It can be a scary feeling, and a most exhilarating feeling to not know what day it is or where you are or where you will be the next day. Walking brings you so much into the present moment that days and places are really of no matter. It is only what is around you at the moment.

And then you realize that you were supposed to check in at your next destination a few hours ago. And that may mean having no dinner tomorrow.

Or, like me yesterday thinking that today was a rest day. Which it was not.

Today we did however have a short 6.5 mile day that meandered through town, neighborhoods and along the beach. It was a more urban stroll.

Our first stop was a church and cemetery. The church ladies here were hosting strawberry cream tea and cakes so we stopped to enjoy a bite.

Then we made our way back to the cliffs. The trail was pretty overgrown today. It was also a pretty damp day, so the smell was so delicious, forest mixed with ocean. The trail is heavily trafficked in this are with people out for a stroll so it is more neighborly. Good morning. Good morning. Enjoy your day. You enjoy your day. All day long.

We stopped for tea at Carbis Bay, which is now famous for hosting the G7 Summit. We heard a lot of stories from our hosts about the crazy that came with the world politicians descending on this little town for such an event.

As we were enjoying our scones and tea, a seagull flew in and nabbed my pasty. Little bugger was so aggressive. The gulls are somewhat regarded here, which annoys me. They are like pigeons, aggressive little scavengers.

And then it began to rain. We took off our hikers and headed for the cove. It was low tide so we walked right into the harbor which felt unreal. We camped out in a pub and had a few gin and tonics to pass the time while it rained.

If I was really good I would have gotten a time lapse of the tide coming back in. But instead I only got a few photos of it. And it was lovely to watch.

And it kept on raining. Eventually we made our way back home in the rain.

And a note about our hosts, Maddie and Duncan. Pensioners who rent rooms in their Painter’s Cottage. They are art enthusiasts who love the Tate Museum in St. Ives and who love to talk politics. We had lively conversation with them about Donald Trump and what Brits think of him, how Joe Biden went to church down the hill when he was in St Ives for the G7, King Charles and of course Meghan Markle.

Also we talked with them St Ives as a place to live and work. I realize this over and over again that rural areas, tourist areas, no matter which country suffer from similar fates. The local populations hold the brunt of it, yet mostly don’t benefit. Real estate is owned by people out of town and local populations cannot afford a reasonable home. Lack of access to services, supply chain issues.

St. Ives is an artist community with waves of artists similar to Taos. Our host admires Georgia O’Keefe and couldn’t believe that we knew Agnes Martin. She is a historian of ceramics in St Ives and the style looks like an RC Ellis.

We were talking with him about how beautiful it is, the cultural depth. He laughed and said “But you can’t eat the scenery .”

True enough.

Today stats:

6.5 miles

774 ft total elevation gain

Total time: 9 hours, 20 minutes, most of which was spent in a pub!