We’re not near the Saints Trail. We’re on it.
Most places in Cornwall will tell you they are close to a walking route. What they usually mean is that you can drive to a car park and start from there.
The Saints Trail runs between Perranporth and Goonhavern, and it goes straight through Bolingey. Which means it goes past us. You can step out of your shepherd hut or safari tent and be on it inside a minute, and then choose which way you fancy.
What it actually is
It is a 4.2km multi-use trail built along the route of an old railway line, so it is flat almost the whole way. Walkers, cyclists, runners and horse riders all use it, and it costs nothing.
The old railway bit matters more than it sounds. It means no stiles, no climbing, and a surface you can push a bike along without thinking about it. There is one short steep section but that is the exception.
Turn one way: Perranporth
About fifteen minutes on foot from our gate and you are in Perranporth. The path drops down past the water and into town, and one of our guests described it this summer as a lovely stroll down the canal to the river and then into town.
At the other end there is three miles of beach, a brewery, a handful of bakeries that guests keep telling us about, and enough places to eat that you will not need a plan.
Turn the other way: Goonhavern
Fewer people go this direction, which is rather the point. Goonhavern is a small village at the far end of the trail with a proper Cornish pub, the New Inn. The building has been standing about three hundred years and has been a pub since 1871.
There is also a garden centre with a cafe, which sounds unremarkable until you are two kilometres into a walk and want a sit down.
Worth knowing
The trail was originally meant to run all the way to Newquay. It has only been built as far as Goonhavern so far, so it is shorter than it was meant to be. No bad thing if you are walking it.
Signposting is clear enough heading into Perranporth, less so at the Goonhavern end. If you are doing the full length it is worth having a map on your phone before you set off.
And since you are starting from your own front step, there is no car park to worry about and nothing to pay.
