Portscatho January 2017: Part 4

Another day, another walk. But this time with five friends who had come to visit for the day. Our route, just 4 miles, took us across the peninsular from Portscatho to Roseland church and from there we traced a circular track around Messack Point. Windy in parts but dry. Lots of vistas and good company, with a very nice meal at the Plume and Feathers at Portscatho at the end of it.

This map shows the position of St Just and the size of the parish of the same name. Although much, much smaller than St Mawes, St Just is the parish church and that's where all the burials (and baptisms and marriages) from St Mawes have taken place over the centuries.

The church of St Just in Roseland, founded in 505 by St Just, a son of an early Cornish king, Geraint. The location of this church, situated as it is on the banks of a creek, makes it a very popular tourist attraction. And understandably so as it is in a lovely tranquil spot. Roseland, by the way, derives from the Cornish word for heath, rhos.

The view across the creek from the church. It is a popular mooring spot for yachts as it has direct access to sailing in the Carrick Roads. All of the yachts have been taken out of the water for the winter months.

Inside the light and airy church. It has a very nice atmosphere.

The church was full of many colourful kneelers, most of which had an animal or plant theme. These few were about remembrance.Taken with some friends in the USA in mind.

Set in a sub-tropical garden planted up by a Victorian plantsman called Tresseder, the graveyard rambles over a very wide and hilly area and is an intriguing jumble of styles and ages. So much to look at, so little time to do so.

Here's one that piqued my interest. Of all the headstones in all the graveyards we visit, why is it that those with a WW1 connection leap out at me? More often than not, I don't seek them out deliberately but I still come across them. One of the inscriptions reads: Richard Amyas Preston, RAMC, killed in France 1918 aged 26. The gauntlet has been thrown down and the challenge accepted. What can we find out about Richard Amyas Preston? Actually quite a lot for very little effort.

Richard was educated at the London Hospital, but before taking his M.B., B.S. degree he served in the Balkan War of 1912-13. When the Great War broke out he was holding an appointment at the Poplar Hospital, which he resigned on receiving a commission in the Royal Army Medical Corp. Richard originally joined the R.A.M.C. Special Reserve at the rank of Lieutenant on 6th August 1914. He mobilized on the 12th, then entered the war in France on 20th August 1914. He was promoted to Captain on 1st April 1915, then gained a permanent regular army commission at the rank of Lieutenant (T/Captain) on 1st January 1917. On 10th September 1917 he was given the rank of acting Lieutenant Colonel whilst in command of the 58th Field Ambulance. He gained the full rank of Captain on 12th February 1918. Richard was mortally wounded while attending to the removal of patients under heavy bombardment, dying the same day (7th June 1918). He is buried in the Sezanne Communal Cemetery at Marne in France. He was clearly a very brave man as he was awarded the Military Cross and the Croix de Guerre and was mentioned in dispatches twice.

We came across this carved quotation by a wooden bridge over a stream as we dropped into Messack Wood. I was mightily impressed when one of our walkers was able to quote, without hesitation, the rest of it at length. It's from the Desiderata, a prose poem from 1927 by Max Ehrmann. Why was it where it was? No idea. Google failed me on this one.

Not too sure what I did wrong with this shot of a Curlew as it seems to be in focus.

There were quite a few Redshanks poking around in the mud. Shanks = old name for legs and, guess what, they've got red legs.

A single Camelia with, I think, an early White-tailed Bumble Bee out on a forage.

And it was back along the banks of the creek to our starting point at the church.