From Bodmin to Beyond

On Friday Carmen took us walking on Bodmin Moor to visit the Cheesewring. The first thing that struck me was that there was no cost, unlike so many of its contemporaries. We had been walking for only 5 minutes when we came across not one but two stone circles. No one really knows how long they have been there and I was so pleased to see that it wasn’t as touristy as other places we had visited. The silence was palpable and heavy, if you believe those sorts of things, which I happen to do. I have a healthy respect for the untapped power over here. Standing in the circles was an absolute priviledge and a wonderful moment!


The Hurlers




The Cheesewring is a massive mount that was used by giants hundreds of years ago. Legend has it they used to roll cheese down the hill for sport, which still occurs in Gloustershire. The area around the Cheesewring is dotted with stacked stones, heather, gorse, bracken and other tough nasty thorny plants! The wind literally dominates over here, bending all foliage to its will. Here’s what happens when I leave my hair out on the moor:



We visited King Donoght’s Stone which was erected before his death in 982AD, and Trevethy Quoit, which is an unknown grave that was only recently covered in earth. It’s in a bit of a tricky place to find, so Paul & Carmen stopped a lady on the side of the road for directions:

Carmen: Excuse me, could you tell me where to find the Trevethy Quoit?

Woman: (pause). Oh, um, hmmm.

Paul: That’s ok, we’ll find it.

Woman: No no, I’m just trying to think of the way for you. One way is to turn around, follow the road to the end and turn left where you’ll come to a lane.

Paul: Yep.

Woman: Now, don’t go that way …

In the end we happened to come across a lovely friend of Carmen’s who drove us there :)


A Quiot

Saturday saw us visiting the tiny seaside town at St Agnes which hosts a great little shop called the Sugar Shack which sits off the main road and sells all sorts of vintage knicknacks. Check it out here.



All of us in the band (bar Bridge) are huge fans of the BBC show Doc Martin which stars Martin Clunes (also known as Paul's doppleganger. Google him and see for yourself!). It was fascinating to wander the streets of Port Isaac where the show is filmed and see the locations firsthand. Port Isaac is a beautiful little fishing town and we parked in the harbour. Literally. The tide was out, and the battered parking attendant (who looked more like a fisherman extra on the show) told us we had to be out by 3:30pm at the latest. We left at 3:15, and it was pretty hairy, the water sure does come in quick!




Of course, you can’t explore Cornwall and not see the Men-an-Tol. So we did. It was fascinating and incredibly eerie. The Men-an-Tol is situated in open moorland and the silence is so still and heavy. I felt as though my presence was being monitored. After a fairly lenghtly silence I said to Paul & Bridge:

‘It’s so quiet here, you can’t even hear any birds.’ (bird tweets merrily nearby). Paul & Bridge start laughing hysterically. Epic fail!


Yeah, but what does it *do*?


You can look through it and see goblins

We were recommended by Steve & Carmen to have a dinner of fish and chips at sunset over Cape Cornwall.



It was, to say the least, a wonderful recommendation and end to our day!