Post number 1000: Visions of Cornwall

 

I know... post number 1000? Who woulda thought it? 

I thought I'd celebrate this blogging millstone, er milestone, with some photos of our beloved Cornwall. With 2020 obviously being a living nightmare in many ways, we really didn't think we'd be able to get away to Cornwall this year but somehow we did. We had a week away in July and another in August, being extremely careful where we went and what we did, and it was lovely to recharge the ol' batteries and see some beautiful countryside. We know many places down there where you can get away from the crowds, the one below being a perfect example:

Here's Sarah soaking up some rays and the view from the top of Rosewall Hill. This is just a beautiful spot, just a couple of miles out of St Ives, a rugged landscape of gorse bushes, huge blocks of stone, old mine workings and spectacular views. In fact, this is one of the few places in Cornwall where you can see both the North and South coasts because the land is so narrow at this point. In this photo you can just glimpse St Michael's Mount rising from Mount's Bay in the South.

And above is the view to the North, more perfectly blue sea and sky...

And, if we're in Cornwall, there have to be photos of beaches:

Here we are with the iconic St Michael's Mount behind us... plus loads of herring gulls.

And the next few are from Perranporth, near to where we were staying in St Agnes, and where our daughter Sophie is currently living and working as a dancer.

Lighthouses are also a major draw for us in Cornwall, like this beauty at Godrevy:

We took Sophie for a walk around Godrevy and we were lucky enough to see some seals out in the water. Didn't manage to get any photos of them but these two were happy to pose for me instead.

Near to where we were staying was Wheal Kitty, site of a former 19th century tin and copper mine, now abandoned to the elements... and the graffiti artists. Here's James getting some artistic inspiration or maybe planning some parkour moves. We discovered this site on our July trip, when it was just me and Sarah, and knew James would love the whole area so we took him there in August.

The concrete remains of the mine's processing rooms are being reclaimed by vegetation and it gives the surroundings a very Ballardian feel, like a ruined temple choked by the jungle.

Even Rigatoni Rat came along for the visit...

As well as the beaches, countryside and abandoned architecture, we also found time for some art...

These photos are from the Tremenheere Sculpture Gardens, nestled in a verdant valley near Penzance, overlooking Mount's Bay. Stunning sculptures by top contemporary artists in an absolutely beautiful setting.

( We're going to move to Cornwall and live in a Lego house... )

This piece is by one of James' favourite artists, David Nash, so he was very happy to find it here.

Rigatoni Rat turned up here as well...

Just down the road from Tremenheere we stumbled across the National Dahlia Collection at Varfell and had a wander around the fields, looking at their multitude of dahlias, a riot of colour.

Unfortunately, literally as I've been writing this post, I've Googled the Collection and found it has since shut down, presumably another victim of the damage caused to the economy by the pandemic. A real shame. 

The main reason for our second trip to Cornwall in August was to see Sophie for her 25th (!) birthday. Although conditions weren't ideal and we couldn't do all the things we'd usually do, we were so glad to be able to visit her and see her dance  -  in a socially-distanced way, of course.

So, that's it for my Cornish memories. As I said previously, we were so lucky to get away, considering a few months back we were still in lockdown and couldn't really go anywhere. To be honest, travelling to Cornwall and trying to deal with crowds of holiday-makers was quite daunting in these times, but we managed it and the break away was very welcome. Here's hoping we can safely do the same next year.