LEJOG blog

All in the April evening,
April airs were abroad,
I saw the sheep with the lambs
And thought on the Lamb of God
Katharine Tynan Hinkson (1861–1931)

No donkeys for me today, even though it’s Palm Sunday. But many more lambs in the fields. I hear them behind the hedges. Some even rush up to me at the gates, while others run away.
It’s a grey, windy day and even after a couple of miles I was quite cold. An early soup break at the White Hart in Holsworthy was ideal. Also because this was where Bob stayed on his End to End 16 years go, although he got here in 6 days. Today is day 13 of my walk.

The Devonshire lanes are no less beautiful than the Cornish ones. The wonderful displays of Spring flowers continue with Primroses in every hedge and bluebells showing more colour now.

I was walking faster, due to the cold wind I think, but a regular pace is relaxing. I passed several churches and chapels as usual. Some of the chapels have been converted into homes, but this is great recycling. Better to have a cosy well used home than an empty decaying chapel.

St Peter’s Church Thornbury has been there since the 12th century and still has a congregation in a shared benefice. Rural churches face many challenges. On the green at Woodacott, an invitation to Easter Pizza. I do wonder what that might be.
The last few miles past a wind turbine, larks singing, Swallows swooping. More lambs and bluebells: what more will this Holy Week bring?

From Psalm 84

Even the sparrow has found a home,
and the swallow a nest for herself,
A place to raise her young,
A safe home in this holy place.

Prayer

Creator, may your house be a sound and safe place to build a community:
A place that, like a launch pad, sets us on the journey, keeps us in your orbit.
Companion Christ, may we keep in step with you
When crowds shout out or on the silent path:
A way that is truly living.
Holy Spirit, in this week of weeks,
Animate our prayers and actions:
May we be wholly yours.

JAL 14.04.2019
Day 13 of the End to End from Yeomadon to Gidcot Mill via the White Hart at Holsworthy.

Early on during Day 12 of the walk I lost my stylish red head band (seen in this photo).  There has been a cold wind for several days and I like to keep my ears warm. When the sun came out and things warmed up then I took off

the head band. A few steps further on and round the corner the cold wind came back but then I couldn’t find the red headband. I’d lost it somewhere during the last mile. I texted Bob and he kindly went back to look for it. A few minutes later he drove up behind me and handed me the red head band. He’d found it!
I wrote him a little ditty (the tune is Swing Low).

Song for Bob

I looked down the lane and what did I see
Coming with my red ear ‘ole warmer?
A silver Picanto coming after me,
Coming with my red ear ‘ole warmer.

Swing low, sweet Picanto,
Coming with my red ear ‘ole warmer.
Swing low, sweet Picanto,
Coming for to bring me home.

He has a busy time doing shopping, washing and looking for lost items as well as coming back to walk with me when he can. Sometimes he gets cake as a thank you.

(these are the first mangelwurzels of the walk)

It was the shortest walking day so far. It included crossing the border between Cornwall and Devon.

Things to note from Cornwall:
A county lined with hedges deep with wild flowers;
Small strips of woodland with bluebells ready to come out very soon;
Stunning coast line and beautiful rivers;
Good stuff to eat: pasties, clotted cream;
Historic things to see as well as contemporary ones;
Friends to meet and greet.
In 12 days I have walked the length of Cornwall.

JAL 13.04.2019
Day 12 of the End to End, Wilkie Down Farm to Yeomadon, Cornwall to Devon.

It seems that enough people are not sure that you can readily look this question up on Google. The main thing to remember about walking to and from Launceston on Day 11 of this walk is it’s very hilly. Even though some of the hills are down a significant number are up and quite steep. The castle is even further up, and has been there for a long time. These days it is reached by a steep flight of steps. 

Other streets in town are also steep. One of the other places I visited in town was the free museum. It has a wide range of interesting local exhibits including a facsimile book of hours associated with a local Priory and a six volume Cornish Herbarium.

Charles Causley, the poet, was born in Launceston and apart from when he was serving in the Royal Navy, always lived in the town, where he was also a teacher. He’s a poet whose work I have enjoyed since I was a teenager.

Remembering Charles Causley:

The sun, dancing,
Lights up all the lanes,
From Land’s End to Launceston,
Where I step out and meet you;
An unexpected surprise,
So gently encouraging.

I crossed a number of medieval bridges on the way out of town, and another steep hill up to St Stephen’s Church. From there I made a short detour to find a Holy Well marked on the map. It took a bit of tracking down but I found it a short distance up a footpath.

I stopped for a picnic by another medieval bridge at Yeolmbridge before making the final push, mostly uphill, for the final two miles. Bob picked me up and we returned to the Codfather, a fish and chip van on the north side of Launceston, for a rather late fish supper, as we often do on Fridays.

