padstow to Lands End. Taking in the beautiful yet rugged North West Atlantic Coast of Cornwall
DAY THREE
Waiting for the race briefing I contemplated what lay ahead, according to the weather forecast it was going to be hotter than the previous two days. I knew from previous experience that day three was closer to 30 miles than the 'normal' 26.2 for a marathon. I knew that the terrain underfoot was difficult and slower going. I knew that while I could go sub 5 hours comfortably for day one and two, due to the terrain & distance I would have to run well to get inside 7 hours for day 3. Ominously there where only about 12 runners at the briefing, the others had probably opted for one of the two earlier start options to avoid the heat & allow more time for the event.
Ben Mason, race director, began his spiel:
"If you thought day one & day two were tough they were merely a warm-up for day three."
"There are sections of the coastline that are remote & desolate......."
"There will be mud, there will be blood........."
"If it starts going dark leave your head torch off as long as possible & make sure your spare batteries work before you set off"
Then after some useful information on route navigation Ben finished off with...
"Remember if the sea is on your right and you are running uphill you're probably going in the right direction"
"Man the buses and good luck". Inspirational stuff! it sounded like we were warriors off to do battle as opposed to a group of runners just doing there thing"
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| St Uny - Lelant |
The earliest reference to this church is in 1170 when Thomas Becket the Archbishop of Canterbury referred to it as "The Church of Saint Euni".
The church has a copy of a letter from King Charles thanking the people of Lelant for their support during the English Civil War.
The church is also of interest because it is actually built on a Roman fort by the sea.
I have no doubt that one or two prayers were offered up by runners at the start of Day Three.
After a few creaks and groans from my legs it was off across the sand dunes and down to the coast. My legs soon found their rhythm and considering they had already covered 52 miles felt surprisingly good, all those hot showers, sea paddles and massages had obviously worked. The coastline of the last two days had been beautiful but the next stretch from Lelant to St.Ives is particularly so and is one of our (Barbara & I) favorite walks. It's got a great beach cafe at Carbis for a coffee on the way, then there's the shops and the harbour of St.Ives and then a spectacular coastal train ride back to Lelant. This 4-5 mile stretch of coast provides a nice gentle easy start to today's run. |
| Porth Kidney Sands looking back across St. Ives Bay |
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| Did I mention the nice, gentle, easy, start! |
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| Carbis Bay |
Carbis Bay comes into view and the temptation to stop for a coffee is almost irresistible, after all it's not a race! would I be missed? is it in the spirit of the event? would I be disqualified? would I want to start running again? Common-sense prevails, plus I have no money on me, but I also realise that after several photo stops and having set off in group 3 I am probably in 120th place and last on the course so I carry on with a little more urgency & purpose than before.
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| Porthmin Beach |
I've picked up the pace and its getting hot. I ponder on the wisdom of the late start, even my new friends Henry & John who are training for the Marathon des Sables (a run across the Sahara Desert in temperatures of 40C) must have opted for an earlier start today as they weren't on the bus this morning and I haven't seen any of the other runners for a couple of miles. I arrive at Porthmin Beach and for the first time in my life I consider ditching the running shoes for a day on the beach as the sea looks very inviting. However St. Ives is just around the corner with its tricky narrow streets, harbour and headland so I am sure that my previous knowledge of having run through the town before will help me catch up.
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| St.Ives |
St Ives is favoured by artists for its exceptional light and colours and is home to one of the Tate Galleries, it's also the point of no return on this run because from here onwards the coast becomes remote and desolate for the next 20 miles.
Round the headland I catch up with 2 or 3 other runners from my group and we leave St.Ives along Porthmeor Beach and pass the impressive Tate Gallery and out into the wilderness. The first checkpoint of the day, CP1, is about a mile inland at the small village of Zennor. This is because the coast path has had to be diverted due to a large section of cliff having slid into the sea. The diversion to Zennor.
