Times Change
A ‘Lockdown’ walk took me to this spot on the banks of the river Lynher. As I took in the familiar scene I couldn’t help but recall the times, more than 20 years ago, that my children and I spent peacefully sitting with our legs dangling over the edge of the pontoon, fishing for crabs, which were then released en masse from the bucket in a race down the beach to the water’s edge.
How times change. The pontoon has sunken, quite literally, into decay, and large red and white notices warn the intrepid intruder that all liability is disclaimed. However, when considering the changes wrought over time to this quiet creek, the demise of a jetty is only part of its continued evolution.
In 1068, two years after the Norman Conquest, King William came to Devon and Cornwall to put down an uprising. He ordered that castles be built, including one at Dunheved in Launceston and at another at Trematon. A site 1 ½ miles from the village, overlooking the Lynher estuary, then a 'highway' serving Cornwall's second most important town, St Germans, was chosen. By 1070 the "motte and bailey" castle had been constructed, and control of the manor transferred to it.
The group of cottages on the west bank of the creek is associated with the millpond. It dates back to 1613, and is an early example of harnessing the tides to provide power. As the tide goes out and comes in, the water rushes through the narrow channel between the old mill and the stone boundary wall, turning the now removed miller's wheel.
The viaduct carries the main London to Penzance railway line across the creek. It was built in 1908 to replace one of several wooden crossings erected by by Isambard Kingdom Brunel in the mid 19th century.
Renovations and new buildings can be seen in the hamlet, but ignoring the notices, I gingerly inched my way out a short distance on the rotten planks to adopt a viewpoint that would cut them out. Today was for reminiscing.
Times Change
A ‘Lockdown’ walk took me to this spot on the banks of the river Lynher. As I took in the familiar scene I couldn’t help but recall the times, more than 20 years ago, that my children and I spent peacefully sitting with our legs dangling over the edge of the pontoon, fishing for crabs, which were then released en masse from the bucket in a race down the beach to the water’s edge.
How times change. The pontoon has sunken, quite literally, into decay, and large red and white notices warn the intrepid intruder that all liability is disclaimed. However, when considering the changes wrought over time to this quiet creek, the demise of a jetty is only part of its continued evolution.
In 1068, two years after the Norman Conquest, King William came to Devon and Cornwall to put down an uprising. He ordered that castles be built, including one at Dunheved in Launceston and at another at Trematon. A site 1 ½ miles from the village, overlooking the Lynher estuary, then a 'highway' serving Cornwall's second most important town, St Germans, was chosen. By 1070 the "motte and bailey" castle had been constructed, and control of the manor transferred to it.
The group of cottages on the west bank of the creek is associated with the millpond. It dates back to 1613, and is an early example of harnessing the tides to provide power. As the tide goes out and comes in, the water rushes through the narrow channel between the old mill and the stone boundary wall, turning the now removed miller's wheel.
The viaduct carries the main London to Penzance railway line across the creek. It was built in 1908 to replace one of several wooden crossings erected by by Isambard Kingdom Brunel in the mid 19th century.
Renovations and new buildings can be seen in the hamlet, but ignoring the notices, I gingerly inched my way out a short distance on the rotten planks to adopt a viewpoint that would cut them out. Today was for reminiscing.