Polperro & Mevagissey - A Family Affair - CycleBlaze

June 25, 2017

Polperro & Mevagissey

The weather forecast seems about right and we aren’t too disappointed once down on the seafront looking out on the expanse of water that matches the dull grey sky.

Our moods have a similar tone as it was a bad night at The Ship Inn. Its doorway, right below our bedroom window, seemed to be a magnet for people to congregate for a loud chat and the nearby disco belted out a thumping bass well into the early hours.

It is time to get going and leaving Looe isn’t going to be a great wrench.

Looe
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Oddly enough the sun makes a brief but welcome appearance as we set off. 

We head up the busy A387 as I forget to go on the smaller Looe Hill route, one which would have been much quieter and only realizing my mistake when we reach the top of the climb and pause to consult my map at the junction where the two roads join up.

A short way ahead is a car boot sale, so we walk over the grass and between the stalls and soon spot a decent bike rack. Dave calls Alan to see if he’s interested. He doesn’t have a tow-bar fitted and says forget about it. 

Just as we're exiting the field, he drives up in the red van. We chat and agree to meet in Polperro. It's not far and should be all downhill.

Looe
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Cornish pasties in Polperro
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The sun makes another appearance as we arrive in Polperro. It feels hot as we wheel the bikes down the town’s narrow street, where we stop to get Cornish pasties from a small bakery. 

Ruby soon turns up and I treat the boys to ice creams that the bakery also sells. Debbie already has one.

The harbour is very pretty. In fact there are two, separated by a stone pier. There are tourists around and it must get really crowded in the peak summer holiday period.

Debbie enjoying an ice cream
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Polperro
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Church
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We escape and find ourselves slogging up a narrow, tree-lined lane that's very steep. Then Alan drives up to us and stops to relieve us of our panniers. It's better, but still hard work.

As we get to the crest, there’s a female cyclist with a heavily laden bike. In the front basket is a sausage dog. The young woman is on a ride around the entire UK’s coastline and I say that works out to cycling to India. It’ll no doubt take her 3-6 months.

Our immediate goal is more humble. There’s a ferry to Fowey to catch. I have it penciled in leaving from Bodernick, but signs say the cyclists' one sails from nearby Polrian, a few kilometers to the south, so that’s where we ride.

The road undulates and the sun is shining, with views of the sea and a small hidden beach tempting us to drop down for a swim.

Heading to the small ferry across to Fowey
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Debbie boarding the ferry
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Fish and chips for lunch in Fowey
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It’s a steep climb up slippery stone steps from the small jetty and once at the top we wonder what to do. A sign says there’s a ferry to Mevagissey in 10 minutes and it seems like a nice easy option, so we rush to the main Fowey terminal, only to find out that with the tide being low it is leaving from the one we were at. By the time we dash back it’s already sailed. 

The next is in another two hours, so we settle in a nearby restaurant and enjoy fish and chips, and re-hydrate with numerous carafes of water. It seems like we’ve done more than 18km.

The waterside at Mevagissey is heaving with a music festival in full swing. We find Ruby and decide to head out of town to find a camp site somewhere. They drive on to scout places out and as we get near we agree to meet in a pub to get a bite to eat. After ordering drinks they barmaid tells there’s no food due to some big booking. The camp site they found does pizza, so that’s what we have. It's crap.

Charlie at the camp site
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Today's ride: 40 km (25 miles)
Total: 170 km (106 miles)

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