Hello everyone,
Back in July I took a short holiday in Cornwall, which is the most south-westerly county in the UK, known for its rural and coastal landscapes along with its many beaches.
Although I only spent two days there, I managed to do a lot of things and so it felt like I was there for much longer, and overall I had a wonderful time. So for that reason, I have decided to share it all with you!
In my two previous trips to Cornwall, I had spent all of my time on the very south-west tip, visiting beautiful places such as St. Ives, Penzance, and Land’s End. So this time, I wanted to explore much more of the county and sample some of the more picturesque rural areas, and they did not disappoint. There was also no shortage of country walks…
Day One
The days before I set off for Cornwall were the hottest on record in the UK, and the remnants of the heat wave were still in full swing as I boarded my train for Liskeard, the small town where I was going to be staying. The train journey was very smooth including a change at Plymouth, so I arrived early in the afternoon.
My guest house was just a short walk from the station, but it was still a few hours before I was able to check in, so after lunch I spent the afternoon exploring Liskeard and the surrounding countryside. The town centre was small but pretty, comprising mostly of charity shops and independent cafes, but there was a tiny little local museum.
The museum was fairly quaint with one room dedicated entirely to toys from the 1960s and 1970s, but there were other parts which focused on the area’s industrial history, and they were very interesting.
After that came my first country walk of the holiday! Inside the railway station I had collected a brochure with a local walking route and so I decided to follow that trail. It turned out to be a beautiful walk, made even better by the sunny weather.
The highlight of the walk was the historic viaduct, which was built in 1881 and towers over the surrounding landscape. There were also some gorgeous views from on top of the hills, and on the way back the route takes you through Combe Junction Halt, part of a local branch line and one of the least used railway stations in the UK – a really cool fact if you are a nerd like me. In the end, the walk was a little over three miles long, and was a really nice introduction to east Cornwall.
When I arrived back in Liskeard I checked into my guest house, where the hosts were extremely kind and welcoming. As I would find out the next morning, the lady who runs it was an absolute delight. She was a real chatterbox and would engage in long, animated conversations with me and my fellow guests over breakfast, taking in various topics from television shows and books to current affairs.
After settling into my room for a couple of hours, I went for dinner at the local Wetherspoon’s, which apart from one small takeaway, is literally the ONLY place in Liskeard to eat out. I definitely got value for money though with the food, as I was presented with a very generous helping which I duly devoured. Then it was back to the guest house to watch an episode of Stranger Things on my mobile phone, and then to bed with a busy day ahead.
Day Two
When I set out for Cornwall, I did not really have a concrete plan in mind for where I would go, but I always knew that I would visit Truro. The one and only city in Cornwall, I had heard very good things about it and I also learnt that the coastline was not too far away either.
Once again, the weather was warm and sunny as I boarded a sparsely populated train from Liskeard, arriving in Truro at just before 11am. The railway station is situated at the top of a hill, and once I had reached the bottom my first stop was the Royal Cornwall Museum, which is just a short distance along the road towards the city centre.
This museum was sadly not free to enter, but its exhibits made up for that, in particular the impressive geological collection of colourful rocks. The main hall contained a timeline of Cornish history with two classic vehicles on display, while the room to the right was a small section on Egyptology. Upstairs, the highlights were a patchwork quilt made by a fascinating woman called Lady Grace Sawle, and works by some local art students. Overall, I spent about two hours inside.
Having stopped for lunch at a nearby bakery, I was now poised for one of my trademark long walks. I wanted to head to the coast and I had recently found out that on the outskirts of Truro lies Trelissick House and Garden, a National Trust property. I love visiting National Trust properties, so that was decision made and it meant a walk of nearly two hours.
The walk was long, but beautiful. There was a bit of a delay at first as Google Maps pointed me in the wrong direction, but once I found the right path I was treated to more amazing views as I navigated winding country lanes, giving way to the occasional passing car and walking beside fields of cows and cosy rural cottages. At one point next to one of these cottages, I stopped to pet a very friendly cat.
