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The Final Countdown: Walks 21-26

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Library fundraising page Challenge completed: July 31st 2026 Finishing the final six walks came at the height of the July heatwave. My library duties slowed down by July 10th, leaving just a week left of term supporting Curriculum Enrichment Week. Despite this, I was behind schedule and tied up with school proms and end of term performances. Was I going to meet my target of finishing by 31st July? I had no choice but to push on despite the high temperatures.  Walk 21: Bassett's Cove to Gwithian and back (11.8 miles) Starting early on Saturday 11th July, I left the dogs at home due to the heat and set off on a familiar route with stunning views. I was desperate to get to water and bathe my hot feet but the views were spectacular. I met a guy with a powerful camera lens who tried to show me a pod of dolphins out to sea but I could only spot the crowd of birds accompanying them which I was gutted about. However, I did spot several seals.  This route isn't too challenging in terms...
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Walk 19: Crantock to home (repeated)

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  Link to fundraising page This week marked my first attempt at TWO walks, bringing in my total mileage to just over 22 miles. After covering almost an 11-mile distance on Wednesday before my treadmill packed in, I decided to head out straight after work on Friday with my two dogs to enjoy the gorgeous sunny weather.  Friday is early finish day when I leave work at 3.30pm rather than 4pm. Taking full advantage of this, I rushed home to change and pack and my husband dropped me off in Crantock by 5pm.  Again, it would have been lovely to head further out to a part of the coast I have not yet walked but this only highlights the difficult logistics of the challenge that I didn't fully think through before beginning (typical me). Walking alone would have meant far more planning, relying on my husband and children to give up their evening to run around and wait potentially hours for me - it just wasn't viable on a Friday evening. Completing this familiar walk alone meant I was...
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Walk 20: Hitting the Wall

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Link to fundraising page Treadmill I've read enough books to know that just before the end of a story, the main character usually goes through an 'all is lost' moment - a 'I can't do it' and 'I'm going to jack it all in' overwhelm.  That was me last night.  After Friday's walk, which started off really well with me trotting along happily in the sunshine but turned into what felt like a never-ending 11 miles and a sinky-sand slog across the beach, I wasn't looking forward to yet another 11 miles mid-week. For someone who has enjoyed keeping fit since my early twenties and who, quite a few times, have pushed myself to my limit, I've always seemed to struggle with speed and distance. My half marathon training turned me from a walker into a jogger who could cover 10 miles in about 2 hours - a very average time - but beyond the 10 mile point, I would finish every run with throwing up and having to lie down. It just doesn't seem to be in my...
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Walk 18: RIP Treadmill

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Link to Penair Library Fundraising Page Wednesday 1st July - like most people, I was heading straight home from work to watch the football. However, rather than sitting around for two hours, I decided to be productive at the same time and jump on the treadmill, marking my move from one to TWO walks a week.  All was going well - better than the first half of the football anyway - with the first forty-five minutes feeling manageable. After that, I jumped off and on so I could get tea underway, pets fed etc, and by the match took an exciting turn, I was more than halfway through.  However, after taking a hour's break to have some food and let it go down, the tiredness set in a bit. Nonetheless, I was 15.6 km in and only had 3 km left to do when my treadmill decided it had had enough! Gutted, I had to try and finish by circling the garden but decided to call it a night at 9.30pm at 1km short of my target. However, I'll be adding this onto my next walk. 
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Walk 17: Home to Porthtowan

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Link to fundraising page Today, again due to us both having busy weekends with family, we decided to focus on mileage. I set out at 8.30am from home towards Sarah's house in Perranporth so I could clock up a couple of extra miles. However, what I hadn't accounted for was how overgrown the public footpath from my house towards Perran was. By the time I had pushed through ferns and all sorts of greenery, plus clambered over some fallen trees, I was soaking wet and the dogs were covered in seeds.  After arriving late to find Sarah waiting for me, we set out along the familiar coastal path towards St Agnes. The weather was perfect; cloudy at first but then turning sunny with a lovely breeze. We passed through Trevellas, which looked stunning with the tide out and then stopped for something to eat at St Agnes and watched the nippers in the calm water.  St Agnes to Chapel Porth felt like a bit of a slog (although a beautiful one) with single file paths and shaly ground. This section...
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Walk 16: Newquay to Porthcothan repeated, plus treadmill

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Link to fundraising page This weekend, Sarah and I were unable to head west, back to Cape Cornwall, as I needed to be closer to home due to having a relative in hospital. Reluctant to face the treadmill again and desperate to get back out onto the Cornish coast, I decided to join my work colleague, Mr Greenwood, who is walking the south-west coast path to raise funds and awareness of a condition called CDKL5.  After completing this walk with Sarah back in February half-term, I was really looking forward to doing it again but the opposite way round. We headed out from Newquay at 10am with cloud and drizzle overhead, although this quickly gave way to sunshine and I could feel the high UV levels.  The sea was crystal clear at Porth and I was very jealous of those in the water. However, heading towards Watergate Bay, we saw an adder which was basking at the edge of the cliff and moving towards Mawgan Porth, we saw what we think was a red kite catching its breakfast. We stopped for...
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Walk 15: Treadmill

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  Link to fundraising page 10.6 miles on treadmill (17.13 km) plus 1 mile dog walk = 11.6 miles Apologies for the photo not being very clear due to sunlight. 
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