Buckfast Abbey

Though there has been an Abbey on this site since 1018, the monastic buildings were stripped in the reformation ( 1500s) and the place left in ruins till the late 1800s.  Its a Benedictine monastery, which - though I'm not an expert on the differences between the orders, I believe they are a very community based one, and I understand that one of the main rules as a Benedictine monk, is the one about self sufficiency.

The huge church is a testament to the hard working monks of the time ( early 1900s) who rebuilt and reconstructed the building to an incredible state. We couldn't go into alot of the other buildings, but I believe that the church is built onto part of a gothic mansion which was built out of the ruins from the original Abbey.. all a bit confusing - but thats the way of building and rebuilding over the centuries.

I do love the stained glass you find in the churches - oh and the frescos on the ceilings.. Below is a picture of the fresco on the highest ceiling of the church. 

St Michaels Mount Cornwall

We had such high hopes today.  With such glorious weather yesterday, we had thought our luck would have still run high and we'd miss all the rain and gales predicted.  No such luck sadly.  During the week, we had dropped into Marazine and looked at St Michaels Mount, checked the tour times for the castle and boat times for the return trips.

The below picture is one I took that first day - see how its low tide.. and you can see the island?

The castle is settled into the hillside of a small island just off the beach. You can access it via a walkway on low tide. Though the gardens are still in their winter bareness, I was looking forward to wandering the island and discovering the little nooks and crannies.

We arrived in a gale of wild wind, and it didn't get much better. The signs to where we were to meet the boat were half torn off from the wind and sent us in loops around the beachfront. we saw a boat being pushed over the waves near the island, so were a little glad when we couldn't actually find the boat ramp or where to meet it.  We since found out that it was too rough a day to take the boat - so all had been called off.

and... here is our view today.. just a little different yes?

Its one of those places we will defiantly come back to - in the summertime.. you guessed it - when its brighter and calmer.

First training walk for the Camino - Kynance Cove

With such a beautiful day ahead of us, we decided to explore a nearby coastline walk called Kynance Cove. Its only a few Kms from The Lizard and is considered by many as one of the most beautiful parts of the coastline in the UK.

Even with the grey skies and the crashing seas, I could see that it would be a glorious spot in the summertime ( as is, arguably anywhere in the UK)

Kynance Cove has been a popular spot for sightseers for eons.. though Queen Victoria made it a definite tourist destination after she made her trip here. The stones - a black shiny type called serpentine is - apparently - the highest concentration in any place in the world here. With the crashing waves into a tiny stony cove and hidden caves,  its a romantic spot screaming to tell tales of pirates and smugglers. Whether there were any actually here is another story, but the Victorians loved a good story.. and truth often just got in the way of a good one.

The teahouse and buildings which stood on the cliff face for nearly a century have been pulled down by National Trust in order for the natural beauty to return to the spot.

At the moment, the hills are covered in gorse - all brown and spiky; and I had to explain to the kids how beautiful it will look in the spring when the heather and wildflowers come out.

In anycase.... the track was slippery and muddy, and I need to remember to actually get our walking poles out and use them next time.. they are in the boot of the car - so no excuses!  It was a few Km round walk - down to the cove and back up over the cliffs - so a perfect starter training walk for us and the Camino. We plan only to be walking 12 - 15 km a day - so nice and steady with opportunities to stop and enjoy the scenery - for me to take LOTS of photos and to explore the little villages we go to.

It was nearing high tide when we got down to the cove. The waves were crashing in every seventh - so it was a good opportunity for me to let the kids watch and predict when it was a good time to try to cross over the stones and to safety to the next rocky beach.

I felt so blessed we had a great day weatherwise today. After a few days or dreary misery, it was good to get some fresh air and warm the leg muscles up.