May 19 Hayle to St Ives. (Day 7)
Dennis woke up with a cold. After taking Day-Quil, we were shuttled back to Hayle for a 6-mile walk to St. Ives. The path was 2/3 paved. Since our accommodation does not include breakfast, we stopped at the Birdies Bistro for brunch. It is located near the path on the edge of the Hayle Nature Reserve in Lelant. Because it was crowded, our food took about an hour to arrive. Dennis had OJ. The bottlecap read: “Let curiosity be your guide and courage be your sail.” Quite appropriate.
We passed St Michael’s Way, part of the pilgrim’s route to St. James de Compostela. Although we were on the Way for only a few feet, seeing the familiar way marker was nice.
We spotted a memorial bench dedicated to Dennis and Jane Quick as we approached St. Ives. The quote felt apropos: “Don’t you worry, my dears, because all the worry in the world won’t make it right.”
Because of his difficult breathing, I’m sure Dennis was happy that the ascent was not very steep. A busload of tourists interested in local botany ensured we kept a slow pace into St. Ives.
We took the next day off as a sick day (Day 8) and the following day as a scheduled day off. In total, we spent four nights at the Cornerways Guest House in Saint Ives.
I’m wondering if the Camino route of St. Michael’s Way was usually picked up in Northern Spain on the Ingles or maybe they headed for the Norte route more to the east.
St. Michaels Way ends at St. Michaels Mount near Penzance. From there, pilgrims would need to take a boat to Spain, and then pick up the Camino. According to the link below: “The traditional starting points for the Camino Ingles or “seafaring way” were the ports of A Coruña and Ferrol in Northern Galicia. Pilgrims would come by ship from England, Scotland, Ireland, and as far away as Scandinavia. They would then continue their pilgrimage on foot to Santiago de Compostela and the tomb of St James.”
https://followthecamino.com/en/blog/start-the-camino-in-the-uk-the-english-way/