Perranporth beach and the coralling of swimmers.

At low tide, when we arrived, Perranporth had a fantastic sandy beach with picturesque cliffs.

The hordes arrived with their windbreaks and deck chairs, towels and kites and filled the space immediately below the town. They rapidly gave way to the large empty sandy beach. There was one exception – a ribbon of swimmers and surfers that stretched from won to shore until they were bunched together at the water's edge in a 50m wide stretch between flags.

A watchful Lifeguard Landrover/jeep would occasionally dash out to one side with a loud wailing siren that echoed across the whole beach and blast out a warning about the danger of riptides on either side of the safe zones.The noise pollution grated on the ear, even though the riptides were apparent when viewing the sea from the cliffs.

We walked along the white mineral sand until the next lifeguarded section with its flags and occasional sirens at Perran Sands, viewing the eroded cliffs with barnacles and mussels clinging to their bases.

We returned along the cliff path with the occasional para glider hovering above us. Arriving back in Truro at 4:30h, we splashed out on our last luxurious Cornish Cream Tea in the Victorian Tearooms, situated in the old Coinage Hall, with friendly staff and serene surroundings.