I’m to be the Celebrant at my first wedding in two years. We had the rehearsal on the beach today and afterwards, the lovely Mr S and I walked along the sand at a very low tide.It was sunny and quiet and wonderful! The visitors have almost all gone.
Chapel Porth beach
Seaweed tree
Tiny Crab
Bolster’s Cave
Sorry, can’t post tonight, too caught up in the game at Wimbledon!
P.S. 6th July
So sorry that Emma Raducanu had to withdraw with illness.I’m not usually a tennis fan but I find her inspirational and send her all the very best for her future
It was such a lovely morning we went to Chapelporth at 8.30 at low tide with the intention of walking along the beach to under the cliffs where Wheal Coates looks over the sea. However the low tide wasn’t low at all! We couldn’t go around the first rock and as soon as the tide turned, it raced inshore. There is a facebook page called Preposterous Parking in Cornwall which often shows cars caught by the tide!
Then it rained all afternoon and torrents fell in the evening. Here’s a bit of the garden through a very wet window.
Just the best day! We woke to sunshine, had a traditional birthday breakfast of croissants and after opening my presents and taking calls from our children, we went for a walk at Chapelporth. We took sandwiches with us and had hot chocolates from the cafe (its last day open as too many visitors from higher tier areas.) Just look at that sea!
The road to Chapelporth
The winter storms have scoured the top of the beach of sand and exposed the bedrock
Sunshine!
We arrived home to find a card and some glorious camellia blossoms from old friends on the doorstep. They are a more vibrant pink than the photo shows and are flowering in many gardens around us already brightening up the winter.
This afternoon we walked to the allotment and had tea and cake with our lovely neighbour, her sister and another allotmenteer, coming home in a sprinkling of snow which settled briefly on our baby Christmas tree and finding Dear Friends who had called by to drop off my cards. We are so lucky to have so many lovely people in our lives.
Dinner a deux tonight was confit duck, maple glazed carrots and parsnips, kalettes from our garden and baby Cornish potatoes – scrumptious. Dessert is still to come.
A favourite walk today along the beach at Chapelporth and tonight another Thali with friends at the Eco Park – a lovely, almost normal, day.
Wheal Coates
Today, our eldest daughter has come to spend the day with us, the first time since lockdown – and what a day we’ve had. She arrived in her best car, an Audi A8,in glorious red to celebrate our day together.
We went down to Chapel Porth, a family favourite and almost had the beach to ourselves.
We bought Cornish pasties for lunch, of course, and after lunch sat in the sunshine in the garden enjoying each other’s company.
M, like me, has a passion for making and story telling – it runs in the family. She has made some lovely 3D pieces for us and this evening has made a new button for our loo. It was lost some years ago and today, M has 3D printed us a new part. She brought her 3D printer down especially to do this job and it has been fascinating to watch the whole process.
Above is the prototype starting to be printed and the final piece is below.
The only one like this in the world!
To celebrate further, I made a new recipe, Blueberry and Cream Cheese Crostata and it was truly delicious.
A brilliant trade happened today! One of our choir friends runs the lovely cafe at Chapelporth, renowned for its Hedgehog ice creams, Croque Monsieur and homemade Flapjacks. She and her staff, who have just been allowed to re-open, were in need of some masks so several of her friends have made some. R came this morning to collect the three I have made and brought us some of her delicious Flapjacks.
Another lovely choir friend does extra bits of shopping for us and today found a big box of cherries, a bargain! 
We found a very small green and yellow spider on the Peony today, busy spinning a web.
We visited our favourite spot today, Chapelporth with a walk up the cliffs to Wheal Coates.The cafe is not yet open so no Croque Monsieur or Ice-cream Hedgehogs…. Click on any photo for a bigger view and the caption.
Daughter No 1 is with us for her birthday which is lovely. We have had a splendid day enjoying first the Redruth St Piran’s parade,
The poster
A very busy Fore Street and the Town Clock
Photo by M
then a trip to Chapel Porth for a walk up to Wheal Coates and lunch at the Beach Cafe (their Croque Monsieurs are truly scrumptious!) The wind was so wild with gusts of 30-40mph that I abandoned the cliff top walk and left the other two to it! They did return! One of her siblings and family had rung to sing Happy Birthday just as they reached Wheal Coates.
They did come back over the hill
Then we called in at Kresen Kernow to show M the wonderful new/old building
A Cornish chough engraved on the doors of Kresen Kernow
and have just finished our Birthday dinner of Confit Duck with Blackberry sauce followed by Chocolate Torte. Another sibling and family rang while we were cooking dinner. Happiness all round!
Such treasures to be found on the almost empty beach today as you will see in the gallery. Click on any photo for detail and caption.
Reflections
Commentator Award
