SUNDAY LUNCH & A WALK AT NEWQUAY, CORNWALL

We had been gifted a Sunday lunch overlooking the sea at Lewinnick Lodge, Newquay. We decided to make a day of it and also have a very breezy walk. I snapped a few quick photos.

The next three pics were taken while walking towards Lewinnick Lodge. In the first of the three we can see the imposing Headland Hotel and Fistral Beach. I have a post of this  see: Fistral Beach - One of Newquay's Finest For Surfing

We then had a slow lunch overlooking the sea at the Lewinnick Lodge. It was a lovely meal, with a vegetarian choice for me. My wife said her traditional beef choice was excellent.

It was then time to get walking again and we headed towards the Gannel, which has a large stretch of sand when the tide is out.

 

The photo below shows a cliff formation seen on the walk.

Walking over a headland we reached the Gannel.  If you like sand and lots of elbow room this must be paradise - but a warning: you have to be aware of the tides as this can also be a dangerous place to swim or wade.

There are a couple of seats overlooking the sea.

The tide was beginning to be on the turn.

We slowly made our way back to our car. There is a large public car park by the Lewinnick Lodge.

Moving on: Changing the subject to flowers. I spotted this mature magnolia when out and about, I always think of these as being something special.

And magically there was a nearby second magnolia.

To finish today's blog a bunch, sorry a bouquet, of flowers my wife received on her birthday.

Thanks for visiting my blog. Have a good weekend and week ahead ~ Mike.

P.S. I have no connection with Lewinnick Lodge!

A MAGICAL WALK ALONG GOVER VALLEY, CORNWALL

It was a dull day, drizzly at times, but I decided to take a wander along  Gover Valley in St.Austell. I have previously published a post, with 40 photos, of a walk based on the valley - there's a link at the end of this post.

A few daffodils brightened the day as did the Gover Stream, which feeds into the St. Austell River, as it is known locally, but is usually  shown on maps as the River Vinnick.

Another name often used for the stream is the White River, because it can become coloured by local china clay.

Along the Gover Valley there are remnants left over from the china clay industry.

Alongside the river is the occasional cottage or house like the one below, almost hidden amongst the trees.

Being a valley it is often shaded from the sun so can be quite damp. 

The dampness encourages mosses to grow by the Gover Stream.

The moss, combined with the tinkling water, can create a magical moment. It's easy to think of this as a home for the elves and fairies - or perhaps that's just my imagination.

But, whatever, the greenness that abounds at this time of year has an attractive quality.

A Public Footpath sign shows a way to the side of the valley for those so inclined.

There's a bridge over the stream and a few steps have been made to assist the little people and us humans on their way.

I chose to continue walking along the valley itself, some gorse made a change from the greenness, it seemed to bring everything more alive.

On my return along the valley an old gate was struggling to protect access to an open field.

Delicate colour with a few primroses nestled by the edge of the road, next to a puddle from the drizzle.

Then all at once I saw a crowd,

A host of golden daffodils.

Thank you for visiting my blog. There is another Gover Valley post: 40 Photos: An Updated Circular Walk Based On Gover Valley, St.Austell, Cornwall

Good wishes - Mike

AN EARLY MORNING WALK NEAR PORTHPEAN.

A couple of posts back I mentioned my wife had an appointment at our local hospital. She has had a further appointment, but this time early in the morning. As before I went for another walk from the hospital. All was quiet and peaceful. 

The road I walked was deserted. 

There were several muted views over the sea. The photo below was taken from the local golf club.

In the distance Gribbin Head, with its tower, could be seen.

The next two photos are of Gribbin head. They have been taken from my blog post: Walking to Gribbin Head Cornwall - Daphne du Maurier Country

That's all for today, thanks for visiting my blog. Apologies that it is another short post. 

Good wishes ~ Mike

The Trystan or Tristan Stone Dating Back to the year 550.

The photo above may not appear that special on first glance but, like a lot of things in Cornwall, there is a story attached to the stone - and a possible link with King Arthur and the Round Table. Oh, and some say the stone possibly dates back to the year 550.

