Since I had missed my earlier rest day, I decided to take one on the Thursday instead. Much of my clothing was wet from the previous day's downpour so I dried what I could. Other than that, I spent the morning in the Youth Hostel writing my diary and in the afternoon I took a walk to explore St. Just's, small but attractive town centre. I spent an hour browsing in a little combined Cafe/Bookshop and, after wavering for a while because it would add to my rucksack load, I bought a large heavy autobiographical book by Doug Scott called Himalayan Climber.

In the evening I shared supper with Saskia and then retired to the Hostel's communal lounge to read. A group of American students on an educational trip were staying at the Hostel and I had a very enjoyable conversation with them.

After everyone else went to bed, I remained in the lounge until after midnight. Around 2.50am Friday morning I started to prepare my gear and pack my rucksack. Half an hour later I left the Youth Hostel wearing my head-torch. My plan was to walk the South West Coast Path to Land's End at night.

It was notably cold but the air was clear. The path from the Youth Hostel was indistinct and hard to follow in the dark, but by maintaining a westerly heading I knew that it would eventually intersect the Coast Path. Once it had, I could then follow the Coast Path south towards Land's End. The lights at Sennen Cove and the Land's End Theme Park were visible ahead of me, along with the flashing light of the Longships Lighthouse, a mile and a quarter offshore.

The Coast Path is quite rocky in the vicinity of Land's End and it is necessary to scramble over piles of boulders in several places. The tide was out so when I reached Whitesand Bay I could walk on the sandy beach all the way to the jetty at Sennen Cove. After the steep climb out of the Cove, Land's End is just 15 minutes walk away.

My BBC Radio Solent interview was due at 6.45am so I'd timed my approach to the Land's End Theme Park to coincide with this. I was thus able to reach and touch the sign that symbolises the end of my trek whilst I was 'on air'.

So that's it as far as my journey is concerned; three months of experiences that will take me a while to fully assimilate.

Things are not quite over yet, though, as Chris (a.k.a. George) and friends Jennifer and Terry had arranged to meet me by the sign at midday. I therefore withdrew to Sennen for a while before returning for the 'ceremonial' finish at the expected time.

Roughly an hour later fellow walkers John and Jane, who I'd met in Fort William, turned up. Personal reasons had forced them to curtail their John o'Groats to Land's End walk early on, but they were able to return to complete the latter stages of their planned route. Their walk was not over yet as they will be continuing on to Falmouth over the next week, but It was good to have them share the celebratory bubbly that Chris had brought with her.

I think this is a good time to remind readers that my walk has been in aid of Cancer Research UK and the British Heart Foundation. I hope that those who have been following this diary, but haven't yet donated, might consider this an appropriate time to do so.

In any case, this diary is not yet finished, as I will be writing an 'after the walk' summary once I have come down to earth again (probably in a few weeks). In the mean time I would be delighted to receive any thoughts or comments readers might have on my little adventure through the CONTACT ME page.

(P.S. As before, the radio interview can be heard on bbc iplayer for up to 7 days after the live programme. Details of how to access this are included in my 12 July '09 diary entry which can be viewed by clicking the 'Before the walk' tab.)

It rained for the third successive night, so the tent was wet again on Tuesday morning. This wasn't a problem, though, as by the time I'd used the campsite shower and composed my latest blog entry, things were starting to dry.

Although I was due a rest day, I didn't actually feel the need for one and decided to keep walking instead. I took my time though, so it was early afternoon before I left Porthleven to continue west along the Coast Path. My initial plan had been to proceed using inland roads, so having the time to walk the Coast Path instead was a bonus. The route is wonderfully scenic, but the path constantly changes direction and elevation as it follows the profile of the coast, thus taking much longer to walk than the crow-flies distance might suggest. However, I'm sure the pictures will illustrate why I think this path is well worth the energy expenditure.

When I reached Marazion I had been quite prepared to stay at another campsite, but found an excellent B&B instead. I had struck lucky. Chyanoweth is the home of Pete and Sue, and their guest room had all the features of a luxury flat. I was particularly taken with the gold-sequined bed cushions. That evening I found myself in a quiz team with my hosts and their friends at the Kings Arms.

In the morning I had a telephone interview with Chris Broom of local paper 'The News' who is writing a two-page article about my venture. I am grateful for the publicity as I am still only half-way to meeting my charity target. It was raining quite heavily when I left Marazion to walk the 3 miles to Penzance.

I am scheduled to have a further Radio Solent interview on the morning of my arrival in Land's End this Friday, but I wasn't sure if I would be able to get reception on my mobile phone. To check this out, I took a bus ride to Land's End and back as soon as I reached Penzance. I didn't actually step off the bus, but was able to confirm that communications would be OK. It also gave me an opportunity to shelter from the rain for a while.