Prayer at the Well

As the water wells up from the ground,
Our ancestors thought this place was Holy.
Water is life and life giving water a valuable gift.
Tonight we pray for all those who wait for water, who live in need of adequate water supplies;
And for those who have the engineering skill to bring water to where it is needed.

May the resources for life be shared fairly.

JAL 12.04.2019
Day 11 of the End to End, Trebullett to Wilkie Down Farm via Launceston

The cross marked way continued from Redgate Cross to King Doniert’s Stone. Actually this is two stones that are probably the bases and shafts of other ancient crosses. One includes an inscription that refer to King Doniert, said to have been the last king of Cornwall. Other records suggest he died in 875 AD. These were both the biggest and most decorated cross pieces I’ve seen since leaving Land’s End.

Shortly after these stones there was a cattle grid that marked the start of Bodmin Moor. It means that livestock can graze anywhere on the Moor. We saw some Belted Galloway cattle, a hardy breed, doing just that. They were near the Longstone Cross, another of the simple style of slab crosses similar to those seen earlier in the walk. At the time, such crosses would have been common at cross roads and as boundary markers or meeting points.

A little further on, The Hurlers are much older being three Neolithic stone circles near the village of Minions.
Obviously Minions has made the most of the well known loveable short sighted cartoon creatures. The Teashop is an excellent place.

From Minions the road was downhill all the way to Upton Cross and Rilla Mill. Once more the flowered narrow lanes returned. I heard the flap of a buzzard’s wing and saw its shadow on the road. Smaller birds were also common in the hedges: wren, Jay, blue tit were just a few I saw. The road dipped and climbed again, sometimes steeply, before arriving at Trebullett Methodist Church marking the end of Day 10.
We retraced our route by car for an ice cream at Minions. It was a glorious day and a great sense of achievement in reaching Bodmin Moor, 300 metres above sea level, the highest so far.

From Psalm 121
I look up to the hills:
From where does my help come?
My help comes from God the Creator.

Prayer

As the road rises and falls,
As the hills mount in waves to the horizon,
As the track winds downhill
Or climbs steeply to the summit,
So I am amazed to be walking this way.
The cross marks the way;
Both guide and meeting point,
Telling part of the human story in this landscape.
With a buzzard’s eye view of the earth,
Or a Primrose eye view from the hedge,
Keep us in your care, Creator.
May the road rise to meet us.

JAL 11.04.2019i
Day 10 of the End to End: Redgate Cross to Trebullett Methodist Church

The A390 is a busy road and not a great one to walk along but within 2 miles of the start of Day 9 that’s where I was. This main road and its associated villages, the three Taphouses, were the main feature of the morning walk. There was a back road at West Taphouse, a beautiful lane with its unique array of flowers. Middle Taphouse was the most challenging of the three with little or no grass verge and a sharp bend in the middle. That left East Taphouse; fairly straightforward as it did have a foot way at least partially.

So what us it with all these Taphouses? I assume it was a row of pubs. The Old Taphouse in East Taphouse still has a notice to identify it.

Off the A390 at last the most disappointing aspect of the morning was the news that the local pasty vendor does not sell hot pasties on Wednesdays. A nearby notice tried to cheer me up with the news I was only 777 miles from John O’Groats (we can’t verify the accuracy of this information). 

Today’s route went right past the holiday Park where we are staying at Doublebois. So I popped in for lunch and a snooze.
The second half of the day and a completely different road: much quieter and with more borders of flowering edges on both sides. I made quite quick progress,and soon arrived at Redgate Cross where the main challenge was finding the cross or at least what was left of it (shaft only).

Bob came to meet me and we made a short side visit to the nearby Golitha Falls. The woodland here will shortly be covered in bluebells. A quick ride over some of tomorrow’s route secured us an ice cream at a local shop. Morning traffic had made for a challenging morning but over all good weather and cheerful flowers had helped me along.

The traffic snarls, surrounding me like the Bulls of Bashan.
Sharp bends and the cresting hills obscure my view.
When there is no verge I rely on drains and ditches as places of refuge.
Even though this is a challenging way, I reach the end.
Wisdom ushers me along, making sure I seek clear sightlines and sensible places to cross.
I am delivered from traffic, noise and stress and the flower lined green lanes return to guide me home.

JAL 10.04.2019
Day 9 of the End to End, Fairy Cross Farm to Redgate Cross.
I love the reference to the Bulls of Bashan in Psalm 22.

And God planted a garden in Eden…

About a mile after starting from Tregrehan Mills we took a footpath to the Eden Project. I was pleased to be able to walk here. It was one of the places I had hoped to visit on my End to End.

