Time Departed : 9.30am 

Time Arrived: 2.30pm

Distance: 16 kms 

Weather: Sunny, chilly, windy - Min 6 Max 20 

Accommodation: The Bottom Ship, Porlock Weir 

Feelings: Henk - Great!, Di - Excited

We woke to a perfect day for walking, sunny and cool. We had to have our bags ready for an 9.00am pickup to be taken to our next destination of Porlock Weir and the earliest we could get breakfast was at 8.30am. For breakfast we chose something that wouldn’t take too long so it was porridge and toast for us. 

We walked a short distance back along the esplanade to the start of the South West Coast Path to have photos taken at the start line which is alongside the sculpture dedicated to the path. This added an extra kilometre to today’s walk. I could have used that energy for the end of the walk but more of that later. 

The initial part of the day’s walk was to climb North Hill which overlooks Minehead. It was a gradual climb to 250m mostly through pretty woodland. Early in the walk we moved into the Exmoor National Park and we walked from the County of Somerset into Devon. 

There are plenty of signs to follow. When Henk planned the walk he chose to follow the old South West Coast Path rather than the new King Charles III route which is a much harder route. We were so pleased we did as we could see the new path as it went up and down over steep hills further to the north of us and close to the seashore. Once we got to the highest part of our walk it was mostly flat walking with lots of flowering gorse and open heathland with good views over to the Exmoor hills where we had walked seventeen years ago on our Land’s End to John O’Groats walk. The temperature at this stage had reached a balmy ten degrees and it was gloriously sunny. 

We had morning tea at 11.15.am and ate our Eccles Cakes which we bought at the local supermarket yesterday. It’s a favourite of ours on our walks in the UK. We got the fright of our lives when we suddenly turned and discovered a small herd of belted cows had snuck up on us. They hadn’t made a sound and were very curious. We were clearly sitting on their path and we quickly got out of their way so they could proceed along the grassy verge. 

Coming down from the plateau was challenging as it was incredibly steep and rocky. It was quite a distance and we had to rest a number of times and face uphill to stretch the muscles. 

We found a bench at the bottom of the hill and took a thirty minute break for lunch. There was a terrific view over Bossington Beach and to our destination of Porlock Weir. The beach is renowned for its mile long shingle beach.

At lunch I didn’t feel well and couldn’t eat. It came on quickly and It felt very much like a gastro/diarrhoea bug. I had lost all my energy. I felt like I couldn’t lift my legs and I was as weak as a kitten. We had six kilometres to go to reach our hotel. It was all flat walking and I soldiered on and all the time feeling that I wanted to ‘self-evacuate’! 

We walked through the pretty little village of Bossington with its thatched roofed houses and a well-known tea house called Kitnors tearoom and usually we would have called in but today was no day for it. I needed to get to our accommodation. 

Henk counted down the kilometres for me. At the 800m mark I wanted to shoot myself and put myself out of my misery as the path took us onto a high shingle beach, Porlock Beach. Walking on shingles is very hard going. 

Thankfully, Henk found a set of steep steps which led us from the beach onto the road leading into Porlock Weir and I was so grateful. At this point we had about 200m to go. The hotel we are staying is a charming one with a newly thatched roof. We were warmly greeted by a friendly young woman who asked if we had a car. I did say I wish we did have one today. Our room is large, modern and comfortable and is in the attic. I have bumped my head so many times on the sloping ceiling. 

Henk quickly put the kettle on and made me a cup of tea and gave me a Gaviscon from our first aid kit. I rested for the afternoon and improved, hoping all the while I can recover sufficiently for tomorrow’s walk which is going to be a tough one.

Dinner was at the hotel at 7.00pm and I felt up to it to eating again. I was hungry since I hadn’t eaten since Eccles Cakes at morning tea. We both chose a simple dish of grilled local fish with green beans and baby potatoes. It was tasty and what I needed. 

After dinner we strolled around the small harbour of Portlock Weir which is an ancient seaside port for more than 1000 yeas. Sitting behind the harbour is its tiny historical village. The tide was out. 

As I finish wiriting this blog for the day and about to turn out the light  I’m feeling more positive about being able to walk tomorrow.

And this is the walking profile for today.