This is my monthly walking roundup and journal for May 2023.
May was a tale of two halves. I was watching a weather update and our region had 100% of its typical rainfall within a few days of the first week. The second week was pretty wet too. Then, like someone turned the tap off, no rain at all for the last two weeks. The mercury got a little higher each day with temperatures getting up 23 degrees by the end of the month.
There is much to celebrate in May. The May Day public holiday starts the month, and the Whitsun public holiday ends it. This year, we had the King’s Coronation on the 6th of May, and so we had another public holiday – three in one month!
It rained in the earlier part of Coronation Day but, thankfully, improved later.
The holiday season has started here in Cornwall and everywhere is open and busy. That’s always a pleasing sight because all of the South West counties are very reliant on tourism. It’s also nice to see people along the South West Coast Path – much of the time I see no one on the most beautiful stretches.
Country and Coast – May
There is no doubt that May is a flower month. The early spring flowers have made their show, but the flowers of May explode into vibrant colours.
First and foremost are the Bluebells, which started to come out at the end of last month but are now at their finest at the start of May. It’s time to visit Enys Gardens, which has one of the most spectacular displays of Bluebells.
On my early May BIG walk (below) there were Cowslip and many other varieties of wildflowers already making a good show at Cubert Common.
A little later in the month, I was pleasantly surprised to see a good acre or more of land had been set aside by our local farmer for wildflowers. They were coming along nicely with Cornflowers, Thistles, Ox-eye Daisies and Poppies galore. Towards the end of the month, I was absolutely gobsmacked with their progression. Absolutely beautiful! Swifts were diving down, feeding off of the flying insects that were attracted to the flowers. I’m no conservationist, but this makes a whole lot of sense to me and will do wonders to increase the numbers of our most precious flora and fauna.
Out on the coast, the gorse flower is now turning to seed, but gorse gives way to more coastal wildflowers. The one I love is Sea Thrift which, in South East Cornwall, is at its best. Further down in Cornwall it is likely already turning to seed.
At the end of May, I saw my first Foxgloves. These become quite rampant along the coast into June, so it’s a special moment to see the first plants making their show.
I think this year is particularly good for May blossom. It seems whiter, more fresh and punchy than in previous years. May blossom is so named because it flowers in May. In fact, it would have been the start of May from the Julian Calendar but is now more mid-May in our current Gregorian Calendar system. The flowers are of the Hawthorn and, along with the leaves and Haw berries, are all edible to humans. I have only read about this and haven’t tried any of it. Maybe next year.
Walks
Getting out and about in May seems so much easier. There is more daylight and, even though it rained a lot earlier in the month, there were days when it didn’t. The three public holidays helped a great deal too.
The first walk in May was my planned BIG walk, which ended up being a 16-mile hike around the Pentire Headland and Penhale Sands area. I was really taken with this walk because I hadn’t spotted in the planning that the remains of St Piran’s Oratory and Chapel were en route at Penhale Sands. So there I was, having a morning snack, sitting on what is likely an important stone in the Chapel. Hidden amongst the Penhale Dunes near Perran Sands Beach, it is a very peaceful area. It was also great to have a chat with other visitors dropping in on their walks. So good was the walk, I got on with writing it up pretty quickly: Circular Walk: Penhale Dunes and Pentire Headland.
I also managed to get in two Friday afternoon longer walks in my local area. Not just for the flora mentioned above, but also for the lambs, birdsong and the general feeling of newness. Plus, of course, the change in the weather, negating the need for all the usual waterproofs.
Yes, May was a wonderful month. I wonder what June will bring.
Until then.