It was a glorious day, almost too hot in the Tropical Biome where we climbed up to the lookout in 66 percent humidity and nearly 30 degrees centigrade. There’s a lot to take in: information, colours, shapes, beauty and surprises like the little jungle fowl running between our feet.
The Temperate Biome was equally impressive, beautifully laid out and the whole place seemed highly accessible. I was thinking that the hexagon shaped frame of the Biomes would make a good background for a textile project to reflect the Eden Project. Clearly others had had similar thoughts as a colourful textile hanging has a home in one of the Biomes.

Not just inside but also outside where there were tasty looking fruits and vegetables.
One of my favourite corners was a labyrinth of woven willow set amongst spring flowers. This would be the corner I’d take with me if I could.

Two hours wasn’t long at Eden but it was time to move on as the day would be the longest walk so far, and also the hottest.
Outside the Eden Project the lanes an paths are as lovely as ever, like an extension of Eden itself. The last lane is as beautiful as the first. More than that, there was an exceptional riverside path from St Blazey to Treesmill Farm, probably the loveliest path I’ve walked along so far: tranquil and green.

Mile 63 was memorable. Bob was with me and having moved out of the way for a small tractor to go passed dragging a roller, we then had a cheerful conversation with the driver and exchanged stories of the walk. Much to our surprise he later returned with a donation for the youth work of the Lay Community of St Benedict
There was still a way to go, some of which was along the A390. Just before Lostwithiel, one corner of the main road included the Pelyn Cross. The Saints Way formed part of my route for about half a mile.

Lostwithiel was the ancient capital of Cornwall and the bridge has medieval origins. The last couple of miles out of the town were along more flowered lanes each as beautiful as the next. Today was the longest days walk so far at over 11 miles, part of a total 78 miles of LEJOG so far.

Creator of all, the colours of Spring and the new life emerging are truly wonderful.
Help us to use the knowledge we have to make the balanced decisions the world needs to thrive. May we be responsible gardeners and may the earth be renewed.

JAL 09.04.2012
Day 8 of the End to End from Tregrehan Mills to Fairy Cross Farm via the Eden Project and Lostwithiel

From Psalm 25

Show me your ways, Lord,
    teach me your paths.
Guide me in your truth and teach me,
    for you are God my Savior,
    and my hope is in you all day long.

These days of walking the small lanes and paths of Cornwall are lovely. There is a pleasing gentle rhythm to the walking and this has been generally very calming. There’s birds song from every tree and bush. Today several black caps entertained me and also a goldfinch.

A practical welcome at St Mewan church 

At one point this calm was interupted by the moving of cattle on their way to be TB tested at a local farm. It’s a stressful time on any farm and I wonder how farming people cope with these kinds of stresses on a regular basis.
The local churches are often dedicated to Cornish saints not commonly known outside the peninsula. One such was St Mewan who’s churchyard was the venue for todays picnic lunch. St Mewan started in Wales, came to Cornwall and went onto Brittany on what was a well trodden route. Once again this was overflowing with Primroses and had a special local memorial for the 100th anniversary of WW1.

Inside the church, this inscription on the Roll of Honour is not one I’d previously seen anywhere else:
‘The men were very good unto us and we were not hurt. They were a wall unto us both by day and night‘.
Just after St Mewan I encountered four Lejoggers on three bicycles (one was a Tandem) who started from Land’s End on Saturday. I mention them just to prove there are other folk out there doing this! They are due to get to John O’Groats on 22nd of April.

Today we also moved on to our second accommodation. Now at Doublebois in a small wooden chalet which us very comfy.
Week 2 starts tomorrow. I am amazed that we have been going for a week now (and I have walked 67 miles).

God grant us a quiet night and a peaceful end.

JAL 08.04.2019
Day 7 of the End to End, Trenowth House and Woods to Tregrehan Mills via St Mewan and St Austell

Some of the End to End I am walking covers the same route as that taken previously by Bob in 2003 and Hannah in 2012. Each one had its own variations too but today from Truro was largely the same for the 3 walks, except for the post lunch section.
I started at Truro Cathedral and a visit to a small chapel inside the West Door to pray for various folks and concerns and to ‘Bind unto myself today the strong name of the Trinity‘ (St Patrick’s Breastplate).

St Clement’s Hill out of the city was a steep start. Then there was a long section alongside the A390 that I remembered from Hannah’s walk. Whether a lane or main road the wild flowers are numerous and primrose still predominate with the promise of bluebells to come in a short while.

Probus is a neat village with a large Parish Church. Dedicated to St Probus and St Grace, it has the tallest tower in Cornwall. On the main road there was a unique memorial made by local residents to commemorate the 100th Anniversary of the End of WW1. It was made of many hand painted stones that recalled the names of the local people remembered.

