Chapter 21 Clewlows in Kernow and beyond........

Chapter 21
Clewlows in Kernow and beyond........

Time for a another road trip........
Decided on Cornwall, or in Cornish "Kernow".
We visited here many years ago, with a train ticket, a back pack, and a very limited budget. This time it was a hire car, a slightly larger bank account ( we are both unemployed) and  technology. Yay the iPad!
Pip plans the A to B route and I plan the in between which works well. On our way to the Cornish coast we drove through the New Forest. This area straddles Hampshire, Wiltshire and Dorset. It is one of the longest remaining tracts of unenclosed pastureland, heathland and forest in the heavily populated SE of England. (566sq km)  It was created as a royal forest by William 1, about 1079, for hunting deer. Today thousands of cattle, ponies and donkeys roam on the open heath and some roam freely around the villages. We dodged them as we drove through, but they were all used to cars. Beautiful to see. They looked so calm and content.

White parents... brown off-spring?

Ashley House, our accomodation  in the cute seaside village of  Fowey, was our base to explore from. This is pronounced "Foy", to rhyme with enjoy! The streets are narrow, and parking is difficult, but the village is quaint, historic and beautiful. The weekend we arrived was a Mussel and Beer Festival, so we shared a big bowl of locally caught mussels. Not even 24 hours old, they were delicious. 
There is so so much to see here, so again we divided our exploring into 3 parts.
First day we headed around the coastline to a town called Mevagissey, then onto Newquay, with it's beautiful sandy beach. No pebbles here!
Next stop Padstow.  It was originally named Petrocks Place, after a saint, and they could well change it again after Saint Stein!  (4 restaurants now, and several businesses in the village)  It was absolutely packed with tourists, all wanting a peep at where it's most notable resident resides and works. We enjoyed a Pastie on the waterfront. Had to have a Cornish Pastie!

 

We are both Doc Martin devotees, so we had to visit the place which serves as the backdrop for the television series. "Port Wenn", is actually a village called Port Isaac, a bit further up the coast from Padstow. The only way into the village is to park at the top, and walk down to the cove. At £4 per car for parking, someone is pleased that the village is now a tourist spot! It was strange walking past his surgery, or seeing the school and restaurant all featured in the series.  

On the way back to base we stopped at Lanhydrock, a Grade 1 listed house. It is basically Victorian with sections that date back to the 1620's. Built in the 17C, and then rebuilt in 1881 after a fire, the house consists of 92 rooms, and reflects all aspects of Victorian life above and below stairs!  It has a feel of wealth but is unpretentious. It belonged to the Agar-Robartes family until the only heir was killed in WW1. It was then donated to the National Trust, for all to enjoy. It looks and feels as though Tommy will return from the war, as everything is how it was when he went.

Part two of our Cornish exploring was south west. First stop was St Michaels Mount, crowning an island 366m off the coast near Marazion, and home to the St Aubyn family. In Cornish it translates to "grey rock in the woods", as apparently many thousands of years ago it was actually inland. A man-made causeway allows it to be accessible between mid tide and low water by foot, so we timed our visit to do just that. Other times it is by boat. Many, many cobbled steps to the top revealed an amazing view and an amazing castle. We expected a crumbling relic, but were surprised by beautifully furnished rooms filled with treasured artifacts. Queen Elizabeth visited here in May, but got the golf buggy to the top! Ones bum may have been sore after that!

One of the rooms in Michael's Mount

We then headed to Mousehole, pronounced "moozell"! On the coast and so Cornish with single laned cobbled streets with cute pubs, shops, gallery's, and homes.

The Minack Theatre was next on the list. Minack from cornish "meynek" meaning stony or rock is a famous theatre carved into the granite cliffs overlooking Porthcurno Bay, 4 miles from Lands End, and the brainchild of a lady called Rowena Cade. The first performance was in 1932 where the stage  was a simple grass terrace and lighting was provided by car headlights, but it has now evolved into a spectacular open air, internationally famous theatre.  Every year 80,000 people attend shows, and over 100,000 people visit to sightsee.  Unbelievable!  What a legacy Rowena has left.