I had hoped that the rain might have ceased by the time the bus returned to Penzance, but it was as heavy as ever. I was feeling cold from sitting still and needed to decide what to do next quickly.

I'd never been to St. Just before. Located near the coast about 8 miles west of Penzance and 5 miles north of Land's End, it has a Youth Hostel nearby. It was coming up to 4.00pm so I quick-marched there by the most direct route I could find. That soon warmed me up. Two and a half hours later I was at St. Just's Letcha Vean Youth Hostel, and an hour after that I was sharing supper with fellow guests Saskia, Becky and Phil. We got on well and chatted until quite late.

Land's End is now just a short walk to the south. Indeed, I could see it from the hill overlooking the Youth Hostel. It would be nice if I could do something slightly unusual to end the walk. Naked has already been done and, anyway, it might be cold. I have another idea brewing, but I'm not telling yet!

Isn't it strange how things often come to you just when you need them? The first heavy overnight rainfall for a while, and I was tucked up under a corrugated steel roof in Mr Hall's storeroom. Noisy, but dry. More importantly, I was spared the dubious pleasure of having to pack away a wet tent.

The rain continued during the morning as I headed south through Stithians and Rame. By lunchtime I'd reached Gweek, which sounds like a Jonathan Ross attempt to describe Zorba's nationality.

It was Sunday, so I decided to treat myself to a carvery dinner at The Gweek Inn. Rosemary's rucksack banner ensured that my cover was blown the moment I entered the establishment; I received a charity donation within moments. Not only that, the Inn waived payment for my food and drinks bill. That's the second time in two successive days that I haven't paid for my meal! I am delighted to be the recipient of such kindness but feel the charities should benefit too, so I will donate part of the value to the fund.

After Gweek, I wanted to have a close look the large satellite communications dishes at Goonhilly Earth Station. I had intended to use a path that starts from Mawgan and passes over Trelowarren, but this turned out to be a permissive one and the landowners had rescinded their permission on 1 Oct. I was not impressed. The resulting 2 mile detour cost me nearly an hour.

By the time I got to Goonhilly I had formulated a plan. Part one of the plan involved quick-marching southwest across the Goonhilly Downs to a campsite near Mullion. When I got there, however, I thought the campsite looked distinctly grotty. It was 7.15pm and the light was going so there wasn't much time for a re-think. Fortunately, the much nicer Mullion Holiday Park was just next door and they let me stay for free.

Part two of my plan involved leaving most of my gear at the campsite next morning so that I could walk the 10 miles to Lizard Point and back with minimal weight. It rained heavily for the second night running and this continued into the morning. No worries. I simply donned my wet gear, left the tent where it was and exited the campsite by a short-cut that staff member Paul had shown me the previous night. This took me to a back road south of the Holiday Park. From there I headed to Lizard Point, but not directly as I'd decided to visit the pretty fishing village Cadgwith along the way.

When I got to Lizard Point I took the usual celebratory photographs and then popped into the cafe for a celebratory pot of tea and a bit of celebratory carrot cake. Just to remind those who have just joined the blog, Lizard Point is the most southerly point in Britain and Dunnet Head the most northerly. As the crow flies, these points are 4 miles further apart than John o'Groats to Land's End, hence the reason why I have included them on my trek. Thus, I have now completed the longest mainland walk in Britain. It'll now take me just a few more days to get to Land's End to complete the shorter but better known walk. Lesson over.

By the time I'd walked back to the Holiday Park, the rain had stopped, the sun was shining and my tent was dry. Packing my gear, I headed west to join the South West Coast Path at Poldhu Cove. At last, I was walking a proper footpath again and my feet immediately seemed lighter. My appreciation of Cornwall's exciting sport of dodging traffic had worn very thin by now. Besides, it is difficult to appreciate the country views when most of one's attention is focussed upon staying alive.

The South West Coast Path is probably the most consistently attractive long-distance trail in Britain. Because the tide was coming in, I stuck to the cliff top trail rather than walk along the beach, except where the trail cut across Loe Bar. By 6.00pm I was in Porthleven. I was due a rest day, but didn't even enquire about B&B prices as I knew they would be painfully expensive. In any case, I found a nice little camp site in Mill Lane just a short walk from the harbour.

My friends are expecting me to arrive at Land's End at midday on Friday 9 October, but I am well ahead of schedule and in danger of getting there before them. Not a problem. With stunning coastal views to enjoy, I'm sure I can drag my feet a little over the next few days.