CORNWALL 2017: The St. Mawgan and St. Eval Parish Churches

Believe it or not, this is my last Cornwall  2017 post before I go back to Venice and Verona.  Or did you think I had also finished our Italy trip????  HA!

As you may recall, we had off-n-on rain our entire time in Cornwall except for that beautiful Sunday in Tintagel (King Arthur's legendary birthplace) and Boscastle.  But that didn't stop us from getting out to see something of interest.  And because Pauline knows we love the parish churches, she picked two that are geographically close to each other.

As you can see from the inset, we drove to the north coast of Cornwall, 

approximately 17 miles from our St. Austell home base.

We first went to Mawgan Porth beach where we got the lay of the land...

and the Atlantic Ocean!

(It's also where we ate our lunch that day.)

From the beach we drove 2 miles to visit our first parish church of the day...in the rain.

This is the St. Mawgan in Pydar parish church from the 13th century.

Usually the churchyards are every bit as interesting to me as the church interiors.

There's an old thorn tree associated with the legends of Joseph of Arimathea...

a memorial to the 10 men who froze to death while at sea in 1846 (center-right)...

and a lantern cross carved around 1420 (top-left and bottom-right).

Look at how the gravestones circle the church, from front to back!

It was a Monday when we were there, but there were bell ringers...practicing?

Wouldn't we all love to ring the bells!

We did indeed feel welcomed, even though much of the space was dark, without the lights on.

The font is 15th century, Norman style, made of Pentewan stone.

The pulpit is from 1533, Dad.  And I know you'd love to play that wee organ, Mom.

And should any of us require a kneeler, there are plenty to go around.

♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥

From St. Mawgan we drove the 3 miles to the St. Eval parish church, also from the 13th century.

It happens to sit out in the middle of nowhere, visible for miles around,

surrounded by the disused RAF (Royal Air Force) runways of the WWII command airfield.

See the sundial over the entrance?  "We shall Die."

Besides the church itself, 21 war graves are maintained here by the RAF.

The RAF ties to this church after the war are very strong, as you'd imagine.
It was their church while stationed nearby.

It was another dark church that rainy afternoon, but you can get the gist of it.

The bench end (top-left) is from the mid-16th century.

The "plain" font is also from the Norman times.

Pauline is always on the lookout for green men in these old churches.

These are from the high-up ceiling in bad camera light, but, again, you get the gist.

Besides, Pauline often tells us green men don't like being photographed. :)

Back down on terra firma, there is "World Peace!"

And a reminder that the RAF is covering our back.

In fact, Pauline's dad, from Squadron 612 (top-right), used the base back in the war.

Thank you!

And thus ends this 6-day stint in a very special place:  CORNWALL, England.

We'll never forget it.

CORNWALL 2017: The Boscastle Fishing Port

Here's one last fishing port from this year's Cornwall visit...which happened to be on the way home from our Tintagel visit to the legendary birthplace of King Arthur (remember?).

So, here we go again, to get our bearings.

The distance from Tintagel to Boscastle is 3.6 miles.

From Boscastle to the St. Austell home base is 28 miles.

As you see, Cornwall is not that big, even though driving around is not like in America.

This is the entrance view to Boscastle, the wee village on the inlet from the Atlantic Ocean.

Here's a fabulous image from Christoper Lethbridge on Wiki.

It shows the 2 protective stone harbor walls built by Sir Richard Grenville in 1584.

This is important because it shows the back of what we saw, from the Atlantic Ocean side.

But first, it so happens that Boscastle is home to the Museum of Witchcraft and Magic since 1951.

"It houses exhibits devoted to folk magic, ceremonial magic, Freemasonry, and Wicca,

with its collection of such objects having been described as the largest in the world."

And, NO, we did not visit it...because it was at the end of our busy day

and we were there only to see the harbor.

And guess what!  It was at low tide, of course!

We chose to walk along the right side on the ledge towards the sea...and were not alone.

You can see the two protective stone walls in the harbor.

I was immediately side-tracked by the abundant slate and the flowers growing in/on it.

THAT slate, both coming and going.

As soon as we got to the  first harbor wall, however, my attention turned to the beached boats.

They looked like toys from our side of the inlet.

On this side, the 2nd harbor wall was the end of our walk,

even though others found a way to climb up onto the ridge above.

