Cornish Holiday - Trelissick and Roseland

Thank you for your interest and lovely comments on the first of my Cornish holiday posts. On the second day P and I visited places which were new to us, and started with Tresillick Gardens, a lovely NT property not too far away. It was a misty, drizzly morning and we took our raincoats and umbrellas with us.

Walking around large gardens is something that our teenagers grew out of, so it's great to be able to take our time and just wander. Tresillick Garden is on the banks of the river Fal, and is made up of parkland, woodland and borders. There are some fantastic trees there,

like this gnarled sweet chestnut,

and this furry palm. It reminded me of an animal.

The Hydrangea Walk was eye-popping. I love the shades of blue and purple that they grow in in Cornwall. Because of the less acid soil at home we only have pink ones in our part of the world.

My favourite part of Tresillick, however, was the New Cornish Orchard which is a wild flower meadow full of old varieties of Cornish apples. It reminded me of the cider apple orchards near to us in Somerset.

The trees were full of fruit and beautiful pale green moss.

There was a huge cider press,

and an apple sculpture.

But best of all were the names on each tree. My favourites are 'Pig's Snout' and 'Cornish Honey Pin'. I saw 'Pigs Nose 1', but missed 2 and 3. Great names.

There was a little wooden building which was decorated with halved pine cones

and beautiful stained glass.

Further on there were tree ferns,

jungly-looking hostas

bananas,

echiums,

and cardoons.

Lots of feathered friends joined us while we drank our tea outside in the cafe.

As we left we passed this fairytale building which is now holiday accommodation.

I chuckled at the weather vane - I've never seen a squirrel one before!

We crossed the Fal on the King Harry Ferry, an old floating bridge which reminded me of my childhood trips into our city centre on a floating bridge. 

Once across, we were on the verdant, wooded Roseland Peninsula and headed south to the pretty village of St Just-in-Roseland.

We walked down a steep hillside, and found ourselves in a lush hillside garden.

The little village church stands at the edge of a tidal creek, and is surrounded by a sub-tropical garden. There are many very old gravestones there which mingle with the palms, ferns and gunnera.

Weathered Celtic crosses mix with the most luxuriant planting around the headstones.

The church itself is very pretty too.

It was quite unlike any churchyard I've ever been in,

but a very beautiful and restful place, and well worth a visit.

We finished our day in St Mawes, and here the sun came out. An old fishing port, the town is pretty with little houses tumbling down the hillside to the edge of the estuary. There seems to be a mix of quaint little fisherman's cottages and some quite smart and expensive holiday accommodation in the town.

We walked along the tiny beach and bought chips from a sweet little hut, and they were delicious (I can't stand soggy chips).

The views across the estuary were gorgeous, and I felt very happy as I breathed in the fresh, salty air.

The bright coastal colours drew my eyes, as ever,

and the deep blue water contrasted so well with the green hills.

As we left, lights were starting to twinkle along the seafront, and it was time to head back.

I shall leave you with a selection of whitewashed cottages which line the seafront. So pretty.

See you next time for day 3! 

Cornish Holiday - St Ives

Ahoy there! It's the summer holidays, and P and I have been off on our travels for a few days - would you like to come along? Now that the children are grown up, we decided that it was high time we had an adventure on our own, so at the end of term last week after work we packed our bags and headed off to Cornwall. The girls house and cat-sat for us, so Clover was happy. It was exciting for us to go as a couple, and Cornwall is a place which is very dear to our hearts, as we've spent many happy family holidays there over the years We stayed in a cosy little converted thatched barn, just perfect for two,

and enjoyed lazy breakfasts together. We did miss our youngsters, but it really was incredibly relaxing to only have to think for two people, and just decide what we wanted to do as we went along.

We didn't linger too long over breakfast, however, as we were keen to get out and explore and soon set off down little winding Cornish lanes.

As you know, I love hedgerows, and was very taken by the tall twisty stems of foxgloves as they wave from the top of plant-covered stone walls as we drove past them.

I love stone walls too, and have noticed how much they vary depending on where you are. I do think I love Cornish ones best of all. They are usually made of granite and often have a couple of diagonal rows of stones along the top like this one,

or start with boulders at the bottom and get narrower as they get taller, like this. And they are always full of plants and flowers.

As you can imagine, I am in my element in Cornwall where there is such a huge variety of flora. There are flowers at every turn, like this wonderful sea carrot. 

and these umbellifers.

Bees love the tiny convolvulus flowers that grow everywhere,

and the wild honeysuckle which twists through the hedgerows.

The first place we decided to head for was a favourite of ours, St Ives. 

Carrying minimal beach things, we headed through the pretty streets of this old and very popular fishing town. 

Past pretty pastel-painted, coast-themed cottages.

Through narrow cobbled alleyways.

Along the little lane with what I always call 'the ice-cream cottages', The Digey.

And around the corner, treading in our old footsteps from many summers past, and gasping as always at the wonderful view which opened up before us, Porthmeor Beach.

The light in St Ives is truly amazing, and it's easy to see why so many artists have come here to live. This north-facing Atlantic beach is always bathed in bright, cool light and I'm fascinated by the soft blue and aqua shades, as well as the pale sand.

Soon we had set up our little beach tent, along with towels, swimsuits,

 books, crochet, seaside notebook and of course, two veggie Cornish pasties for lunch. Mind the seagulls!

It was warm, but not the brightest day, and after P's habitual swim (too chilly for me) we lazed and drank coffee, and I wrote in my seaside journal, as I've done for years. I did a bit of painting too, inspired by the Tate St Ives gallery which was behind us on the seafront.

Just playing around with colours, trying to match what I could see around me, rather than making a painting.

The bold, primary colours of the lifeguards really stand out here against the more natural shades.

As usual, I engaged in my favourite coastal activity of beach-combing and found a worn piece of sea-glass to add to my collection.

Before long it rained, so we headed to the shops for a little wander, passing the harbour as we went.

In the evening we ate a delicious meal in one of our favourite restaurants The Porthgwidden Beach Cafe. It combines coastal chic with a very relaxed feel, and we sat by the window and watched the sea become dark.

As we wandered back through the town, we stood and watched the harbour lights as they were reflected in the water and agreed that it had been a very happy day indeed.

Tomorrow I'll tell you about what we did next on our Cornish adventure.
See you then x