(Content Warning: contains giant millipedes)
After visiting the Maidens and friends yesterday morning, I was back on the bus by 11 am. It was a sunny day and the Land’s End Coaster that I was on went around to St Ives, where I’d been the day before but it was raining. Drenching, solid rain, and the streets were full of people dragging along bored kids and miserable dogs. It wasn’t much fun. So, with a sunny day and no plans, I thought I’d give it a second chance.
The Land End’s Coaster also stops at Land’s End. My earlier visit there was… brief. Again, it was raining and miserable. I got off one bus and caught the next on in the other direction. I felt it might be a bit better on a sunny day.
Land’s End Landmark this place calls itself. I think it’s trying to be a theme park. They have these “experiences”.
The Aardman one might actually be all right if you’re into Wallace & Gromit or Shaun the Sheep. I’m not and I didn’t feel like handing over 5.50 to find out. There are also some eating places and a very big, possibly mutli-shops, souvenir place. There’s another souvenir shop at the experience exit, with Aardman & pireate souvenirs.
For £12 you can have your photo taken by the sign. Behind me is another souvenir shop, with more nautical themed stuff. Note the white building on the hill.
Distances from from Land’s End (in miles).
This is the building you can see from the sign. (Early postcards show it with a sign saying “First and Last House in England” but photos of the original cottage (it’s been extended) have “First and Last Refreshment House in England.) At the back is an ice cream shop and at the front is another souvenir shop (that’s four, if you’re counting).
Over-commercialisation aside, the views along the cliffs are stunning when it’s sunny.
I keep coming across things that say “On a clear day you can see the Isles of Scilly from here.”
Me: Nup.
(The Isles of Scilly are a bunch of islands off the coast of Cornwall, the southernmost part of the UK)
Right off in the other direction is Greeb Farm (you might have noticed this on the list of Experiences). The front part there has “craft workshops”. There’s a potter who makes some cool stuff and some others who weren’t in.
The actual farm bit that you pay for is some bored looking animals in small paddocks.
I guess if you have kids who live in a city and have never seen a sheep, it might be worth paying £5 to visit.
Although the giant millipede is cool. (Fingers for scale.)
Having now done Land’s End properly (and it is better in the sun), I got back on the bus.
There were no car backing incidents this time. This is a bit further along, but same type of road. I was sitting on the uncovered upstairs part of the bus. Very windy and a little worrying about the proximity of some tree branches and house corners to me, but interesting views.
I messed up this photo. The white bus is more on the footpath than the road. (I just got off the blue bus.) It took them a while to negotiate this passing. This is obviously a regular occurrence.
So this is the quiet fishing village of St Ives.
Well, actually it’s none of those.
It is school holidays, but it’s definitely autumn. You can see from the clothes that it’s not particularly warm. (It certainly wasn’t the day before in the rain.) I am reminded of this picture:
We’re at the seaside and you’re going to enjoy yourself.
Amongst all the people, there are lots of little interesting shops
And away from the beach and this late in the day, there are quiet streets. It might be an interesting place to visit at a colder time of year, but many of those shops might not be open then.