Walking back the same way we walked in gave us plenty to see.

Astrid climbed down to the water's bed to beachcomb,

while Pauline sunbathed and I found my own goodies nearby.

You know how they say you should always look backwards as well as forwards on your walks
 because of the views.  We got that opportunity simply by walking back the way we came in.

Don't be fooled by this low-water view at low tide.

In August 2004 there was a flash flood that washed 75 cars, 5 caravans, 6 buildings and several boats to sea.  "Approximately 100 homes and businesses were destroyed, and some had to be demolished; trees were uprooted and debris were scattered over a large area."

150 people clinging to trees and rooftops were rescued, without major injuries or loss of life.

The estimated cost of damage was £15 million.

What we saw, of course, was so calm, cool and collected...on another gorgeous day.
If we ever go back, we'll walk on the left side and see another world altogether, I'm sure.

CORNWALL 2017: The Looe Fishing Port

If all I did was visit the fishing ports all around Cornwall, England, for the rest of my life, I'd be one happy camper.  Seriously.

I really love Google maps, don't you?!

The coastal fishing port of Looe is 25 miles from our St. Austell homebase.

The population is ca. 5K.

When you pass a shop window like this from the parking lot to the coast, you know what's coming.

THIS.

Just pay attention to both sides of this bridge across the River Looe.

As you see, we arrived while the tide was still mostly in.

It was raining off-n-on the entire day, and we didn't care.

But once on this side of the bridge, it felt like a good stopping point for lunch.

Maybe it was the "DO NOT FEED THE SEAGULLS" that made us hungry?

Pauline says it was the BEST fish-n-chips she had ever eaten.  So fresh.

I'll take her word for it because it was, indeed, excellent.

It was also a delight to sit by the window and look out on the Looe world.

When we came out from the pub, this is what we saw.

Just give it an hour or two and look what happens to the tide!

We KNOW it in our heads...but to SEE it is another thing altogether.

Think about all that money spent on these boats!

I think I'd want a berthing dock for my investment, too, at low tide...every day.

See what I mean about wanting to see this the rest of my life?

We walked along the quay towards the sea where the river was still mostly full.

We were short of eyes...looking towards the sea and back towards the bridge.

Both sides of the river!
[BTW, did you know the Brits say towards and the Americans say toward?
So why does it sound normal for me to use the British English?  HA!]

THIS on our walk back to the bridge!

We then walked across the bridge (top) to the other side (bottom)....

and then back to where we began the day, but now at low tide.

To there and back again with myriad impressions.

It doesn't take much to fill our cups, as you know by now!

CORNWALL 2017: The Mevagissey Fishing Port

The same day we did the Spit Cliffs walk on a rainy afternoon (last post), we also did a walk-about in nearby Mevagissey that sunny morning.  Don't you love weather!

Mevagissey is only 6 miles SW from the St. Austell area, our homebase.

[Google image]

As we drove along the coast to get there, Pauline stopped the car to show us this view.

Now you know why Cornwall is a MUST for so many people.

Mevagissey is one of many wee fishing ports that makes Cornwall so idyllic.

It's population is only 2K.  

As you turn the corner, there she is.

We arrived while the tide was still mostly in (an important detail we're learning).

Look at how the town hugs its harbor.  It's their livelihood.

When you step back to get the bigger picture, it's a rugged livelihood.

But deep inside the harbor, you feel the coziness of it.

Dare you leave the breakwater, you pass the the massive rock formation to the open sea.

[Am still trying to find if it has a name, that rock!  Surely?!]

Did you see the wee lighthouse in the preceding collage, bottom-right image?

Once you reach it, you are "out to sea," so to speak.

The vantage point from the lighthouse that day highlighted this yellow beauty.

She's the Valhalla BH-9 trawler of the Mevagissey fleet.

How fun to look up these boats like they're people!

And how fun to see evidence that this truly is a fishing port.

While walking back from the lighthouse, guess what!

The tide was now out and we got to see the beached boats that still amaze us to no end.

So Astrid, of course, climbed down to search for treasures, of which she found many
(for her blue bag).

See what I mean about Cornwall?!  So idyllically wonderful.

Don't get me wrong...it has its own economic trials and tribulations.

BUT...it is a treasure to be found and taken care of while cherishing.