January at Poldhu Cove: Part 4

Another walk preceded by a free bus ride. This time we bussed from Lizard village to Kuggar and then dropped down to follow the Coastal Footpath west to Church Cove and thence back to our starting point, a distance of 5 miles. A good day for being out, although the temperature was a little cooler than yesterday. Up and downy and fairly rigorous in parts: overall I'd class it as 'moderate'. Great seascapes, as per usual, but this walk had a few extra items to pique our interest.

A short way into our walk, at Poltesco, we came across the ruins of what had been a large industrial site. Attached to the wall of one of the remaining walls was this interpretive plaque. It was the site of a Victorian factory built to cut, process and polish the local serpentine into jewellery, vases etc. Queen Victoria was a big fan apparently. The wheel pit to the left of the schematic is still clearly visible, as are the two buildings to the right. 

Two things struck me as unusual about this building. Firstly, the bit sticking out of the top door, which I reckoned was a nesting box for a barn owl. Secondly, the little 'door' on the bottom right of the middle door. I think this was a high level cat flap. If the cat could get up there, it was more than welcome to go in. And if you look carefully, right at the top you may be able to make out the initials LSC - Lizard Serpentine Company.

One of the most aesthetically pleasing footpath bridges that we've come across. Each upright was topped with a lump of serpentine. So, well done to the National Trust for using a little imagination and making good use of our annual subscription.

The fishing village of Cadgwith Cove where we'd hoped to grab a drink and a snack. We were out of luck - Cadgwith Cove was shut!

Cadgwith Cove is still a working fishing village, specialising in crabs and lobsters. Sadly, no opportunities to sample the fare. Oooh, I do like a pot of fresh white crab meat. No need for any lemon or vinegar, the taste of the sea is enough. A treat for another day, methinks.

This is the Lizard lifeboat at sea. A few minutes before I took this photograph, I was looking at the life boat station and thinking that it would be great if I could get a shot of it coming down the ramp. Too much of a coincidence, I thought, and dismissed the idea. One loud bang later and the life boat was out and on the waves. An opportunity lost but hooray for the RNLI.

St Wynwallow's church at yet another Church Cove. You can see bands of local serpentine in the construction of the tower. Yes, it's the same St Winwalloe that gave his name to the church at the other Church Cove. And he's also known as St Winwallow. For someone who was a hermit, he certainly got around.

We both love rooting around graveyards because you get a real glimpse of community life. One headstone that stood out was this military one dedicated to: A sailor of the Second World War. SS Gairpossa. 16th February 1941 What was the story behind this? Back at the cottage, I was able to find out the fascinating truth. I quote at length below from a number of sources.

The SS Gairsoppa was a British steam merchant ship built in Jarrow and launched in 1919. After a long civilian career, she saw service during the Second World War. She was named in honour of the town of Gersoppa on the banks of river Sharavathi in Karnataka, India.
She sailed with several convoys, before joining Convoy SL 64 in February 1941. Gairsoppa left the convoy when she exhausted the majority of her fuel and was making her way to Galway, Ireland, when a German U-boat fired a torpedo that sank her and sent 85 people to their deaths. It was thought that three lifeboats launched, but only one in the charge of the second officer, R. H. Ayres, with four Europeans and two Lascars on board, made it away; the rest of the crew was lost. By the 13th day only the second officer, the radio officer, and one seaman gunner remained alive. Ayres and his boat reached the Cornish coast two weeks later at Caerthillian Cove. The boat capsized before the Lizard lifeboat could reach them, and only the second officer was pulled from the sea alive. Two of the men aboard, Robert Frederick Hampshire (Radio Officer), and an unnamed Indian seaman, died trying to get ashore. They are buried at St Wynwallow's. Ayres was appointed a Member of the Order of the British Empire (MBE) for his attempts to rescue his fellow sailors; he lived until 1992.
The wreck of the Gairsoppa was discovered in 2011, and it was announced that an operation to recover its cargo of silver bullion, with an estimated value of £150 million, would begin in 2012. On 18 July 2012 Odyssey Marine Exploration, of Tampa, Florida, reported that it had recovered 48 tons of silver, making this probably "the deepest, largest precious metal recovery in history" (as the Gairsoppa rests in 4,700 metres (15,400 ft) of water).

The interior of St Wynwallow's. We both felt it was a very warm feeling church. One of its claims to fame is the fact that it was the last in which a sermon was preached in the old Cornish language (in the 1690s).

It also has an amazing collection of embroidered kneelers. Each place in the pews had a uniquely designed kneeler, the themes of which were many and various, ranging from poppies to GWR steam engines and, of course, many relating to the sea. The one I most liked is this one of a lighthouse in a storm. Such skill.