We then drove through Penzance to St Just, the most western town in Britain, which lies in an ancient copper and tin mining district. Then St Ives. This town lies on the coast of the Celtic sea and is primarily a holiday resort, although its origins were as a fishing port. Again, narrow and uneven streets to negotiate. (As we drove along we listened to the local radio station called Pirate FM!)

Day three we headed off to Polperro, on the SE coast of Cornwall.  This is a fishing village situated on the river Pol. Smuggling was said to have prospered here since the 12C. Again, very pretty. Interestingly, the foreshore belongs to the Duchy of Cornwall.  The Duchy, founded in 1337,  funds the activities of the Prince of Wales, (Charles)., and consists of 53,000 hectares of land in 53 counties.  We have negotiated many narrow lanes, but I have to say we have been really lucky as we have only had to reverse a couple of times, to let other cars pass. 

Polperro

We stopped in at Looe, as we did 32 years ago! Nothing seemed to have changed. Looe is Cornish for "deep water inlet", and is divided into East Looe and West Looe, straddling the river. Inhabited since 1000BC. 

On our way back to base we wanted to see the village on the other side of the estuary from Fowey that was the view from our accommodation. Polruan, clings to the side of the hill, and in low gear we descended to the harbour very cautiously. Well worth it!

View of Fowey from Polruan

We left Fowey, and drove north east towards  Devon. When we had FoodClews we sold pastries from a company called Boscastle, named after a village in Cornwall. We were driving nearby, so popped in. Boscastle was named after Botreaux Castle, that has now all but vanished. The village sits around a medieval harbour in a steep sided valley, full of slate.  3 rivers, 3 churches and 3 inns are integral to its makeup. King Arthur and Thomas Hardy have connections to this area.

Boscastle tea house

Walking the perimeter of Boscastle harbour

We left Cornwall, and drove through Devon. The coastline here is very different to Cornwall. Steep imposing cliffs and far reaching moors. Dartmoor and Exmoor being a couple. One place that I have always wanted to visit was Clovelly. I knew that access to the village was by foot, but OMG. It is a 400 foot drop or a 1-6 gradient, top to bottom. Built on the sides of a crack in a tremendous cliff, the cobbled main street, called Up-along or Down-along by locals, depending which way you are going, is car free, with sledges or donkeys  hauling everything into the village from building materials to food and furniture. The village is privately owned and has only been associated with 3 families since 13C. Population at the last census was 400. Many a turned ankle or sprained knee has left the village........I suppose on a donkey!

 

Our accommodation for the night was in a village in Somerset called Watchet. 
A pint sized harbour town poised on a rocky coastline with the Bristol Channel ahead of it and Exmoor behind. It gets it's name from Wacet, the blue dye found in the surrounding cliffs. A fabulous small boutique hotel, (Swain House) run by two graphic designer Londoners, who opted for the sea change,  with a wonderful flair for interior design and hospitality. 

Popped along to Porlock where family has spent many holidays.

Porlock Weir

Our history lesson for the day was a visit to Dunster Castle, built in the Norman times, which lies on the top of a steep wooded hill with dramatic vistas to the channel and Quantock Hills. For the last 600 years it has been a lavish country home, until it was donated to the National Trust.

Watchet also lies on the West Somerset Railway line, a 36km single track heritage railway line, opened in 1862,  that enthusiasts faithfully run diesel and steam trains on.  A quick ride on the steam train to Minehead and back.  We both decided that the thrill of the train is seeing it in motion, moreso than being aboard. Such wonderful engineering.

Among the English counties that we've been through, we've seen horses, donkeys, pheasants, peacocks, hedgehogs, cows and loads of dogs.  Not too many cats though.  This was one sign which might help to explain why....

Back to our country base in the Cotswolds........does feel like home!

Till the next blog
Love Annie
Xxxx