The Highs and Lows of Newquay

The Coast around Newquay

It was another early start today, we had to get Laura to Newquay by 9am to catch her train. The train wasn't due to depart until 9.40am but Robbie wanted her there early because he said it would get very busy. It was a very misty morning, so I chose not to take the coast road to Newquay, it is challenging even when visibility is good because it is very narrow in places and there some amazing hills and very tight turns. It is no fun when you meet a bus coming in the other direction! I didn't fancy my chances taking that route with the added complication of thick mist, so we took the other route.

We got to Newquay in good time and I dropped Robbie and Laura at the station. It really doesn't deserve to be called a station, it must be the most depressing place in the South West. I have seen some pretty grim bus stations, but I have never encountered such a miserable excuse for a railway station. It is dark, grimy and unloved, in fact it takes grim to a whole new dimension. If that is the first experience visitors have of Newquay I'm surprised they bother to even get off the train. I have seen photos of Newquay Station in previous days when it was still a proud part of the railway network. Now every hint of it's former glory has been stripped away and it is a pathetic apology for a station, Network Rail should be ashamed. At a time when we want to encourage greater use of public transport in order to reduce our impact on the environment surely the government should be sorting out the rail services to popular holiday destinations, and in the case of Cornwall they need to sort out line speeds too - you could do the journey from Newquay to Par faster on horseback than by train at present!

Sam and I went off to park the car while Robbie stayed with Laura to see her safely on to the train. We didn't spend long in Newquay, but we enjoyed an alfresco breakfast at Subway and then we stocked up on food supplies for the caravan. It had turned into a lovely day in Newquay, but as we drove home we realised that the mist had not cleared around Padstow, it was a warm and pleasant day but the mist clung to the coast all day.