It must be one of Britain’s best-known seaside resorts. That is how it seems to me. As a child living in London, I had only read about Bude in storybooks.
However, since moving to Cornwall, I have visited there as part of another holiday with Mr Word Loft. Unfortunately, it poured with rain all day. It didn’t ruin our stroll along the canal, though, which I wrote about briefly in another blog post, At The Edge Of Dartmoor, but we always intended to return for a longer stay.
Planning a recent weekend getaway, we were reminded of Bude’s Falcon Hotel. With its sea and canal views, it seemed an excellent choice, so we booked in and had a marvellous couple of days.
On the evening we arrived, we had a quick look around, over the canal and through an archway leading to the shore. The sand and rocks are vibrant with kelp and seaweed, and a small waterfall streams down an escarpment into a rivulet that flows to the sea – a refreshing and inspiring outlook.
The weather was unpredictable the next morning, so we opted for a saunter around the town centre, but we didn’t get very far before coming across a signpost to The Castle Heritage Centre. I can’t resist castles, and it is free to enter. We were hooked.
The approach has a mixture of structures. There is a traditional bandstand surrounded by lawns, a picturesque venue where musical events are held throughout the summer. In contrast, a contemporary obelisk beckons at the gateway. It is an unusual, highly polished concrete design painted in aqua hues, commemorating Sir Goldsworthy Gurney, the innovator of the Bude light and pioneer of interior lighting and other inventions, such as the steam carriage and limelight. He was also responsible for building the grandiose house in 1832 and calling it The Castle because of its towers and castellated rooftops.
Inside, the museum has exhibits to suit all age groups. I was particularly interested to learn about Cornuboniscus Budensis, a fossilised fish similar to a piranha that lived in local waters 300 million years ago. It was unearthed in 1930 and hasn’t been found anywhere else in the world.
There are whole rooms dedicated to residents, mainly Sir Goldsworthy Gurney and other fascinating people connected to Bude. And for visitors fancying navigating the Celtic Seas from the town’s most famous Ketch, Ceres, there is an interactive display.
Eventually, we made our way to the shops over Nanny Moore’s Bridge and enjoyed a browse before going back to the hotel for dinner.
After a full English breakfast the next morning, we headed to Summerleaze Beach and Bude’s Sea Pool, a walled sanctuary for swimmers to bathe safely beside the Atlantic. I’ve heard so much about it, though we couldn’t go for a dip even if we had planned to, as it was being emptied and maintenance work was in progress. A kaleidoscope of beach huts overlooks the pool, with the South West Coast Path nearby. We were soon stomping up the incline to explore further afield, engrossed in the workers’ activity below and entranced by the forthcoming vista of sea thrift, rocky strata and the ocean.
Until next time,
Sue. X