Walk about feet - Cornwall, Wales and Ireland - Finding Penzance

Suzanne, Joan, Debbie and I are off, plodding through Cornwall like a herd of turtles on a thin log. Our target is Penzance, the most westerly town in Cornwall. Our GPS tells us it's about 265 miles (426 km) away. Five hours and nine minutes to be precise. After a leisurely breakfast at Joe's Cafe in Chertsey, we pack the car (four women with four sets of luggage) and hit the road. The first thing I do is try to palm off my navigator role onto Deb, but she is having none of it. Next stop, Penzance.

Summer driving in England has a few things in common with Canadian summer driving. Construction and traffic, but where we're headed, the roads are narrower and the drivers more aggresive. Or maybe it's just they know the roads, and driving on the left is old hat to them. My GPS and I are developing trust issues. We keep leaving the nice crowded two lane highways for the faster route - the narrow hedge row-lined lanes. Suzanne's knuckles are getting whiter. Sometimes you'd swear the driver's side mirror kisses the mirrors of passing cars.

She's handling it though. So far she's only let out a few Bloody hells and Oi, move overs. As you can see, some of the roads we follow are a wee a bit narrow, especially when meeting cars or vans coming the other way.

Cornwall with its narrow roads and high hedges is beautiful and picturesque. I'm glad I'm not driving. We would still be sitting on the side of the road when the sun came up. Luckily, Suzanne is made of tougher stuff. She figures out how to duck and weave fast, but our five hour drive still turns into seven.

At last, Penzance and the Longboat Inn. Who's ready for a nice pint, or a cup of tea? After hauling our suitcases up the stairs, we're off to explore the lovely town of Penzance. We have three days here, so there's a lot to look forward to.