Due to stopping to take photographs I become isolated again along the coast path and along the diversion to Zennor and I don't see anybody until I arrive at CP1. The fable at Zennor is of Matthew Trewhella and a Mermaid. Matthew a good looking young man with a fine voice sang hymns everyday at the local church St. Senara. Unusually, because it's usually the mermaids siren that entices young men, Matthew's singing enchanted the mermaid. Initially she would sit on a rock and just listen to his singing before slipping into the waves and returning to the sea. Gradually she became bolder until eventually she put on a long dress to conceal her tail and made her way to the church. It was on one of these visits that their gaze met and they fell in love. However, the mermaid knew she had to go back to the sea or die. "Please do not leave, who are you, where are you from?" The mermaid told him that she was a creature from the sea and that she must go back. Matthew was so love-struck he carried her to the cove and followed her beneath the waves never to be seen again. It is said that if you sit above Pendour Cove at sunset on a fine summer evening you might hear Matthew's singing faintly on the breeze.
Stories like these seem unlikely however if you visit St.Senara Church at Zennor there is a carved bench-end over 600 years old showing the mermaid holding the traditional comb and mirror one in each hand. On the south side of the tower there is also a small bronze medallion bearing the figure of a mermaid and the inscription: "the Glory of the world Paseth. Paul Quick fecit, 1737". It has been interpreted as "Worldly things are fleeting." an adaptation of a phrase "How quickly the glory of the world passes away".
I keep an open for a mermaid, that would be a photograph, but all I see are some fairies and I wonder if the heat is getting to me or maybe to them.
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| The Fairies of Checkpoint One. |
A little further along the coast path the next view that I capture on the camera is of Cove Cottage at Lean Point apparently it featured in the Rosamunde Pilcher film 'Sommer am Meer' and while I enjoy watching foreign films I don't recall this one.
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| Cove Cottage at Lean Point |
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| The view from checkpoint 2 Seals basking in the shallow waters |
There's hardly enough room to take a photograph at CP2 its standing room only and one out , one in! Again the organisers struggle with the inaccessibility of the coastline and the rugged terrain but manage some how to get jerry-cans full of water and loads of food to the spot. Peter Mason, the 'man in black' below, always seems to man the most scenic checkpoints but I suppose that's one of the perks of being 'second in command'.
He asks me "wher've you been all day?" and my cordial reply is "does he fancy going for a swim" or something like that.
Reports are coming from runners that one of the other runners is not feeling to good and despite the heat he is pulling on warm clothing and a hat. Peter is quickly on the phone to one of the roving para-medics and sends him to help. I fear from the description it sounds like heat exhaustion.
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| Checkpoint 2 - Trevean Cliff |
Off along the coast path again and the running conditions which have been difficult underfoot since leaving St.Ives have not improved but I know that by the time I reach CP3 the worst of the heat of the day will be over and the path does improve. The next landmark is Pendeen Lighthouse but just before that another beautiful cove comes into view, Portheras Cove.
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| Portheras Cove |
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| Pendeen Lighthouse |
The lighthouse along with other buildings occupies a large area and they are in an 'E' shape made up of three keepers cottages and a forth smaller unit originally used for an office for the keeper on duty. In 1995 the lighthouse was fully automated and the three cottages are now available as holiday homes. Behind the cottages there were three kitchen gardens but these soon fell into disuse as nothing would grow in such an exposed position. Originally the water supply for the homes was collected on the roofs of the accommodation units and fed into an underground tank.
One report says that at one point during the early 1900's the population of the site rose to four keepers, three wives, ten children, two dogs, three cats, five pigs, three goats, two ponies, about thirty chickens, and three geese. On one occasion the geese who apparently felt that they owned the place, refused to let the visiting local Superintendent, Lieutenant Harold Reading, get off his horse.
The next landmark is Cape Cornwall and this is an important landmark as it's just above Checkpoint 3 but before then there is what seems to be miles of Mines and Mine Workings.
Most of the Land’s End Peninsula consists of granite, a coarsely crystalline igneous rock, formed deep in the earth around 280 million years ago. North-east from Cape Cornwall dark-coloured slate and volcanic rocks comprise much of the rugged cliff scape. Within both the granite and these older rocks, near vertical veins (lodes), containing tin and copper, formed at right angles to the cliffs. The pursuit of these lodes beneath the bed of the Atlantic Ocean challenged the skills of the Cornish miner and brought worldwide fame to the St Just Mining District. Levant Mine and the nearby Botallack Mine were the most successful of these famous submarine enterprises. Mining in this area goes back 3,000 years, even the Romans mined here 2,000 years ago.
