Just a Sunday afternoon stroll

Just another stroll on a Sunday afternoon. This time we were on the western fringes of Bodmin Moor.

The walk started and ended in the car park at Minions and the route took us to the hamlet of Henwood and then back along fields to our starting point. A beautifully clear afternoon, with wide ranging views all the way around. My GPS clocked the distance at 4.65miles, which pleased me as I was nursing an injured knee.

Heading towards Henwood along the old mineral railway. Sharpitor is in the distance. At this point, the mineral railway would have been carrying stone from the quarries deeper into Bodmin Moor. You can see the granite sleeper beds onto which the metal rail tracks would have been bolted. On some of the sleepers, the bolt holes are still visible.

Dropping down off the mineral railway towards the hamlet of Henwood. Although there were already a number of farms at Henwood it was not until the expansion of the Phoenix Mines and Cheesewring Quarries that the village became a significant settlement. With over 600 employed at Wheal Phoenix and 240 at Cheesewring quarry the need for accommodation and
services became increasingly acute. Rows of workers cottages were developed and farm outbuildings altered to provide additional accommodation. 

Autumn is definitely with us. If proof is needed, take a look at all of the Rowan berries.

Down into a small patch of deciduous woodland.

Buried in the woodland was this building, with what looked like two tanks. I originally thought that I might be looking at an old mill but these tanks strike me as being more industrial than that. Perhaps they were associated with mining activity if some sort.

Feeding time for some calves at Knowle Farm, home of the reknowned and rather delicious Cornish Blue Cheese.

More autumnal berries, Holly this time.

Looking eastwards towards Dartmoor in the distance. Just a landscape but what a view.

The engine house of Wheal Phoenix, a tin and copper mine just outside of Minions. Very successful in its time but, as is typical of many of the mines in this area, it was not productive for very long and by the 1870s it was well passed its prime. It was last worked during WW1.

I love the sound of running water. Just a small stream coming down off the moor.