The Hawkins Arms may be named for some of my ancestors and it certainly serves good soup and cake. After lunch I crossed over Hannah’s route outside the Probus fish and chip shop (closed Sundays). I well remember the day I walked through Probus with her. It was raining and we were wet and cold. We stopped for chips to warm up and we were given a £5 donation for her walk (Hannah was raising money for Oxfam).

The small lane to Grampound Road had not just wild flowers but inquisitive cattle.
I took a short cut by footpath over a few stiles. These were the steep stone Cornish type of styles which can be quite a challenge.

The last section of the walk was on the road through Trenowth woods. Here wood anenome were flowering and some bluebells emerging: altogether a lovely day.

Let all creatures praise God,
Even the young inquisitive cattle!
Let all wildflowers praise God,
Like jewels in every hedge!
Let all birds praise God,

Wading Egrets and soaring Buzzards!
Let everything created praise God,
Reflecting Glory to the Creator.

JAL 07.04.2019
Day 6 of the End to End, Truro to Trenowth.

I wonder if you’ve ever heard if St Kea? Well, on Day 5 of the End to End we had a picnic in the churchyard of the Church of St Kea on the way to Truro. It’s a beautiful place to rest with camelia and primrose all over. And St Kea? More later.

The lanes were beautiful today. Lined with greenery and flowers with Butterflies making an appearance too. I saw two Orange-tip Butterflies, which are my top pick for these beautiful insects.

There was a brief distraction of the farm shop at Cusgarne and a lovely path beside the mill stream to Hicks Mill to get me back on track. After lunch the last couple of miles into Truro delivered me to the west door of the Cathedral.
And St Kea? One of our exported saints. From the age of the saints, St Kea came down from the North, a bit like I’ve done. Many stories about St Kea have him wandering around Devon and Somerset until finally developing his hermit habits in Cornwall. But then later in life, he left Cornwall, possibly as the result of a dispute with a local leader, and ended up in Brittany. At the time of course there were strong links between the two places. But an exported saint none the less. Like so many others; saints without Borders. Go where God calls you. Indeed crossing borders is very much one of the hallmarks of the saints of the time and one we need to reclaim.

No walls, no Borders:
May we, remembering your saints,
Respond to the needs of the world
And its wandering people,
As they did of old,
Making a home with the marginalised and rejected,
Showing hospitality,
Making God’s call our priority.

JAL 06.04.2019

Day 5 of the End to End, arriving in Truro 

During WW2 my father was a child in North London. He was evacuated to Cornwall with his brother for part of the war, his sister and mother joined them later. Today, now aged 88, he is coming back by train.
It’s not the first time he’s been back. In 2012, when his granddaughter Hannah, then aged 18, walked the end to end he came to Land’s End with us. But long before that, as a child myself, I enjoyed our summer holidays to Cornwall together as a family to visit Chrissie and Bill, who had welcomed the Evacuee back in 1940. Chrissie made the best pasties and Bill told the best stories.
They were Methodists, hence today’s side visit to Gwennap Pit. I remember Chrissie taking me there about 40 years ago.
The Evacuee is on his way back to stay with Chrissie’s and Bill’s Son and Daughter in law. We will meet him at St Erth. However a delay caused by high tide at Dawlish means I’ve time to fill you in on Day 4.

I began at Praze-an-Beeble with a visit to the pasty shop. Today’s walk was via lanes and paths sprinkled with flowers. I took a few risks off piste on an old downhill path leading to a spring lined hollow and up again via a very muddy farm yard where I came face to face with a very large bull. Fortunately I had the farmer with me who moved the bull aside for me.

The next section was via a path next to the Nine Maidens Stone circle. I was only able to count 5. The path included some very challenging stiles, one I went under rather than over. It culminated in a stile at the end of the field which was entirely surrounded by water. I bailed out over the wall.

The next stretch included a heavy and cold shower. A chilly stop in the cemetery to see another old cross was only a brief pause before the welcome site of the Golden Lion. Instead of a picnic in the rain we opted for a pub lunch in the warm.
Dried off and sun coming out, the last three miles of the day were straightforward. Bob took me to Gwennap in the car on the way back as a side trip.

Meanwhile we’re still waiting for the Evacuee. As Hannah says ‘They can’t have random grandfathers floating around the national rail network’. It is with this hopeful thought in mind we go to meet him at St Erth 79 years after his first journey, but without his gas mask or luggage label.

As the tide rises and falls,

The signals stop and go,
When you come to the end of the track,
May the lifelong friends you have made,
Welcome you back again.

JAL 05.04.2019
Day 4 of the End to End