June 27: Cornwall

Sylvia beaming in once again in the land of all things Poldark.  I slept as well as I have ever slept last night, lulled by the wind and the soft murmur of the sea.  Perranporth, where I am staying, is a seaside resort town on the north coast of Cornwall.  It is one mile east of the St. Agnes Heritage Coastline, and around 8 miles SW of the town of Newquay—in case you are looking at a map.  Perranporth and its 3-mile long beach face the Atlantic Ocean.  It has a population of 3,006.  Its modern name comes from Porth Peran, the Cornish for the cove of St. Piran, the patron saint of Cornwall.  He founded St. Piran’s Oratory on Penhale Sands near Perranporth in the 7th century.  Buried under the sand for many centuries, his body was unearthed in the 19th century.  

The town of Perranporth is centered on a main street, and is a popular surfing location.  At the south end of the beach are cliffs with natural arches, natural seastacks, and tin-mining adits.  Extensive sand dunes back the beach.  The beach at Parranporth is one of Cornwall’s most popular and beautiful.  It has been well known as a bathing beach for hundreds of years, and is known as a surfer’s paradise.  

After a good breakfast of blueberry pancakes, two Americans and I met at the van Karen was driving, for the day’s activities.  Later on in the day, a mother and daughter joined us as well.  As we got to know each other better throughout the day, we discovered we had the filming of the Poldark saga in common, so there was much to say—having seen the series about 12 times by now, I could join in with my two cents’ worth!

The itinerary had been changed today from its original intent, but we saw so much that the order does not really matter.  The weather was sunny and mild, but windy, especially on those cliffs.  I had to be gingerly when it came to walking, as my left foot is still tender, but I pressed on nevertheless.  

Our first stop was the church of St. Winwallloe, the site of the filming of Caroline Penvennen and Dwight Enys’s wedding in the Poldark saga.  St. Winwalloe was the founder and first abbot of an abbey in Brittany, France.  He died in 532 and was venerated as a saint at the abbey until the Viking invasions in 914 forced the monks to flee with his body to other locations in Brittany.  His relics were often taken on procession through towns, but his shrine was destroyed during the French Revolution in 1793.  His feast day is April 28.  

From there we drove to the town of Falmouth for lunch. It is located in the SW of Cornwall, and it is known for its deep natural harbor. The couple from Kentucky and I had lunch together —our first Cornish pasties—a kind of empanada with beef, potatoes, and onions.  I thought it was good, if not terribly inspired.  I personally think a good salsa was needed to rev the whole thing up another notch.  If I had to grade it, I would say a C.  Alexandra:  Elad would not be ecstatic about this dish—as foodies, I think you would agree with my rating!

Our next port of call was the cathedral city of Truro. It is Cornwall’s county town, sole city and center for administration, leisure and retail trading.  People from Truro are called Truronians—I kid you not.  Ross Poldark came to this town many a time for business purposes, since it was a market city and the site where his banker, Horace Pascoe, had his office.

From Truro it was back to Perranporth via St. Agnes village, specifically to see a place mentioned by Prudie Payntor, Ross Poldark’s servant—Stippy Stappy lane, which consists of a row of cottages along a steep terrace built when the town of St. Agnes had a working harbor just down the hill from the terrace.  They were built to be ship captains’ houses.  St. Agnes village itself is the very essence of rural Cornwall and a bright and thriving site.

From the village of St. Agnes we drove to St. Agnes Head, where Ross and Demelza said their final goodbyes to their daughter Julia; where Ross had been arrested (see Series1), and where so many of the dramatic moments happened.  St. Agnes Head is now one of the most famous clifftops in the world.  It is in a designated Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty—a rugged landscape and sheltered beach make it spectacular.  It still has iconic mine buildings, reminders of the past when the mines Wheal Charlotte, Wheal Coates and Trevellas were still in production.  The coast has the last remnants of the heathland which once covered most of Cornwall.  

From there we drove back to Perranporth.  Plan to do some reading tonight, and enjoy the shank of the evening, since rain is forecast tomorrow at 90% and winds are going to pick up as well.