AFTERNOON TEA & OTHER MEANDERINGS

Back to my blog, once more, now that Christmas is over. So a few odds and bods starting off with afternoon tea!

We were gifted a Cornish afternoon tea at the Rosevine Hotel, Portscatho, which was quite pleasant.

The first three photos are of the hotel. It is set in a pleasant position, just a short walk to the sea.

Oh, and don't forget that, with a Cornish tea, the clotted cream goes on top of the jam on the scones.

An an old milestone below. I have now travelled to St. Austell - 13 miles from Truro. according to the stone.

Just along the road, from the milestone, is a more up to date signpost.

When approaching St. Austell by car there is a nice green area with a few interesting trees, even in the winter.

The monkey puzzle tree tree (Araucaria Araucana), always fascinates me - think I have mentioned this previously in a post.

The foliage is quite distinctive.

Moving on I walked towards St. Austell town. In doing so I passed something unique within Cornwall - high rise flats! Somehow they seem out of place.

Despite the chill in the air a small flower nearby managed to survive in the undergrowth

Walking on I had a peek at the Gover Stream.

Next, near to a Co-op store, are the remains of the Pentewan Railway Clay Cellars.

The Pentewan Railway once carried local china clay from St. Austell to the harbour at Pentewan for export. This was operational from 1829 to about 1918. The Pentewan Trail for walkers now follows the  route of the railway.

Below shows how the harbour at Pentewan was once full of sailing boats exporting china clay worldwide in the late 1800's and early 1900's

Today Pentewan harbour is landlocked, and is enjoyed by swans, ducks and the like - though they must have been hiding when I snapped the photo.

Thanks for visiting my blog. Hope you had a great Christmas and and have a wonderful New Year.

Good wishes ~ Mike.

It's All White During a Day in Cornwall

It had been raining and the Gover Stream was  busy bubbling along, the water having a white glow.

Alongside the stream the trees were often covered in moss and created an almost magical scene.

Further on I followed the White River, as it passed by the Trenance Viaduct. The heavy rain made the river move along at speed. As I have mentioned previously the whiteness is from local china clay deposits.

The white of the river contrasted with the green leaves and moss.

It wasn't only the river that was white. I met this cat who seemed to want to play. I couldn't resist.

For a while we got on well, but cats are independent creatures and my playfulness tired him after a while. 

I remembered another white cat I once met on a walk, who had the most beautiful blue eyes.

There's a lot of white about. The seagull, with it's white chest and head, looked very smart as it ambled by a flower display.

And then I spotted the damp white flowers who didn't seem to mind the winter rain.

A wild hydrangea was mostly white and looked quite Spring like despite the winter chill.

As the hours swept by it got quite dark. The Gover Stream looked quite mysterious, so time to hurry home. Who knows who or what could be lurking in the darkness.

Thanks for visiting my blog.

Also see 33 Photos: A Circular Walk Based On Gover Valley, St.Austell, Cornwall