| Distance: 10km / 6miles |
| Toilets: Bodinnick ferry causeway, Fowey town quay (20p), Readymoney beach |
| Must see: Esplanade |
| Hidden gem: Old grammar school garden |
It was already 6pm, when we arrived. After answering the call of the stomach, we took a walk along the Pont Pill. The cottage was remote, we felt far from civilisation. In order to understand how easily we could reach the civilized world and refill our food stock; we went to Fowey the next day.
Fowey is on the other side of Fowey River. A ferry journey is needed. We didn’t expect the Ferry to be reliable, despite the website advertising one from 7 to 20.50 and every 10-15 mins, experience from other Cornish towns and remote villages telling us such information could be outdated. We were prepared to see a handwritten note on an abandoned port shelter to say there was no longer a service. Surprise, Surprise, we arrived at the crossing to see a queue of cars getting onto the ferry. A short crossing, and cars on the other side waiting to board. To my surprise, the ferry is frequently used by locals, and there was a demand to run it so frequently for such long hours. Perhaps the area we were staying in was not as remote as I thought.
There was a 400-year-old pub in the village of Bodinnick, where we caught the ferry. It was called the “Old Ferry Inn”. My husband was yearning for a beer, claiming we should support the local pub. Nowadays, many bars in the UK are struggling to survive. The younger generation no longer hang out in the local pubs as the older generations did. Covid accelerated the closing down of pubs. As soon as I entered Bodinnick, I saw a poster about saving the Old Ferry Inn. It said that the Inn had submitted planning application to be extended for holiday homes and called locals to object to preserving the 400 years old pub. Clear evidence that holiday accommodation is more profitable than pubs. Holiday homes are loathed by the Cornish. There are probably more holiday homes than residential houses in Cornwall. In addition to hotels, B&Bs, and AirB&Bs, there are also many houses bought up by people from London, who only come down to Cornwall for a couple of weeks in the year. As a result, the house prices in Cornwall have become unaffordable for locals. The population of Cornwall doubles or even triples in the summer, which creates challenges to local services, roads, parking and even the supply chain.
Fowey is a typical tourist-oriented town. An ice cream shop sits immediately opposite the ferry car park. It has a great name: “Game of Cones”, as it lists over 20 flavours combined with choices of different cones, including several vegan options. They also serve the popular bubble waffles. Immediately, tune you into the consumption mode, as Ice cream is a must for seaside holidays.
We walked along the Esplanade into the town centre. Restaurants, and boutique shops were all tailored for tourists. It was obvious those were expensive shops with tourist price tags. Many of them could be Instagram sensations, and they probably are. I saw a couple of girls posing in an Instagram fashion in front of an old building. There’s no Starbucks, McDonald’s, or any other chains. Though, surprisingly, I didn’t see a fish and chip shop either. This does not fit the standard of a seaside town. Unfortunately, food was a big disappointment there. AVOID EATING AT FOWEY!!! We tried two restaurants during our time there: Sam and Pintxo, both had 4.7 out of 5 reviews. However, I suspect the good reviews are the fake ones. We were served canned and frozen food, and paid the price that I would expect for a quality meal from a London restaurant. Despite the food not being fresh, I still discovered a little creature, which I don’t know the name of, struggling for its dear life on my dinner plate, I’m pretty sure that was not on the menu and I can only assume it made its own way into the kitchen at some point.
The esplanade continues into the residential area. Most of the homes have been converted into an Air B&B or holiday lets. You can tell from the passcode key box next to the door. There is an upside of holiday lets. They are all well-preserved, beautifully decorated, some even have flowers at the front door to attract guests.
At the end of the Esplanade, we arrived at Readymoney Cove. I wondered where the name comes from? Did they discover gold at the cove? Was there a local legend? The beach is sandy with rocks on both sides, look straight out to the Fowey Estuary. A beautiful scene, but where is the “cash”? I thought there would be some local stories about smugglers or pirates exchanging goods with cash here, but I didn’t find any. After further digging, I found the following from Fowey Harbour Heritage website:
The name ‘Readymoney’ is developed from the Cornish word ‘roswyd basdowr’, translated to ‘redeman’ meaning a shallow ford of stones.
Ah, that makes sense. Though a little disappointing, I had thought there was an epic story behind it.
Beyond the cove, lies the South West Coastal path. Our seaside holidays have been dominated by coastal walks. Today’s is just a warm up. We walked to the next cove, then circled back.
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