Morwenstow is a coastal setting in Cornwall whose cliffs and exposed landscape frame two contrasting forms of shelter: the driftwood hut built by its former vicar, Robert Stephen Hawker, and the improvised refuge Ray and Moth find there during their walk. The place offers a moment of mental release, but its heat and scarcity of water also sharpen the physical risks of travelling through it.

Hawker’s hut and the landscape

Hawker built a hut from driftwood on the cliffs below Morwenstow, in a precarious position. The hut is now the smallest property owned by the National Trust. Its materials and location make it a shelter closely bound to the exposed coast rather than a retreat from it: gorse-filled air, rocks, sea and sky surround the structure.

Hawker was a devout Cornishman with a strong attachment to the county and its people. One of his poems refers to twenty thousand Cornish men wanting to know why they should rescue Trelawny. The narrator does not know the reason behind the poem’s appeal, but begins to understand why Hawker loved the land and chose to build in such an exposed spot. In the hut, with the coast around him, his thoughts could range freely.

Hawker’s life in Morwenstow

The hut is associated with Hawker’s life beyond its construction. As vicar of Morwenstow, he walked the lanes and cliff tops in a purple coat, pink hat and yellow cape. He also rescued sailors from shipwrecks and gave the dead Christian burial in his graveyard. These details connect the hut’s precarious position to the dangers of the sea and to Hawker’s care for those who suffered them.

The narrator imagines having known Hawker, noting that they might have shared his poor taste in clothes. The thought is more than a joke: Hawker appears as someone whose life joined eccentricity, a deep attachment to place and practical acts of care. His hut becomes a fitting refuge for Ray and Moth, who feel themselves shipwrecked by the upheaval in their lives.

Ray and Moth’s refuge and exposure

Ray and Moth shelter in the hut from burning heat while travelling through Morwenstow. At the time, they are well into their second day of eating mostly fudge. Headaches, dizziness and hunger have become constant, but they do not divert inland to a café because they have little money and hope to reach Bude later. Their hardship gives Hawker’s hut an immediate, practical function: it offers shelter at a point when food and comfort are scarce.

The respite does not remove the danger of the route. A mile farther on, they realize they should have refilled their water bottles but cannot bear to retrace their steps. On the open cliff top, heat radiates from scorched earth and reflects from the sea; the streams they expect to find have dried into cracks. After they drink the last of their water, thirst overwhelms hunger and staying upright takes all their willpower. Morwenstow’s hut thus holds together the chapter’s central contrast: the landscape can free thought and offer refuge, yet the same exposed terrain can turn a missed opportunity to collect water into an urgent ordeal.