Postcards – Page 110 – TRAVEL WORDS

Capturing Cornwall (Carnewas)

We started at the NT car park at Carnewas (along the north Cornish coast half-way between Padstow and Newquay) where there is a lovely tea-room which is open throughout the summer months. From here you cannot see anything of the coastline. Well established paths lead you through the gorse on a detour to the cliffs from where you have amazing views of the cliffs in both directions, along to Trevose Head and the spectacular sea stacks at Bedruthan beach and south towards Mawgan Porth.

DSCF5530 — Looking north to the Bedruthan Steps

After admiring the views return to the main path and continue down the wide steps to the bottom where you have good views over the beach when there is a low tide, or the waves crashing over the rocks when there isn’t.

I must go down to the seas again, to the lonely sea and the sky,

~ John Masefield

Path towards Bedruthan Steps

Steps

Not this way

When the tide is out you can take the steep stone beach steps to access the beach. (These steps are closed from November and there is no swimming from this beach because of the currents).

Steep stone steps to the beach

Bedruthan Steps

Gull talk…

The rest of the route includes slopes, steps and unfenced cliff top, none of which are attractive to the OH, so we returned to the café for a cool glass of ginger beer.

There is no record of the name “Bedruthan Steps” before 1847, but it is thought to have originally referred to one of the two cliff staircases to access Carnewas mine (presumably the one nearer to the village of Bedruthan). The name later also became used for the name of the beach itself.

The legend of Bedruthan Steps was invented for Victorian tourism, said to be taken from a mythological giant (Bedruthan) who used the rocks as stepping stones. These were formed after the last Ice Age, when rising sea levels eroded the surrounding soft shales to leave the harder rocks as islands. Each of the 5 rock stacks has a name (Queen Bess, Samaritan Island, Redcove Island, Pendarves Island and Carnewas Island). This is a very short walk, but can be extended if you continue along the south-west coastal path to Porth Mear or in the other direction to Mawgan Porth returning through the countryside.

If you enjoy a walk, short or long, then you may enjoy visiting Jo’s Monday Walk where you are in for a treat.

One Day One World Project: 01:00 – 02:00

Disturbance

I wondered what I could post for this hour, when something occurred which fitted perfectly. Going to bed very late (or early) after watching one of those late night movies you get sucked into even though you tell yourself at the beginning that you won’t, the metallic sound of doors being slammed and the bangs and clangs of large heavy objects being thrown about, sent me outdoors to see what on earth was going on. Then the pneumatic drill started up, hammering at the surface of the road only 50 yards away from our house. The time? 01:30 am.

Sleep well folks…

I didn’t get a photo of the men at work – I thought they might not appreciate it – but here is the road and if you peer hard you may just see a road closed sign 🙂

Oh, and they packed away around 5:30 am.

Lisa of the blog NorthWest Frame of Mind has decided to run a different project over the next 24 weeks. To try to show what is happening in different parts of the world (if you all join in) at a particular time of day. If you would like to participate you have until next Saturday midnight to post a photo or write about what is happening in your part of the world. This week is between 01:00 – 02:00. I hope you’ll join in! See links for more details.

One Day One World Project: Midnight – 01:00

After Midnight

I’m often up after midnight, though I have recently tried to train myself into going to bed earlier and getting up earlier. But last week I needed to stay up and try to get some night shots for the project. It is very quiet around the medieval streets of Ludlow, especially in the area I live as there are no public houses close by. Not even the hoot of an owl or the bark of a fox.

I thought I’d have a go at photographing the night sky, though unfortunately there are some distracting yellow street-lights which I find totally useless for lighting your way home. I got out the tripod that I never use and a compact Panasonic with a ‘starry sky’ scene mode to play about with and went into the courtyard to give it a go.

Standing out there shortly after midnight I discovered I was not alone. A lady walking her dog went by, giving me a funny look, then an open-top convertible drove up the narrow street behind me, blasting headlights all over the scene, one lady driver; it was a very warm night. And shortly after that a police van came up the same road and turned the wrong way into the one-way street. And a helicopter was hovering nearby, though I couldn’t see it.

Anyway, the photos: although a very starry sky and no moon my captures were pathetic to say the least (above). So I played around with the software to see what happened.