I eventually arrived on the grounds of Trelissick in mid-afternoon. Initially I went down towards the coast, where the calm water was a perfect shade of blue and a few yachts and sailboats were floating serenely. A short distance away from me was a beach, where a few families were decked out and a number of excitable dogs frolicked around.
I then went through into Trelissick House, which was much smaller than I expected. Formerly owned by Ida Copeland – who in 1931 became one of the UK’s first female members of parliament – the house was lived in until 2013 and only a very small part of it is open to the public. Indeed, its main attraction is the dining room, where visitors can be treated with cream teas.
The best thing about the house were the views towards the coast, and so I sat outside for a while to admire them and do a bit of reading. Then came the highlight of the Trelissick estate – the gardens.
They were large and spacious and in the late afternoon sunshine, they were resplendent. The flowers were so colourful and some of the trees really stood out, so that led to some very nice photographs, especially the one of the bridge. One of the best things about gardens are that they are so peaceful, and Trelissick’s were a joy to explore.
Before leaving I took one last look at the coast and ate the Belgian bun that I had bought from the bakery earlier. That definitely gave me the energy I needed for the long walk back! It was nearly 7pm when I arrived back in Truro, but I could not leave without taking a good look at the cathedral, a truly majestic and imposing building.
Then it was time for the train back to Liskeard and after calling my parents, there was just time for more television on my phone and a look through social media before it was lights out.
Day Three
This was the day I came home, but before that I needed to have one more adventure in Cornwall. After another nice breakfast and checking out of the guest house, I took the short train journey to Bodmin, perhaps the county’s most rural location of all. The weather this time was damp and grey, but that did not affect things too much.
The place I was looking to visit was the Lanhydrock Estate – another property managed by the National Trust – and luckily there is a footpath from Bodmin Parkway railway station which leads straight there. It was a very long footpath, taking me through some dense woodland and bridges over calmly flowing rivers.
Before I arrived, I did not appreciate just how huge the Lanhydrock Estate is. I took the long and scenic route, involving more nice views and a maze of footpaths. Apart from the occasional passer-by, I felt like I had the whole area to myself at times and I did quite a lot of walking. But then the house itself came into view, and that was a different story entirely.
The house and its grounds are absolutely stunning. The photographs I took do not do it justice and you can easily see why it attracts such a high number of visitors. The house itself is aesthetic perfection, made greater by the rows of parallel shrubs that line the front path. I spent a long time simply admiring these grand features.
A spiral staircase inside the vestibule leads up to a room that contains a visual timeline of the house’s history. It was originally built in the seventeenth century, but a fire in the 1880s meant that some sections of it needed to be rebuilt. Just inside the entrance to the house, there was a short video about this too.
The ground floor was mostly standard for these types of houses, with neatly furnished rooms and corridors with portraits hanging on the walls, but the most remarkable parts of the house were upstairs. There was an interesting long room which was mostly used as a children’s nursery with a grand piano at the back, and on an alcove to the right were a few steps leading down into the long gallery.
This room was a sight to behold. There was more ornate furniture including bookshelves, along with a beautiful bay window at the back, while the most impressive aspect of all was the ceiling. It was large and tunnel-like, and it depicted the entire biblical story of Noah’s Ark, scene by scene, with animals included. I was awed by the detail and intricacy of it, so I spent a long time in this room.
Then came a tour of the bedrooms before I went back outside. Because of the time, I needed to leave so was unable to the tour of the kitchens, but I did manage to explore more of the grounds including the adjacent church. I admired them for as long as I reasonably could before I took the long walk back, this time taking a slightly different route and almost getting lost.
Speaking of getting lost, there was one worrying moment on the way back as I came across a young girl who had become separated from her family. I stayed with her until we found them, which thankfully was only a few minutes later. It was a massive relief when her family appeared, especially as the footpaths in that area are quite remote.
Anyway, I eventually made it back to Bodmin Parkway and paid to get on the next train towards Bristol. It was now that all the walking of the past 48 hours truly caught up with me and for the whole rest of the journey, I was just exhausted haha. Once off the train, it was straight to my family’s house for a week of cat-sitting. It was their turn for a holiday!
Overall, a wonderful couple of days, and I look forward to my next Cornish adventure!
Stephen Reads Books 