Author: DanielleWatson

Land’s End to Praa Sands

Day 1 is complete and it feels amazing! I started the day by walking from the hostel to Land’s End, for my official start point. I set off just before 8, with the wind behind me and no one in sight.

I headed off north along the coast path towards Sennen Cove. The coast path was really beautiful, with cliffs below and the waves crashing against them. The weather held off for the start of the day, there was a refreshing damp mist coming in off the sea.

Walking along the coast path, Land’s End started to disappear into the distance, and I knew I was truly on my way.

Sennen Cove was beautiful, with pale sand and crashing waves. I walked along the bottom of the sand dunes, watching dog walkers in the distance.

After reaching Gwynver, I headed away from the coast, to start my travel in land. My climb out of Gwynver featured about 100 steps, which definitely woke my legs up!

After heading in land and sheltering from the wind, it was snack time.

I then climbed over Carn Brea. This was a really pretty little moorland summit. There was a beacon and a topograph on top, and I got my last view of Land’s End (just visible through the mist).

Heading down Carn Brea, I met a man walking his dog, whilst he was on crutches. His determination made me think how all of our adventures and challenges are different, but all equally impressive.

I headed down along a lovely bridleway, that wasn’t too muddy considering the amount of rain that they’ve had down here.

The bridleway took me to Caer Bran, which was a 4000 year old stone circle! It was a really lovely surprise to come across and a really interesting place.

I then headed along a mixture of country lanes to get to Penzance. The sun came out from behind the clouds and it felt like I’d skipped forward a few months to May! The weather was lovely, and it was nice to take my waterproofs off for a bit.

I stopped to have some lunch in Penzance, just before the rain came in. Walking along the sea front with the wind and rain coming in, felt exfoliating. I love being on a mountain at the wind and rain lock up, being able to stand up against the elements, and this gave me that same feeling.

Walking along the sea front, I had the beach on one side and train track on the other. I could see St. Michael’s Mount in the distance and it slowly got closer as I made my way to Marazion.

The coast path takes you through the centre of Marazion, which was a lovely little village. This beautiful mural was painted onto the side of a house. It was so realistic, I thought the plant was flowering at first!

From Marazion, the coast path became more rugged (and definitely muddier!), as I walked through fields along the top of cliff edges.

I found a lovely bench to rest on, and watch the waves.

I could now see St. Michael’s Mount from the other side, and I thought about just how far I’d cover already. Sally the Squirrel enjoyed the view too.

As I headed along the coast path, the wind picked up again, and the waves crashed against the rock.

It’s almost inevitable to have done navigational errors. With a half an hour to go a very confusing sign pointed me left instead of right. Though I soon realised that I was heading away from the coast and retraced my steps.

Half an hour later I was in Praa Sands and had finished Day 1. It felt quite emotional to have reached this point. I’m truly on my way.

Travelling to Land’s End

Today’s mission was to get to Land’s End before the signpost shut, for official photos. With over 8 hours of travel ahead of me and the sign post shutting at 4, it meant an early start (not just for me!).

I was picked up just before 7, by my parents, sister and Riley the dog take me to Macclesfield train station. We had big hugs, then I got on my train. To have them there and wave as my train left the station, was really special. Sitting on that train, I couldn’t stop smiling. The thought of the adventure ahead of me filled my heart with joy.

I got the 7.46 train to Birmingham New Street, and after 2 trains, a rail replacement bus service, and then another train, I got into Penzance at 10 past 3. With 50 minutes to spare there was no time to get the public bus, so I got a taxi to Land’s End and arrived with 15 minutes to spare – perfect.

I went straight to get my photos. They can personalise the sign for you, which was really lovely. Standing in front of the sign felt amazing! All of the planning has got me here and that felt an achievement in itself!

Then they printed the photo out for me and I found a badge in the gift shop. 😁

I then took some time to explore Land’s End. The views from Land’s End were beautiful, after lots of rain here yesterday, the sun had  come out for me and I got some lovely photos. It felt so peaceful to be here. I sat and watched the waves come in against the cliffs. The blue sky reflected on the sea, making it a beautiful colour.

I then found Paddington, before heading to the hostel for the night.

Tonight I’m visiting some Rainbows, Brownies and Guides, it will be lovely to share the start of my journey with them. Before I set off tomorrow, and my journey begins 😁🥾

I was very touched this week, to receive a lovely card in the post from a friend. It is so lovely, the way that people have reacted to my challenge and the support that I have received. Words can’t describe how grateful I am.

I still hasn’t sunk in that in 3 weeks I will be starting from Land’s End! It feels like time has flown by since I decided to take on this adventure. It’s been a year and half of planning and preparation, and it’s hard to believe that the start is in sight.

I’m so excited for what this adventure will hold; the parts of the UK that I will visit, the people that I will meet and the time outdoors absorbing all that nature has to offer. Every time that I think of how close it is, it feels like my body is buzzing with electricity. One of my autistic traits is that I experience emotions differently, some stronger than others. Excitement is the one that I feel strongest of them all. The fizzing feeling of excitement is one of my favourite feelings. It’s truly wonderful knowing that it’s all leading up to my dream adventure.

I’m in the final stages of preparation now. All of my meals are prepped and dehydrated. I’ve done a trial pack of my rucksack, to check that I have everything, and my parcels are almost ready to be posted out to me on route. (There’s a system in the picture, honest 🤣) I’ve set up and tested my new GPS tracker, so I’ll be able to send and receive text messages when there’s no phone signal.

The biggest challenge in terms of preparation has definitely been the logistics. I decided early on, to book all of my accommodation and plan each day of my trip. I’ve heard of people doing long distance paths and going with the flow, only booking things a week in advance. I greatly admire those people, but I’m not one of them. My accommodation is booked and I’ve scoured google maps for all of the shops to resupply on route. It really feels like it’s all come together. The final part is to make my way onto the start line.

Whilst I’m walking, I’m hoping to update my blog every 1-2 days. I’m really looking forward to documenting my journey and having something to look back on, in years to come. For my own safeguarding, the most recent posts will be locked by a password. I’ll remove the password once they’re roughly a week old. If you know me and would like to see the most recent posts, please message me and I’ll send the password to you. It’s the same password for everybody, but I would appreciate, if you could please respect my safety and not share it with anyone.

I’m almost there, the final steps will be putting on my boots and getting to the start line! Not long to go now!