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| Botallack Mine - Engine Pumping House |
As the sun starts to sink lower in the sky Cape Cornwall comes into view and at the bottom is CP3.
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| Cape Cornwall |
At the base of the tower is the inscription:
"Cape Cornwall - Purchased for the nation by H.J. Heinz Co. Ltd. to mark their centenary year. Presented to the National Trust 25 March 1987"
Cape Cornwall is a small headland a few miles north of Land's End. The cape is the point at which Atlantic currents split, either going south up the English Channel, or north to the Irish Sea. A 'Cape' is a headland where two oceans or channels meet. in this case the English Channel and St Georges Channel. It is the only cape in England.
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Just before CP3 I take a photo of this 'Danger of Death' sign it's a good incentive to stay on the path and not take short-cuts. I am annoyed that I didn't get one of the 'Beware of Adders' on Day One to add to my collection of danger signs. I grab a bottle of Coca Cola at CP3 that's all I need from here on, I don't have to think about what type of fuel to take on board for later because I am on the home straight, the final furlong, it's about 1.1/2 hours worth of running from here and I realise that if I run it all the way I might just get inside of 7 hours and with this I would be very satisfied.
So 'Just One More Photo' looking back at Cape Cornwall and the terrain of the coast path and then its head down and just run, 'promise', I say to myself.
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| 'Last Look Back' - Cape Cornwall |
"Just one more photo then", I say to myself, "it's a good sky and I can see Lands End for the first time" .
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| Are we nearly there? |
I have passed loads of runners today and feel like I am well placed overall in 'the race' however due to the constant stopping to take just one more photo I am caught with a small group of two guys and a girl and they look like they are running well so I tag on and soon learn that they also realise that they could get in in under seven hours if they keep this pace up. This seems an ideal situation so I decide to join in, we take turns at sharing the pace and everybody is handing round the last remnants of their food, Kendal Mint Cake & chocolate we are all using the same tactic, 'sugar' because it doesn't matter about hitting the wall or tomorrow because we have only 5 miles to go.
Now I can clearly see the famous Longships Lighthouse approx 1.25 miles off Lands End.
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| Lands End |
Running with these guys, who are determined to go sub-7, is not easy because I can't stop taking the photos, although not as many, they are maintaining a good pace and every time I stop I have to dig really deep to pull myself back into the group, not easy after 3 days and 70 odd miles of running, we drop down onto the edge of the beach at Whitesands Bay and pick our way through the soft sand for nearly 2 miles until we reach the small fishing harbour and village of Sennen Cove.
The beach is home to Bilbo, a Newfoundland, the first UK canine lifeguard. He worked on the beach from 2005 – 2007 however he was suspended from services when the lifeguards were taken over by the RNLI in early 2008. This was due to the rules that confine Bilbo from not being allowed to walk on the sand (the beach is strictly dog free in the summer) and a new RNLI regulation that restricts the use of the quad bike to not more than one person (or dog in this instance). They had obviously never observed a farmer & his sheepdogs in the Lakes. He raised awareness to tourists about the dangers of swimming outside the designated zones, led by the 'Bilbo Says' campaign, he also has a website http://www.bilbosays.com/
There has been a public outcry for Bilbo's reinstatement. A number of petitions have been posted online, and there is a paper petition inside the Old Success Inn, at Sennen.
From Sennen Cove its only 1 mile to the finish at Lands End but its a climb (the last climb) back up on to the cliffs to the finish and time for just one last photo, I must be elated at seeing Lands End because I just can't stop taking it's photo.
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| Lands End |
The End - Literally
So it's with mixed emotions of relief and elation that I've arrived at the finish, I've had a great time, met some interesting people and got a sun-tan all in three days. Oh and by the way I finished today's stage in 6hrs 53mins 23secs. and out of all the 122 people that completed the three days I finished 12th in a total time of 17hrs 18mins 25secs.and I almost forgot to mention the FREE! PASTY to all those that finish. I don't do this just for fun you know! Never has a pasty tasted as good as when you run 78miles to get it.
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| Photo (and pasty) courtesy of votwo |
Definitely The End
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