When to turn back
IF YOU DON’T have a spare two months to hike from Land’s End to John O’Groats, three weeks to walk the Pennine Way, or even a fortnight to do Wainwright’s Coast to Coast, head to Cornwall to take on a great pocket-sized long-distance path.
The Saints’ Way is a Coast to Coast in miniature. It starts from the harbour in the gorgeous foodie town of Padstow in the north of the county, and heads south alongside estuaries, through quaint villages, past ancient churches, and over rolling hills, before arriving in the charmingly narrow, wiggly and historic streets of Fowey on the south coast. St Breock Downs (with its giant monolith) and Helman Tor offer fantastic views, while Golant – a riverside village passed near the end of the walk – is associated with The Wind in the Willows author Kenneth Grahame.
The Saints’ Way is just 27 miles long, which means it can be tackled in a long weekend, and there are no major climbs or really tough terrain to put you off. There’s also an alternative route for the last 11 miles that includes the hilltop village of Tywardreath, where there used to be a Benidictine priory.
The walk’s name alludes to the pilgrims who would have ventured through the area when travelling from Ireland or Wales to Continental Europe. It spared them the dangers of negotiating rough seas around Land’s End in their little boats and the route is also known as the Mariner’s Way, as Celtic traders figured they were more likely to arrive in one piece if they avoided that exposed stretch of ocean too.