Two walkers and their dog get caught between rising seawater and 30m cliffs

Christine and Mollie stepped off the bus at Tregantle in Cornwall in late September for a day’s walking. The 25 miles between Cremyll and Polperro was to be the penultimate stage of their epic coastal adventure. They already had 600 miles of the South West Coast Path safely under their belts. But one misjudgement and their plans unravelled. Shortly before 5pm, a paddleboarder reported that a kayaker had spotted two people stranded on rocks east of Portwrinkle Beach. The kayaker had stayed with them. Both Looe lifeboats were immediately scrambled. ‘The casualties were stuck in the middle of a large area of rock,’ says Clive Palfrey, Helm of Looe’s B class lifeboat Sheila & Dennis Tongue II. ‘The tide was coming in fast and they were below the high tide mark, so we had to get them off quickly. I decided to put one of my crew ashore to assess the situation.’ Swim to shore Taking the grab bag and a radio, experienced Crew Member Brian Bowdler jumped into the sea and swam 10m to the shore, where he discovered not two casualties, but three – Christine and Mollie, plus Mollie’s 11-year-old border terrier, Parker. Putting his fear of dogs to one side, Brian checked that the casualties were OK, and then radioed Clive and fellow Crew Member Victoria Thomas onboard the lifeboat. With help the trio could be moved to the water’s edge, but they’d need the station’s smaller D class lifeboat Ollie Naismith to get them off the rocks. Because of where they were located, D class Helm Matt Jaycock couldn’t just drop the anchor and reverse in – the method he’d normally use. Instead, he would have to drive in bow first, threading a route around rocks to reach them. ‘There was a bit of swell, so we waited for a couple of big waves to come through, then got in before the next ones arrived,’ Matt explains. He touched the bow on the rocks, allowing Crew Member Jack Spree to step ashore. Luck and speed ‘It’s lucky we got there when we did,’ Matt recalls. ‘The rocks level off higher up the shore, so 30 minutes later we wouldn’t have had enough depth to reach them.’ Matt held the boat against the rocks with the engine in gear while Goron Wilkes-Jones, the third member of his crew, helped Brian and Jack get the two women and their dog onboard. ‘With the waves coming in we couldn’t afford to be alongside for very long,’ Matt says. ‘It felt like minutes, but it was only seconds.’ The lifeboat crew reversed out and took the casualties back to the beach at Downderry, where they were reunited with their car. Parker became best friends with the coastguards, who provided him with a welcome bowl of water. Christine and Mollie, although a little wet, were otherwise untroubled by their ordeal – they were out on the coast path again the very next day. Parker was there too, as he has been every step of the way. Clive says: ‘I thanked the kayaker for taking the action he did. Two hours later it would have been dark. He definitely helped us save Christine and Mollie’s lives that day.’ 

‘I never thought I would need the RNLI’

Christine Bright says: ‘From the tide tables we thought we had time. When we reached rocks, we considered turning back. But we were persuaded to carry on after we got talking to some other ladies who were doing the same walk. ‘We scrambled over the rocks to another sandy beach. Half way across a second group of rocks, the tide was coming in behind us. The rocks were slippery and we were making slow progress so we decided to stop and phone for help. But there was no signal, and that’s when we started to panic. ‘I got the attention of a kayaker. He came over and reassured us that we were safe, then went off to get help. ‘Although I don’t live far from the coast I am not a great fan of the sea. So while I have always admired the RNLI’s volunteers, I never thought I would need the lifeboat myself.’

HOW TO STAY SAFE WHILE OUT WALKING
• Always check the weather and tides.
• Be wary of all edges around the sea and waterside.
• Let someone know where you are going and when you expect to be back.
• Take care if walking in dark or slippery conditions.
• Always take a means of calling for help.
• Even if you have no signal, it’s worth trying to dial 999 and asking for the coastguard. For 999 calls, your phone will attempt to pick up service on other networks.
Words: Robin Westcott
Photos: Christine Bright, RNLI/(Ian Foster, Mike Lavis, Looe)