Equalized (front)

Levels adjusted

Midnight – 01:00

Auto fixed

Lisa of the blog NorthWest Frame of Mind has decided to run a different project over the next 24 weeks. To try to show what is happening in different parts of the world (if you all join in) at a particular time of day. If you would like to participate you have until next Saturday midnight to post a photo or write about what is happening in your part of the world. This week is between 24:00 – 01:00. I hope you’ll join in! See links for more details.

Circumnavigating Grasmere Lake

Whilst in the Lake District last month – time flies – we did a couple of lakeside walks. One, around the pretty picture postcard village of Grasmere is about 3 miles long which is long enough for me, especially as on this day, rain threatened. The lake is one of the smallest and a full circuit should not take long unless, like me, you stop to take dozens of photographs. The start and end of the walk is on the road, but it is fairly level once you reach the lake shore and there is a lovely lakeside beach at the southern end.

After wandering around the lovely village for half an hour or so, we headed off along Red Bank at the west of the village (near the church) and up hill where stunning homes nestle amongst the woodland filled with vibrant pinks and mauves of rhododendrons.

Where fayries wander

Selma and Siri's Lakeland cousins perhaps? — Selma and Siri’s Lakeland cousins perhaps?

and bright yellow Welsh poppies huddle alongside the hedgerows. In fact I am reminded of Wales here. Though it feels lighter somehow.

Red Bank

Beautiful Woodland

Pretty cottage

The Garden House

One, the wooden Garden House, appealed to me, but I dare say the price is high as well as the terraced garden, but oh, what a view.

The road continued meandering around bends, with no sight of a lake.

Then, a glimpse, through the trees and not long after we found the rough track leading down to the shoreline.

Careful with those loose stones

A neat track to the shore

The views once we reached the shore were amazing. Lush green fells rearing up all the way around the lake, the village now shrouded in cloud and to the south, just a glimpse of the beach we were heading to.

And neat wooden boardwalks to help us safely over the streams that feed into the lake.

Boadwalk

A family of shovellers

Lakeside Path

The path follows the shoreline until you reach the southern end, where you head up slightly into woodland, before coming out onto the beach. This must be a lovely place for a picnic in the summer months. It was, however, a little drizzly today.

But with beautiful reflections in the mirror-like surface

We found more people at this end of the lake (and discovered later that there is a car-park not too far away), some sitting admiring the view, others walking their dogs, and other fit people climbing up the fell behind us.

Now we had to decide which way to go. There was no obvious sign, so we headed over the wooden bridge and into the woodland. Only to get lost. Later we realised that we should have simply followed the path alongside the river as that led to the road and car-park. It was awfully wet though.

Into the wood

Finally, after doubling back on ourselves a couple of times, we found a way out of the wood and onto the very busy A591 road which leads to Windermere. Fortunately we only had a few metres to walk before hitting the pavement which took us back into Grasmere. Can you spot that lovely house overlooking the lake?

A last view of the lake at the northern end.

If you enjoy a walk, short or long, then you may enjoy visiting Jo’s Monday Walk where you are in for a treat.

One Day One World Project: 22:00 – 23:00

Festival Fireworks Finale

During June and July Ludlow holds an Arts Festival and a Fringe Festival with loads of music, poetry, plays, comedy acts and Shakespeare culminating on the final Saturday (6th July) with a concert in the castle grounds and fireworks.

At 22:30 pm I was up on the top floor of our house with camera and gorillapod, windows flung wide open, listening to the final act which was David Essex. Given that the other stars of the show were Showaddywaddy and Les McKeown’s Bay City Rollers you may understand why I wasn’t at the actual concert. Anyway I didn’t record the songs ‘Gonna Make U A Star’, ‘Stardust’, ‘Oh What A Circus’ (which is the only one that I quite like), and ‘Silver Dream Machine’.

No, I was waiting for the fireworks finale. And at 22:50 the show began:

22:00 – 23:00

Lisa of the blog NorthWest Frame of Mind has decided to run a different project over the next 24 weeks. To try to show what is happening in different parts of the world (if you all join in) at a particular time of day. If you would like to participate you have until next Saturday midnight to post a photo or write about what is happening in your part of the world. This week is between 22:00 – 23:00. I hope you’ll join in! See links for more details.