Cruising

Another super day. The sun was ducking and diving between the fluffy clouds - but it was essentially a lovely day. Plan for today was made up on the spot, over breakfast - you can’t beat a little spontaneity. We grabbed our stuff and made our way back towards the Quay. At the first Quay there would be a couple of hours to wait for the boat. We walked on to the second quay at the far end of town. Here the boat would depart in 5 minutes.

We paid our money and boarded the boat. It manoeuvred out of its mooring and puttered out into the estuary. The captain kept up a running commentary, telling us of the 4 dry docks, the Royal Fleet Auxiliary vessels, the research ships, and the various sites along the shore. The boat headed out of the harbour, round Pendents Point and across towards the mouth of the Helford River.

It was peaceful and relaxing way to spend a Sunday. The waves lapping at the side of the boat, the sun reflecting off the sea and tea available from the galley.

He pointed out Rosemullion Head, Mawnan Shear, Toll Point and recommended various pubs and restaurants in the villages that could be seen along the bank. We made our way up the Helford River. Durgan to our right and the gardens of Glendurgan and Trebah nestling behind on the valley sides. On to Helford Passage on the right and Helford on our left. He pointed out the house that was Daphne Du Maurier’s “Mandalay” and where the original film Rebecca was made. He pointed out Roger Taylor’s (of Queen) house, and one that was on the market for 5 million last year. Clearly the locals in that area were “well heeled”. We chugged onwards. As it was low tide we couldn’t go too much further and had to turn round near the mouth of Frenchman’s Creek.

On the way back the boat kept closer to the shore and the Captain pointed out the various beaches and spots favoured by anglers or water sports enthusiasts: Maenporth, Swanpool, and Gyllyngvase being the main contenders. Finally, we rounded Pendennis Point and looped back to the town It was a lovely way to spend a couple of hours on a bright and calm day, such as today.

Back in town, it was clear that the water had dropped about 10 feet in the time we had been away. The tides here have a huge rise and fall. We climbed back up to the Quay and wandered back into town. We stopped at “The Lookout” for a bite of lunch. The staff seemed very nice and whilst the Silver Vixen’s Philly steak was good, the Gorse Fox’s seafood platter was rather ordinary. Never mind, it filled a hole.