The stone is referred to as either the Trystan (Tristan) Stone or the Drustan Stone and is situated on the side of the road between Par and Fowey in Cornwall, where there is a small lay-by.

On the north side of the stone a raised 'T' shape can be seen. This is an old version of a Christian Cross known as a Tau. You might just be able to make out the 'T' in the photo above - obviously it has weathered somewhat over nearly 1500 years.

On the south side of the stone 6th century letters can be seen (above) - again well weathered but they translate as 'Trystan here lies of Cunomorus the son.'

Cunomorus was Marcus Cunomorus - King Mark of Cornwall in the love story of Tristan and Isolde.

I mentioned King Arthur. The connection is that Tristan (or Trystan) became one of the Knights of the Round Table.

As for the Tristan and Isolde story this is how one of the many versions goes:

Isolde married King Mark of Cornwall, but had an affair with Tristan. This continued even after her wedding. King Mark eventually found out about the naughty goings on but forgave his wife. Tristan, however, was exiled from Cornwall and he moved to the court of King Arthur.

Tristan later travelled to Brittany in France, where he met Iseult. He was said to be attracted to her because of the similarity of her name to that of Isolde. He did the honourable thing with Iseult and married her - but in his heart of hearts he continued to love Isolde - ahh!

Thanks for visiting my blog - a quick post as I haven't been able to get out and about much this week.

Good wishes ~ Mike.

A Short Walk to Porthpean, Cornwall

My wife had an appointment at our local hospital, so I wandered off for a short walk. As for the camellia above this is from our garden.

I had a choice of interesting places to visit and decided to head off in the direction of Porthpean.

I soon reached the Porthpean sailing club. It was good to see a blue sky even though it was quite chilly.

I wandered onto Porthpean beach, all was quiet and peaceful.

A couple of photos next, taken from the beach.

There's a sign about Cornwall's Crumbling Cliffs.

A look at those cliffs.

I started on my return to the hospital passing through Lower Porthpean.

There are some pleasant flowers in the gardens of some very desirable properties.

I noticed an old milestone with the old spelling of St. Austell i.e. Austle not Austell.

I was soon back at the hospital to pick up my wife and return home. On the way we spotted a host of golden daffodils.

Thanks for visiting my blog, take care ~ Mike.

NEWQUAY, SURFING FISTRAL BEACH

Fistral Beach, Newquay, is one of the best for surfing. There is a consistency and quality of surf. Newquay is often quoted as being the surfing capital of the UK.

It's a lovely stretch of sand and high on the cliffs is the impressive Headland Hotel.

The hotel was first opened in June 1900 and has hosted royalty. King Edward VII and Queen Alexandra were the first to stay at the hotel in the early 1900's. Charles, the current King, and also Princess Ann, the Princess Royal have also enjoyed several visits - at least I presume they enjoyed themselves! Hard to tell what they are thinking at times.

The town of Newquay is on Cornwall's north coast and is very much a seaside resort. The population of the town is around 20,000 but this shoots up to nearer 100,000 in the main summer season. So, to say it gets busy, is an understatement - it heaves with people in the main summer holiday period. The attraction? Sandy beaches, I believe there are 11! Oh, and surfing, as I have already mentioned.

In the photo above, on the cliff top is a small white building. This is the Huers Hut mentioned in a previous post.

Changing the subject: a while back there was a clean up of Fistral Beach Litter was found going back to the 1970s and 80s! The rubbish lay buried under a collapsed sand dunes.

I have a bit of a bee in my bonnet about litter. I fail to understand why people can't take their rubbish home. Why pollute beautiful scenery? It's interesting though how some of the items found have survived for perhaps 30+ years. We really are polluting our Earth - and not just with plastic.

 Here are just a few of the items found under the sand dunes

# A 1984 Smiths Crisps packet  that offers a free Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom Poster 

# Coca Cola can dated 1984 
# A Marathon chocolate wrapper also from 1984
# Packet of Golden Wonder crisps offering a model of a Laker Airways DC-10 - Laker went bankrupt in 1982!
# Burton's Smax
# Treets, who changed their name in 1988

And so it goes on.

That's it for today. It's cup of tea time,  and hopefully a biscuit or two

Thanks for visiting my blog ~ Mike.