Falling Down the Cornwall Hole

I did not plan to venture as far down the Cornwall hole as I did, but like Alice in Wonderland I kept getting “curiouser and curiouser.”  Wonderland is a pretty accurate description of Cornwall as it is an incredibly magical place full of interesting (and a little mad) characters. What seems impossible is possible in Cornwall, that is except for wifi. This far down the Cornwall Hole, technology is difficult, but the magic is most definitely real.

When I say I had no plan, I mean it. While looking for my next destination after Bath, I was playing around on Airbnb and found an interesting listing for a room in Newlyn that overlooked a castle on an island. How do you pass that up! After booking, my first indication of how far down the hole I was heading was when I looked up the train schedule and read it was a six hour train to Penzance followed by a 30 minute bus ride to Newlyn. I dropped down the hole all the way to the bottom!

Now, you may be questioning my claim that Cornwall is like Wonderland. You may believe I am taking creative license with Lewis Carroll’s beloved novel in order to benefit my blog. First of all, how dare you! Secondly, I have proof. Below are an account of the mad characters, unbelievable landscapes, magical lands, shrinking houses and fairytale forests I encountered on my travels. Judge for yourself.

Mad Characters

Just a short 15 minute walk from my Airbnb was the small fishing port of Mousehole (pronounced Mou-sil). I had dinner at The Ship Inn and as I sat in the pub, I met my first (and favorite mad character). After ordering at the bar, I was carrying my beer back to the table when I was confronted by a duck in my path. Figuring he was lost, I asked if he wanted me to open the door for him so he could go back outside. As I stood with the door open, he just turned away and quacked. Fine, just trying to help.

The duck waddled over to some tables next to me and just stood there as an older man sat down. The man was having a conversation with a couple while the duck stood nearby, softly quacking. The man would occasionally gesture toward the duck, but I was not clear of their relationship. That is until the man got up to put his empty glass on the bar, with the duck on his heels, and then left the pub holding the door open for the duck as it waddled out with him.

I was not sure what I had just witnessed, so when I shared the story with my Airbnb hosts, Marcia and Pete, they said “Oh, yeah. That’s his duck. It follows him everywhere.” Apparently this dynamic duo is well known in town. I would say it is mad, but I did politely ask the duck if he would like me to get the door and then hold it open for him, so I guess I am a little mad too.

Unbelievable Landscapes

One item I absolutely wanted to do while in Cornwall was to hike to Land’s End. Marcia kindly drove me to Porthgwarra so I could pick up a hiking trail that would take me to Land’s End and on to Sennan Cove. This was a path she had taken before and said it would take me about an hour and a half. It took me three. In all fairness though, I climbed down into every nook and cranny along the way to explore everything this landscape had to offer. It was unbelievable. I fully expected at some point for a caterpillar to pop up and offer me a puff from his hookah. The landscape did not seem real and with so few people on the hiking path, I often found myself alone walking among wild flowers along a cliff at the very end of England overlooking the Atlantic Ocean.

From rocky beaches to blue water coves, everything was at your disposal to explore. There were even a few caves, but you will have to take my word on that one as I did not go in.

There was even a shipwreck! Apparently this unfortunate captain thought he could set anchor in this little cove along the coast and did not accurately estimate how close he was to the rocky bottom. There is a sign at the site commemorating his bad decision and warning others not to follow his example. Embarrassing.

As you can imagine, I have million and one photos from my wander along the coast (I was a big fan of the pano function on my phone) and could probably just slideshow my Wonderland case; however, I believe these few photos will do.

Magical Lands

That castle on an island that drew me to Newlyn is St. Michael’s Mount. The castle has been with the St. Aubyn family since about 1620. At its height, the island had hundreds of people living and working on it. Today, only 35 people live there to manage the property.

There are a number of magical items about this island, but the most incredible (in my opinion) is the vanishing causeway. From Penzance, you walk along the coast to reach the causeway that connects you to St. Michael’s Mount. During low tide, you follow the cobblestone path to the castle, but each day at high tide the causeway vanishes.

A bit before 2 pm each day, the picture above would be mostly water. Guests can still travel to and from the island using a boat service, but just like a fairytale, the castle on the hill becomes an island each afternoon. Legend has it that a giant used to live on the island with his stolen treasure from local villages. That is until Jack the Giant Killer killed him and ended his reign. It is believed you can still hear the beat of the Giant’s heart and visitors are encouraged to listen closely.

The island itself is pretty amazing with winding medieval paths and unique gardens built on the hillside that you can zigzag your way up and through. Visitors can also tour the castle with its incredible history and stunning views. Connected to the castle is a beautiful chapel that still holds service.

I am incredibly envious of those who are able to live on the island and wander the landscape, surrounded by its history, and legends and, of course, magic.

Shrinking Houses and Fairytale Forests

After four days exploring the tip of England, I moved west to spend some time cut off from civilization. You know the struggle is real when not even a Taxi (Uber was out of the question) can be found near you. The town I headed to was St. Keverne and it became my destination solely because of the house above. A fairytale tiny house. I drank the “bigger” juice because it was tiny! Cute, but tiny. My dog Boudreaux would be so pissed at me if I went this tiny.

The property was owned by Outlandish Holidays and is home to a number of interesting accommodations such as a tree house and gypsy caravans. They used to have a teepee on site, but not sure what happened to it. The house I stayed in is called the Jack Sparrow House (not sure why…didn’t really get the pirate vibe) and was surrounded by trees and shrubs. It was pretty secluded and with a gas stove and no warm water, it was pretty close to camping for me.

From my loft upstairs, the view was of the coast.

My view from the back was of cows.

My second night in the tiny house, I was lying in the loft a little jumpy because it was thundering (and I was out in the middle of nowhere) when I hear a cough right outside of the house. Again, I am in a PRETTY secluded area and I should not be able to hear anyone cough, so clearly this is a lunatic who does not care that I have pre-warning that he will be killing me. I hear him cough again. I climb the ladder down to the kitchen and look for a knife. Nothing but a ladle. I climb back up to the loft with a ladle and start strategizing climbing out the window to the roof and screaming bloody murder until the gypsy caravans come to save me when I hear yet another cough and a chewing noise. I mean the killer wouldn’t be snacking, would he? I head back downstairs to grab a flashlight and nervously look out the back to see…a cow lazily chewing on some grass laying by the fence behind the house. Relief and gratitude filled me. Not only was I happy that I would not have to ninja my way to the roof, but I was grateful for the cow guard duty as I was feeling a little vulnerable out there on my own.

In addition to tiny houses and thoughtful cows, the coastal town near the property was small as well, but the fun part was getting there. Stone steps and streams and tunnels of arching trees brought you to the town making you feel like you were wandering in a storybook forest. Between the fairytale house and the magical forest, the experience was well worth it, but I will be honest, I was pretty darn happy when I traveled on to London and finally got wifi back.

So, there are my compelling arguments that I in fact traveled to Wonderland (aka Cornwall). I have one last piece of proof should you still be in doubt. Let me introduce you to the rabbit guiding my way in Wonderland, Lulu. Along with Marcia and Pete, they threw me quite the Tea Party and I will be forever grateful.