Thursday 18th September 1997 - Day Six, Tintagel - Bude - Exeter - (Home) Prev

I woke early at just after six O'Clock and thought that if I moved quickly, I could catch the early bus at the bus stop I had seen on the bridge at Boscastle. This would get me into Bude just in time for the Exeter bus. I cooked breakfast, packed, dropped and folded the tent in record time. If I was going to make it I was also going to have to take the short cut to the coastal path, then back up to the main road on a footpath I hadn't seen yet. Luckily I found my way first time.

I walked and ran along the road to Boscastle and made it to the bus stop at 08:19, the bus was due at 08:22. It arrived five minutes late. 'Single to Bude' I said to the girl driving the bus. 'Are you going on to Exeter?' she asked. 'Yes' I said, amazed at her powers of intuition. What I didn't know then was the Bude to Exeter coach left only a few minutes after her bus was due in, and she was running a few minutes late. If the coach driver on my way out from Exeter had aspirations of being Damon Hill, it was nothing compared to this would be Miss Schumacher. I have never had such a white knuckle ride on a bus in my life, but give her due respect she got into Bude on time and I had the connection.

It was disheartening to see bits of the coastal path that I had so confidently walked in the other direction only a few days before on my way to Newquay, but these things happen. I knew better and should have taken it easier to start off, rather than launched in and done some damage. Big mistake. I should have learned the lesson from last time. This time I would learn and next time take things easier at the start.

There wasn't time at Exeter to visit the city centre. I sat on the platform and reflected that still it had been a good trip, a relaxing trip. I had seen the wind farm which I wanted to but otherwise I would have missed, and the weather had been very, very good. The Intercity 125 arrived and took me home.

Previous page, Day Five, 17th September 97, Tintagel & Wind Farm.

Return to home page, return to diary index or return to this walk index.