Having travelled down to Cornwall overnight looking forward to a week on the beach we were faced with a dilemma on arrival. The campsite had been closed due to heavy rain and local floods causing the drains to collapse, spilling their contents onto the camping field! We had to decide to try another site locally or head further afield after much deliberation we decided to try our luck locally, being in North Cornwall in early summer, before school hols, we thought we would have a good chance of finding a decent pitch. After a few false starts we were told about Atlantic View by the good people at FriarTucks chippy in St Merryn. Atlantic View is just as the name suggests a site with extensive Atlantic views, basically just a couple of large fields with a shared toilet block and not much else! Campers, caravans and the odd motor home are pitched around the edges of the fields leaving a vast open space in the middle giving a real feeling of space, This was just as well because it had been raining for a week and the ground was very soft, wet and muddy, pitching in the rain is never much fun but typical of cornwall campsites, we were so pleased to find such a beautiful site that we hardly seemed to mind. After a very wet first 2 days the sun came out and stayed out for the rest of the week, so it was time to explore the beach. Just a five minute walk from the Cornish coastal path and a path down to the stunning Porthcothan beach. The beach is actually in 2 parts a small cove and small beach separated from the much larger main beach at high tide, by some rocks. The main beach is a haven for surfers and swimmers alike and a lifeguard is on duty throughout the season.
Access to the coastal path is through a field and over a stile then to the left about an hour away is Bedruthen steps, a National Trust site with the most spectacular cliffs and beach rock formations, carrying on along the path would bring you to Mawgan Porth then Watergate bay before reaching Newquay. To the right the path leads across Porthcothan bay, around Trevose head and on to Padstow, crossing the famous 7 bays for 7 days. We managed to walk or drive to all 7 of the bays and spent some time on each, I would struggle to call a favourite as I am always in awe of the beauty of this part of our coastline. Atlantic View will be high on our list for next year despite being very basic, it would have seemed so twenty years ago and probably hasn't changed since, but what it lacks in facilities it makes up for in location, it doesn't seem to feature in the guides but I did find reference to it on a UK campsite review site, I can't recommend it highly enough just make sure that it doesn't rain!
Alan is a keen camper and aspiring internet marketer, Camping is a great way to travel and relax and to meet new people in new places: http://www.ukcampingreviews.com
