Sunday 30th June:  Weather: 14°C to 19°C: 

Newquay Walking:  6k walk around headland in the morning then 4k in the afternoon to headland

Time:  6am to 8am and 2pm to 3pm

Accommodation: John’s place Pentire, Newquay

Headland view to Crantock Beach

Hotel California on fire

Smoke billowing from roof

Fire out of control

Acrid smoke rising

Smoke billowing Hotel California

More fire trucks and Police Cars

View from my attic window

Highlights today was not pleasant but a disastrous event that happened just across the road from John’s place, when the old California Hotel went up in flames.  Luckily the wind was blowing a north Wester across the River Gannel, or there could have been some serious damage to many homes on Pentire Crescent.

I’m awake early at 5am, and have a cup of tea then tip toe out the back door and do a short 6k walk around the headland.  It’s windy and cool and I’m back about 8am to have breakfast of bread and jam and a cup of coffee with John.  I spend the morning tryping up my diary, and sorting photos while John and Suzie clean and do a changeover in their Air BnB Cottage.

Lunch is a scone and another cup of tea and more blogging.  I have 12 days to catch up transcribing my handwritten diary to my blog.  Late in the day around 3pm, John and I go for a walk along the headland again and watch the swimmers and sun bathers across the Gannel on Crantock Beach.  We return along Riverside Drive to Pentire Crescent when we see a small stream of smoke coming from the chimney of the Hotel California, once an icon in Newquay boasting 65 rooms and a bowling alley, and it had only just been sold - in fact settlement was supposed to be midnight this Sunday night 30th June.

As we’re standing there watching with the smoke intensifying, a fire truck rolls up, then more fire trucks and police cars arrive.  And soon there’s seven fire trucks, 80 firemen,  and at least 20 policemen.  John has been resident in Pentire for almost 50 years and had frequented the Hotel with many friends and relatives over that time.  And now it’s going up in flames on the very day the sale is supposed to settle.  A bit suspicious, but neither the seller nor the purchaser would benefit.  In fact the seller’s own house is right next door and in danger of going up in flames as well and the buyer would face a massive clean up bill, many times more than the cost of the original demolition.  During the past year, neighbours had seen kids using it as a campsite/playground and they had been seen running from the hotel earlier today, so it seems likely it was an arson event by young kids.  How sad.

We stand and watch for hours as the fire intensifies, and I see baby seagulls tumbling from the burning roof, later to be told the firemen rescued them.  We were supposed to go to Padstow for dinner tonight but we can’t go as the fire is literally 20 metres away from John’s front gate and he can’t take a chance with a wind change. At 7.30pm with the fire quelled, but not out, we have a belated dinner.  When I return to my room in the attic, I can still see the extension ladders with firemen pouring water on to the roof. 

A really sad disaster to think kids can do so much damage, with no benefit to either the seller or buyer and wasting more than £100,000 in public resources, firemen, police, security as well as millions of gallons of water.